Paying it forward A strikingly white and purple color-sploshed orchid standing regally in the shopping trolley ahead of me caught my eye. I commented that it could well be considered the Dalmatian of its species. The purchaser agreed and said she thought at $17 it was also very good value. I admire orchids but don’t…
I’m a longtime volunteer judge for an industry trade association annual awards program. Members submit entries detailing their best events in a variety of categories for the opportunity to be recognized for their accomplishments with a prestigious award. This past year a client who oversees meetings, incentives, and trade shows for a multinational company, decided…
Our business is all about connections, isn’t it? We connect on a regular basis with industry friends, colleagues, and clients. We value and nurture our long-standing connections and appreciate opportunities to create new ones. The act of writing connects words to create the optimal meaning to convey to the reader what needs to be expressed. …
Between January 2010 and December 2020, as the Western Region Marketing Consultant for IMEX America part of my role included creating blogs. Writing throughout my travel industry career, this was a great opportunity to research and learn more about other aspects of the meetings and events industry. Some of the blogs were created from podcasts,…
Corporate social responsibility (CSR) and sustainability are special passions of mine. After having created, planned, and managed multiple “give back” projects in the early 2000s, I undertook studies at UC Irvine, taught extension classes at UCSD and, for three years in the mid-2000s, was a contributing strategy expert writing a monthly column for Incentive Magazine. …
As we all know, the pandemic has been particularly devastating for our industry. Meeting and hospitality professionals globally have found themselves forced to make unanticipated and often unwelcome decisions about the trajectory of their careers and their lives. After 17 years as an independent planner in the international incentive, meetings, and tradeshow industries, I am…
Hen Zen My name is Petunia and I am a Green Queen. If you Googled me, you would think I’d be mostly white and produce green eggs; life is, however, not always as you plan it. My chick fluff turned into iridescent black-green feathers with not a trace of white. And my eggs – I’m…