Opinionated? You bet. Thoughtful? Check. Passionate? Without a doubt.
These are just a few of the sentiments that came out loud and clear when we asked MPI members to step up to the bully pulpit to share their thoughts in our annual “State of the Industry” report in this month’s issue of The Meeting Professional.
What is the biggest challenge facing our industry, we asked. Fear of taking risks. Mediocrity. Pushing the repeat button. Not being recognized as professionals. Not adapting to change.
What F&B trends are having the biggest impact at events? Cannabis-infused food and drinks. Instagrammable moments. Local sourcing.
What about wellness, #MeToo and empowerment for women, social media changes, human trafficking and diversity?
Our members spoke to all of those issues as well. Our annual report is owned by Managing Editor Blair Potter, a superb wordsmith who stepped away from his copy editing and production role to oversee this project. He was committed to finding a panel representative of our members and delivered a 10-page report filled with fascinating viewpoints.
Our members also weighed in on another important report in this month’s issue: Meetings Outlook, our quarterly, future-focused, signature research.
The Business Research Panel, made up of about 2,000 members, told us the business landscape remains stable, slightly favoring a seller’s market with strong indications of growth across attendance and hiring, giving meeting planners a prime opportunity to focus on crafting unique attendee experiences.
We also asked our panel about trending issues such as diversity and inclusion, unconscious bias and industry certification.
Together, these two reports represent a deep dive into many of the critically important themes resonating within the meeting and event industry, and I encourage you to spend time with these must-read stories.
Later this month, we’ll be publishing our first Professional Development Guide of 2019. This bi-annual digital publication, powered by MPI, includes information on planner scholarships, professional development opportunities, updates on MPI Academy webinars and much more. We’ll email a copy to all members, so be on the lookout for this informative resource.
I also want to encourage you to join us at the MPI World Education Congress (WEC), June 15-18 in Toronto. You’ll find articles with WEC-related content on pages 14, 20 and 34 in this issue, and there’s even more info, as well as registration information, available at mpi.org/wec19.
I hope to see you in Toronto.
Until next time…
Rich Luna
Editor in Chief
rluna@mpiweb.org
