For the upcoming summer issue, I did a story about how the meetings and events industry, both locally and nationwide, is paving the road to recovery from the economic downturn. Several of the industry-wide initiatives I discuss have marked some milestones this week, so here’s a re-cap:
- Paco Saldaña, director of guest services at the Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island, Fla., is the new Face of Travel. What does this mean? Well, a few months back, the U.S. Travel Association launched the “Faces of Travel” contest to show that the hospitality industry is made up of lots of honest, hardworking people, and that canceling corporate meetings only hurts these folks. Hospitality workers of all stripes entered YouTube videos, telling why they are the true face of travel. More than 16,000 people created videos and voted in the contest.
- In the wake of the “AIG Effect,” many companies have been afraid to hold meetings and events, for fear of looking lavish and wasteful. Although federal guidelines for meetings, events and incentive spending were meant for companies receiving bailout money, even financially sound companies have been nervous about holding events these past few months. Now, the U.S. Treasury Department has stated that all companies receiving taxpayer money must come up with a company-wide policy regulating corporate travel expenses. However, the Treasury left this policy-making up to the boards of each company, instead of handing down a government-made policy. The U.S. Travel Association, back in February, already drafted a model policy that companies can use to regulate their corporate travel spending. You can download the model policy and find other tools at the U.S. Travel Association's Meetings Mean Business Web site. As the site explains, "Although the Treasury Department's rules only apply to companies that have taken taxpayer assistance, these tools can be helpful with all businesses and associations."
- And finally, while a lot of the public debate about the excessiveness of meetings has subsided, the industry still has some influential advocates, as MeetingsNet blogger Sue Pelletier noted in her link to Ben Stein's CBS appearance just last week.
What signs do you see that the industry is on its way to recovering its image and vitality?
--Marni Ginther
Assistant Editor
Comments