November 2014
Cover Story/Technology
How Drones Are Changing the Meetings Industry
Flying drones are appearing more and more in the meetings industry, allowing planners to create wow-factor event videos and venues to shoot stunning virtual site visits. But while the new technology is undoubtedly cool, its legalities are still murky.
Cover illustration by Graham Roumieu
Features
Dan Pallotta Is Rethinking Nonprofits
As the Convening Leaders 2015 Closing General Session speaker, Dan Pallotta will provide an inspiring send-off. Not a feel-good, canned motivational speech, but a call to action to get participants thinking about the nonprofit sector — where many of them spend their careers — in a whole new light.
Wellness in the Meeting Room
Las Vegas’ MGM Grand unveiled a suite of meeting rooms that pamper attendees with circadian light, color-coordinated food, purified air, and even aromatherapy. Are these meeting spaces an over-the-top concept or an idea whose time has come?
Departments
Supported Article Global Meetings
Toastmasters Heads to Asia
The 2014 Toastmasters International Convention marked the first time that the public-speaking organization met outside North America — and was the best-attended event in its 90-year history.
Are You a Geek or a Technophobe?
When it comes to technology, planner competency is often at one of two extremes — technology geek or technophobe. Where do you fall?
Inside the Green Sports Alliance
Thousands upon thousands of professional and college sports games are played every year — all with their own carbon footprints. At the Green Sports Alliance Summit, the goal is to shrink them.
Can an App Capture Emotion at Meetings?
Technology that analyzes the emotions expressed by the human voice could give meeting planners a new way to measure results.
Farm-to-Table at a Florida Resort
At Grande Lakes Orlando, field-to-fork is only the half of it. From an on-site farm to an in-house brewery, the resort destination is ‘passionate enough about food to spend some money on it.’
An Easy, Inexpensive Solution for Simultaneous Translation
How the Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences is providing low-cost, real-time translation.
Plenary
How to Grab an Audience's Attention in 60 Seconds or Less
With an audience’s emails, tweets, and texts competing for their attention, engagement can seem like a moving target.
Transportation Research Board (TRB) Annual Meeting
The 94th Annual Meeting of the Transportation Research Board will attract 12,000 transportation professionals to Washington, D.C.
Northwest Human Resource Management Association (NHRMA) 76th Annual Conference & Tradeshow
NHRMA Annual Conference & Tradeshow
Atlantic City Doubles Down
It was Friday evening in Atlantic City, New Jersey. On one end of the boardwalk, tourists snapped photos of the sleekly mirrored façade of Revel Casino Hotel, a $2.4-billion behemoth that closed on Sept. 2, just two years after opening. But a mile or so away, past the also-shuttered Showboat Casino, couples spilled out of still-busy casinos and toward tiki-lit beach bars thumping with music.
Inside PCMA's Lisbon Conference
The Global Professionals Conference, hosted by the Lisbon Congress Centre (LCC) on Aug. 26–28, brought together 23 planners and 13 Europe-based suppliers for a mix of high-level education and business partnering.
3 Days in Seattle
My first day in Seattle was sunny and 75 degrees — not what you’d expect of a city that’s famous for its moody, drizzly temperament. Nonetheless, I was grateful for the reprieve. It was my first time in Seattle, and I was excited to inhale every sight, sound, and street. Even though I was officially in the Emerald City to experience the 2014 Tableau Conference, Seattle itself has so much in the pipeline that I’d made time to see what’s new.
Also In This Issue
Leveraging Attendee Feedback for Better Networking
Lately our team has been tossing around two words: strategically risky. It applies to a lot of what we do when it comes to planning Convening Leaders.