Meetings: Minnesota's Hospitality Journal

Hey there Sports Fans! Big weekend in the Twin Cities

If you're interested in Minnesota sports at all, this weekend is pretty spectacular. Not only are a lot of teams playing in a short amount of time, but these are BIG games, folks. A glimpse:

Minnesota Twins: We'll know after tomorrow, or perhaps even tonight, if the Twins are going to make it into the post season. But, even if they don't, this weekend's series against Kansas City is a huge one. It's the last chance for fans and players (past and present) alike to say good-bye to the Metrodome. Sure, we gripe about the Dome and it's unbaseball-like atmosphere, but that bad boy has kept us warm and dry for nearly 30 seasons and the parting is definitely bittersweet.  

Golden Gopher Football: The Gophers play the Wisconsin Badgers this Saturday (11 am) at TCF Bank Stadium, and if you know anything about Gopher sports, you know this is a huge rivalry. Coeds from both schools are expected to tailgate and fill the seats - so local residents miles away better be prepared for some noise.

Twin Cities Marathon: The Most Beautiful Urban Marathon in the Country takes off for the 28th time this Sunday. The race weaves from the Metrodome to the Capitol. This marathon is just one of the reasons the Twin Cities makes it to the top of so many national "healthy city" lists.

Minnesota Vikings: A day after the Twins say good-bye to the Dome, the Vikes are going to heat it back up for Monday Night Football. I don't think there's a bigger football game this season as Brett Favre takes on his old team, the Green Bay Packers. More Wisconsinites will be crossing the border (or just staying over from the Gopher game on Saturday) to show off their cheese heads and cheer for The Pack. Will they boo Favre? Will the old guy pull out a win? We'll see.

Minnesota Wild: Even though it seems like hockey just ended, the Wild open their season Tuesday night against the Ducks. New coach, new players, new uniforms, new year - what's in store for the State of Hockey?

So sports fans, what are you most looking forward to this weekend? Me: Twins and Vikes, respectively.

--Amanda Fretheim Gates
Managing Editor

Ask Your Colleagues: The Best Advice You've Received

Every day we receive advice from friends, colleagues and strangers—some good, some bad. Occasionally one piece of advice hits home and helps in a truly useful way. Inspired by that idea and by our cover story’s focus on mentoring we asked your peers to share the best career advice they ever received.

A: The best advice I’ve ever received came from a former employer, Chuck Parton. I was working for Chuck opening up Burger King restaurants in Ohio in the ‘80s. He told me, “You should work at what you enjoy doing.” I realized that I wasn’t really enjoying what I was doing; I liked the people and liked working for Chuck, but it was not what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. Shortly after that Chuck sold his business, so my wife and I started looking around for what we wanted to do. In 1987 we purchased our first bed and breakfast: the Rivertown Inn (sold it in 1999). We enjoyed the business so much that in 1993 we open our second B&B, the Cover Park Manor [in Stillwater, Minn.] where we live today. In 1995 we opened the Water Street Inn [also in Stillwater] with its restaurant, Irish Pub and conference/banquet area. I would agree with Chuck Parton that it is important to enjoy what you do.

Chuck Dougherty, Innkeeper and Owner
Water Street Inn and Cover Park Manor

What was the best advice you ever received? Leave a comment and let us know. For other responses, check out the Ask Your Colleagues section in our Fall issue.

Vision Awards: Event Recap

Last night Meetings: Minnesota's Hospitality Journal welcomed nearly 200 attendees from all sectors of the hospitality industry (planner, vendor, venue...) to the Chambers Hotel for the first annual Vision Awards. After snacking on hors d'oeuvres and tasting our signature drink, attendees gathered in the ART room to celebrate our many nominees. Editor Joel Schettler kicked off the event by talking about the importance of honoring best practices in our industry. After learning of our seven winners (see list below) attendees networked and mingled in the Eden patio and ART room. Thank you very much to all our sponsors and our hosts at Chambers. It was an amazing evening and we are so happy to celebrate our nominees and winners. For a play-by-play of the evening's events, please check our Twitter feed in this post or search #mnvisionawards on Twitter.

AND THE VISION AWARDS GO TO ...

