As the meetings market has fully recovered from the 2008 recession, this industry expansion has given all the players in the meetings market some unique circumstances that have not been collectively experienced before at any one given time. If this was a social media relationship, we would have to list it as “it's complicated”! First the good! We are experiencing record demand in North America that has set records now for 3 consecutive years. What is most encouraging is that there is not a particular scale of hotel that is leading this growth, but rather all segments are showing record strength. READ MORE

Last year, millennials surpassed Generation X to become the largest generation in the U.S. workforce. They also may be history's most fickle generation. Two-thirds of millennials plan to leave their current organizations by 2020, according to a recent survey by Deloitte. Additionally, 44 percent said they would leave their current employers within the next two years if given the choice. So it's not surprising that businesses are adjusting everything - from office space to company culture to the way business is conducted - to cater to millennial wants and needs. Companies have recognized that attracting and retaining top talent from this burgeoning generation is no joke. READ MORE

In the U.S. alone, the meeting and event industry drives $280 billion in annual economic impact. To add perspective, that's more than air transportation, the motion picture industry or spectator sports. Additionally, the industry generates a massive amount of taxes, with $88 billion generated at the state, federal and local level last year; taxes that help our communities pay for services, build schools, fix roads and maintain parks. The Meetings Mean Business (MMB) Coalition—an industry advocacy group of which MPI is a part—has been conducting video interviews with top executives at major companies to find out just how important meetings and events are to their bottom line. READ MORE

Millennials, Zika, Brexit, elections, the economy, mega-mergers…every quarter brings a newsflash du jour. Hotel professionals need a genie to tell them what to ignore and what requires their action. This article summarizes the most relevant trends affecting group meetings - along with tips from corporate meeting planners on what hotels can do to help their group customers succeed, and help you improve a hotel's group meeting business. Read about the importance of authentic local experiences, unique venues, event apps, and negotiations with buyers. READ MORE

You show up at 8am for a training workshop, dreading it all week. Right as you are about to step inside, you stop and the question pops into your mind, “Why am I here? Will this be worth my ever-so-fleeting time? And if they make me play games, I think I may be forced to commit hara-kiri.” Does this sound even remotely familiar? Games do not have to be painful or embarrassing. Some games, such as bouncing a beach ball, everyone standing on a sheet and turning it over without anyone leaving the sheet, lining up according to shoe size and everything in between have their place. We've been through them all. READ MORE