Archive for September, 2009
A Dynamic Dozen: The Making of a “Killer App”
Sunday, September 27th, 2009Everywhere you turn these days, meeting professionals are searching for the “killer app” that will make social media and virtual technologies more an opportunity and less a threat for face-to-face events.
The language of hybrid meetings, virtually unknown a year ago, is quickly gaining currency. MPI experimented with a Virtual Access Pass at its 2009 World [...]
Revisions, Please
Tuesday, September 22nd, 2009A few weeks back, a client emailed me a fairly long list of major revisions to a report I’d sent her. It took me by surprise—I’d reviewed that document myself, tinkered with it and polished it, and I thought the finished product was pretty darn good. What was she doing, sending it back?
Our company stands [...]
Control Your Content—or Someone Else Will
Wednesday, September 16th, 2009A friend of mine who is an experienced meeting planner told me of a recurring nightmare she’s been having lately. In her nightmare, she is standing in a 5,000+ auditorium, with a very expensive band playing under an elaborate light and laser show, but only about 100 other people are there, including her and the [...]
Is a “Good Enough” Meeting Good Enough?
Thursday, September 10th, 2009What would happen if meetings were scaled back to the barest of essentials, on the principle that the best event is the one that is just good enough?
It isn’t an idle question. There’s an emerging trend that is reshaping everything from long distance telephone to video cameras, from the design of military aircraft to the [...]
A Hybrid in Your Future
Thursday, September 3rd, 2009By now, they’re a familiar sight: hybrid vehicles that combine two separate power sources to squeeze maximum energy out of every drop of gasoline they use. Once considered an environmentalist’s fantasy, hybrids have made it into the mainstream, and for good reason—they’re a great, practical way to make your gas dollar stretch further, at a [...]
Preparing for a Pandemic
Tuesday, September 1st, 2009At our regular staff meeting last week, we introduced a standing agenda item that will be a part of our working lives for the foreseeable future.
Our COO, Woody Huizenga, unveiled an advanced draft of our pandemic preparedness plan, and summarized the best available information on what we can expect during this year’s flu season: On [...]