• INNOVATION: Aimee Cheek, Corporate Marketing Manager, CSM Lodging
• INSPIRATION: Jim Saccoman, General Manager, Ramada Mall of America
• PLANNER'S CHOICE-MY FAVORITE VENDOR: Heather Farrier, Floral Design & Decor Manager and the team from Festivities
• LEADERSHIP: Robb Hall, General Manager, Depot Minneapolis
• CUSTOMER SERVICE: Merry Beckmann Butikis, Convention Services Manager, Saint Paul Convention and Visitors Authority
• STEWARDSHIP: Scott Herold, CEO of Rock the Cause
• EVENT OF THE YEAR: Jennifer Braun, Director of Strategic Events, TRIAD Conferences

Read all about these winners and why they received these honors in the fall issue of the magazine. Congratulations all!

UPDATE: Check out photographer Katrina Hanneman's favorite photos of the event on her blog. Thanks, Katrina.

Live from the Vision Awards

Missing the first Meetings: Minnesota's Hospitality Journal Vision Awards tonight (Sept. 24, 2009, at Chambers Hotel)? Want to get the inside scoop? You are in the right place. We'll be tweeting (@MeetingsMHJ) from the event and posting those tweets and any others with the hashtag #mnvisionawards right here. In addition to announcing our winners, we'll talk about the event space, the hospitality professionals we meet and congratulate our nominees. Tomorrow we'll post some photos and share links to the fall issue of the magazine, where you can read more about our winners.

Say Cheese

There are many ways to be a part of Meetings: Minnesota's Hospitality Journal. In each issue we share local and national industry news in Openers and Notebook and welcome you to share your announcements for our consideration. But that's not all. We have a special section devoted to showcasing your meetings and events:  Smile File. Just send us photos and help us fill these pages with your smiling faces and creative events. Everything from awards ceremonies and team-building activities to corporate parties and annual meetings get the spotlight here. Our fall issue hits desks this Friday, but we're already working on our winter issue. Please take a minute to think if you might have a few images from late summer or fall meetings and events you want to share with the magazine. Then follow the instructions below:

1) E-mail high res digital images to ebayrd@greenspring.com or upload to our site (Images should be 300 dpi;. Don't know what that means? Then just make sure you are sending the original file--those that are 1MB or more are usually big enough).

2) E-mail a document listing the basic information about the event (what, when and where are key) as well as photo credits (ID all the people you can) and the name of the photographer.

3) Send before Oct. 16.

Feel free to get in touch if you have questions. We look forward to hearing from you.

-- Ellie M. Bayrd
Associate Editor

State of the Industry Survey Countdown

On Friday, Oct. 2, 2009, we'll be closing down our State of the Industry Survey and begin examining the results of the sixth annual survey. So much has changed over the past year that we are really looking forward to comparing last year's results to this year's results. Last year we asked planners and vendors to share how their budgets had changed over 2008.  Here's what our survey participants said:

What do you think? How different are budgets now? Click on over to our survey and tell us what you think about that and several other topics related to the local hospitality industry and your role in the industry. Then pick up our winter issue in a few months to learn what we found out and see how the status of the hospitality industry in Minnesota compares nationally.

Anyone who plays a role in the local hospitality industry is encouraged to participate. That includes full- and part-time planners (you count even if "planner" isn't your official title) and anyone who provides services to the industry. All survey participants are eligible to win a weekend getaway at Cove Point Lodge and all receive $10 off admission to our State of the Industry Event. 

We look forward to hearing from you and hope you will be able to attend our State of the Industry Event on Feb. 2, 2010, at Saint Paul RiverCentre.

Thanks, the editors of Meetings: Minnesota's Hospitality Journal

Mother Earth News, Great Places You've Never Heard Of: Lanesboro, Minn.

Congrats to Lanesboro for making Mother Earth News' 2009 list of Great Places You've (Maybe) Never Heard Of. The oldest magazine dedicated to the topic of sustainable living (with a circulation of some 475,000), through interviews and research, picked 11 communities to call out this year, including Rock Port, Mo., Walla Walla, Wash., and Oakland, Calif.

