As the meetings and events industry continues its robust return to face-to-face in 2023, a plethora of industry events are happening this year that event professionals won’t want to miss. As we in the events industry well know, not only are industry conferences an excellent source of professional development, with plentiful educational opportunities on tap to inform and inspire, they’re also a wonderful way to convene with peers and make new business connections, all under one roof.

In 2022, in-person events enjoyed a steady comeback, event-related organizations went on hiring and promoting sprees, and industry professionals expressed a tone of optimism that hadn’t been heard since before the COVID-19 pandemic, even during ongoing economic challenges. How is the industry feeling about the future in 2023? 

Corporate Event News checked in with several leading organizations for their outlook on the year ahead and which key trends event professionals should be paying attention to in 2023 and beyond.

Tarsus Group, parent company of Corporate Event News and its sister publication, TSNN, is growing its team with two new hires. Long-time trade show journalist Danica Tormohlen has joined as Vice President of Content for Tarsus Media (encompassing TSNN and Corporate Event News), and Bridgett Maddux has joined as National Sales Manager for Tarsus Media.

“I have known Danica for a long time, and she is bar none one of the most passionate people covering the trade show industry,” said Tarsus Media President Rachel Wimberly.

After closing 2022 with positive gains in visitor numbers year over year, the Las Vegas business community is poised for continued growth in 2023 with the addition of thousands of new hotel rooms, the opening of the new one-of-kind MSG Sphere and its first Formula 1 Grand Prix.

Leading venue and event strategy and management company ASM Global recently marked the one-year anniversary of its worldwide fundraising effort designed to drive resources to the communities in which it operates.

Following the swearing-in of the new Congress on Jan. 3, the Exhibitions & Conferences Alliance (ECA) announced its public policy priorities for 2023, reflected upon its advocacy accomplishments over its first two years and encouraged industry professionals to join its annual Legislative Action Day, which is returning to an in-person format this year in Washington, DC.

PCMA announced several major acquisitions, alliances and partnerships designed to forge a path forward for the global business events industry while furthering its role as a leading platform for meeting and trade show professionals. The announcements were made on the first day of Convening Leaders 2023, taking place Jan. 8-11 at the Greater Columbus Convention Center in Columbus, Ohio.

Event Leaders Exchange (ELX), a newly established peer-to-peer network of senior corporate event professionals, and The Opus Group, a global agency network and partner for some of the world’s most influential brands, announced a new sponsorship deal that will provide ELX members with an agency perspective on experience design and strategy, and The Opus Group with insights from the ELX community. 

The Las Vegas Convention Center has become the second facility following Orlando’s Orange County Convention Center (OCCC) where unionized Sodexo food service workers have voted 100% to authorize a strike if a contract is not reached through ongoing negotiations. 

As the meetings and trade show industry continues its post-pandemic rebound, Sodexo convention center workers in five major convention markets are warning of looming labor disputes over what they describe as poor working conditions and stagnant wages.