News
Aug 16, 2023
The devastating wildfires that tore through western Maui and destroyed much of the historic town of Lahaina has been named the deadliest U.S. wildfire in more than a 100 years, and one of the top 10 deadliest wildfires since 1871, according to research from the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA).
Starting in the early morning hours of Aug. 8, the deadly blaze was the result of a perfect storm of drought conditions and strong winds from Hurricane Dora as it passed south of the islands.
More than 100 people have died, up to 1,000 people are still unaccounted for, approximately 2,200… more
Aug 15, 2023
Held Aug. 6-8 at the Hyatt Regency Salt Lake, the 2023 Corporate Event Marketing Association (CEMA) Summit drew more than 500 attendees, up from 455 in 2022. Here are 10 trends we saw and heard at #CEMASummit2023, powered by PCMA.
Peer-to-peer learning. Even during sessions with panels, attendees were encouraged to discuss scenarios, as well as share challenges and solutions. For example, during the session, “Design Lab: Guiding Principles in Experience Design,” attendees shared ideas about event strategies for awareness, registration, anticipation, arrival, content, connection, activation… more
Aug 14, 2023
People News: Choose Chicago, Huntington Place and More Welcome New Department Leadership, Grow Staff
Corporate event-related organizations are continuing their growth trajectories by launching new departments headed up by experienced leaders, promoting staff and welcoming new team members. Take a look!
Choose Chicago
Choose Chicago recently bolstered its leadership team with key appointments and a promotion. Eric Kincaid, who has been on the organization’s sales team for two years, was promoted to vice president of sales, and Lisa Nucci and Tara Welch were welcomed as chief marketing officer (CMO) and’s first-ever chief of staff, respectively.
Formerly associate vice president of sales… more
Aug 11, 2023
The American Hotel and Lodging Association (AHLA) Foundation has established the No Room for Trafficking (NRFT) Advisory Council as part of its No Room for Trafficking program, which works to prevent human trafficking and support survivors.
NRFT Advisory Council efforts include the development and oversight of the NRFT Survivor Fund, which provides community-based organizations with the resources they need to engage and support the survivors of human trafficking.
Council members will help champion and shape the hotel industry’s unified efforts to support human trafficking survivors with… more
Aug 10, 2023
Cvent, an industry-leading meetings, events and hospitality technology provider, unveiled its new Cvent Events+ solution, which is designed to deliver an always-on branded event hub to promote future events and webinars and showcase video content from past events.
"Many of today’s event organizers and marketers are hosting more events — across more formats — than ever before, which can make it challenging to capitalize on all the incredible content and leverage it to increase brand awareness and drive attendees to their upcoming events,” said Cvent Chief Marketing Officer Patrick Smith. “… more
Aug 08, 2023
With only a few weeks left of the summer season, now is the perfect time to step outside of the traditional urban conference center environment and take your event into the great outdoors! Besides allowing participants to connect with nature, hosting meetings and events at national and state parks and other natural environments offer an array of benefits to meeting planners and attendees, including reducing stress, improving overall well-being and increasing focus, creativity and productivity.
At venues surrounded by natural wonders, meetings attendees can take advantage of breaks and free… more
Aug 07, 2023
After more than nine years of planning, including a three-year feasibility period demonstrating significant demand from convention clients, the city of Indianapolis is about to get a larger convention center and a new 800-room headquarter hotel.
On Aug. 1, Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett and Visit Indy President and CEO Leonard Hoops were joined by community leaders, project representatives and some of the city’s largest convention clients for a groundbreaking celebration of the sixth expansion of the Indiana Convention Center (ICC) and construction of a new Hilton convention hotel.
Key… more
Aug 04, 2023
Oak View Group (OVG), which takes over venue management for Chicago’s McCormick Place on Oct. 1, named veteran convention and hospitality executive Samuel Thomas Jr. as senior vice president and general manager of the campus, which includes McCormick Place, featuring 2.6 million square feet of exhibition space, the 10,000-seat Wintrust Arena and the 4,249-seat Arie Crown Theater.
Thomas, who will relocate to Chicago from Washington, D.C., where he was executive vice president and chief operating officer of Events DC, will begin his new role the first week of September.
McCormick Place… more
Aug 03, 2023
Bizzabo, the Event Experience Operating System (OS), unveiled “The State of In-person B2B Conferences: Analyzing Organizer and Attendee Insights on Today's Most Impactful Gatherings,” a comprehensive report underscoring the value of face-to-face events.
Despite a year of headlines about economic uncertainty and layoffs, in-person events are thriving, according to the survey,” said Alon Alroy, co-founder and chief marketing officer of Bizzabo.
In June 2023, Bizzabo conducted the extensive survey of more than 4,000 event organizers and attendees to gain deeper insights into the current… more
Aug 01, 2023
The Pennsylvania Convention Center (PCC) has earned Gold Level certification for the Events Industry Council’s (EIC) Sustainable Event Standards for venues, part of a collection of eight standards developed to assess events and industry suppliers on specific criteria for producing and delivering environmentally and socially responsible events.
These criteria include organizational management; marketing, communication and engagement; climate action; water management; materials and circularity; supply chain management; diversity, equity and inclusion; accessibility; and social impact.
The… more
Partner Voices
Just when it seems like Las Vegas can’t get any bigger, brighter or more exciting for groups, MGM Resorts raises the bar again. The company continues to invest and innovate across its portfolio of Las Vegas resorts, with new attractions and upgraded experiences for attendees of all interests.
Remodeled Guest Rooms
MGM Grand is the largest single hotel in the world with over 5,000 guest rooms and an 850,000-square-foot conference center. It is home to the newly remodeled MGM Grand Studio Tower—700 reimagined guest rooms with a fun mid-century vibe. Nearby, the iconic New York-New York Las more