The magazine credits Lanesboro's natural and cultural offerings per capita stating, "Among the towns featured in the 2009 list, none has such a remarkable array of options for so small a population — just under 800 residents." The magazine cites the bike trails, the arts organizations (Commonweal Theater and Cornucopia Art Center), its local farming connections and the town's ability to preserve its loveliness amongst flocks of tourists.

(For more information, particularly on the town's availability and usefulness for meeting planners, see our Location Location piece on Lanesboro from a couple years back.)

--Amanda Fretheim Gates
Managing Editor

Hopes and Dreams for the Minnesota Zoo

It was a goal of mine this past summer to make it to the Minnesota Zoo. The temporary Africa exhibit, with its giraffes and zebra, was the main reason, but those lovable grizzlies of Russia's Grizzly Coast came in a close second. After experiencing the grizzly den for the first time last year (when it opened), I applauded the zoo for making such a brilliant move. The Northern Trail was always good for some exercise, but it was always hit or miss for what you'd see (besides those crazy prairie dogs). But with Grizzly Coast and the way it's constructed, you're almost guaranteed an up-close view of those big brown bears - even if it's just to watch them slumber. Again, this addition to the zoo was long overdue, and with such an increase in attendance over the past year, obviously a brilliant move.

I have to also mention the recently renovated Minnesota Trail, with its log-cabin-like entrance, cushion-soft flooring and up-close views of bobcats and otters. No longer do you feel like you're walking in a dark, leaky hallway which just happens to have some animals to view along the way. Now it's cozy, modern, more roomy and, maybe it's just me, but the animals seem more active, too.

As we walked through the Tropics Trail, different sections were closed for renovations. It made it a tad disappointing for this trip to the zoo, but when I compared in my head the Tropics to the Minnesota Trail and Grizzly Coast, I was actually glad to learn they were working on improvements there, too. I was anxious to see what was in store.

And that's why this article from Sunday's Star Tribune made me smile. It profiles Lee Ehmke, CEO of the zoo, and talks about his big dreams for his home away from home: A new entrance (the current one has always seemed blah and crowded), a new theater and beautifully constructed public areas. You must read the article and hear Ehmke's passion for our zoo, and watch the video of what he hopes it will look like in the future. It nearly gave me chills it was so exciting to imagine. 

So, what's your favorite part of the Minnesota Zoo? If you haven't made it there in awhile, I encourage you to add it to your fun list.

--Amanda Fretheim Gates
Managing Editor

Aw shucks, you shouldn't have... Blog nominated for an EventProfs Blog Award

Earlier this week we were alerted to the fact that we were recently nominated for an EventProfs Blog Award, in the (new) category "Industry Advancement Blog," which honors blogs affiliated with industry publications. We couldn't be more pleased that our blog was recognized by the exact people we try to keep informed (and perhaps entertained) with each post and each issue of the magazine.

We're humbled and truly grateful for the nomination and pleased to be in the good company of the other nominees (from all around the world!). Voting opens next week, and we'd love your support.

[UPDATE: VOTE FOR US! Thanks!]

--Amanda Fretheim Gates
Managing Editor

A Look Back: September

Here's a glimpse at what we were talking about during past months of September.

September 2008
+ There's no question that the first part of September 2008 was all RNC all the time. You can find fun video, interesting arguments and feel-good thoughts. Plus so much more.

+ Once the RNC was over, we also talked about corporate responsibility.

+ Social media guru Chris Brogan released a personal branding e-book last year at this time.

+ We pointed you to a Web site that featured a helpful checklist on accessibility.

September 2007
+ ISES-MSP chapter received Chapter of the Year for the second year in a row at Eventworld.

+ The extravagant destination of Dubai, which has recently faltered in these economic times, was still going strong.

+ BusinessWeek named three local companies to its Best Places to Launch a Career list.

September 2005
+ This was the month of Hurricane Katrina. We talk about the struggles of the New Orleans CVB, and also the affects the hurricane had on hotel trainees.

+ We also highlight the different hotel preferences of different generations.

Every time I create this type of post, it forces me to remember the past. I think it's important and necessary to look back sometimes. What do you remember from past Septembers?

--Amanda Fretheim Gates
Managing Editor