Straight to the Top:
10 Success Strategies for Women in Business
10:45 am – 11:30 am

Learn the top tips for achieving both personal and professional success. Topics will include tips for getting the best people and how to get the best from them, not sweating the “small stuff”, the necessity of re-invention for success and management strategies.

Speaker: Elaine Cohen, President, Live Marketing

Playing Nice:
How Planners Can Optimize Vendor Relationships
11:45 am – 12:30 pm

From unions to hotels, contractors to A/V, event and meeting planners often find themselves in a sea of rules and requirements that don’t always fit neatly with their event’s timeline or budget. But there are ways to create better events by understanding how to work with your vendors to achieve optimal results. Come listen as our experts discuss how event and meeting planners can get the best labor, service, and scheduling.

Speakers: Bob Audette, Vice President, National Sales, Freeman
Floyd Dillman, Director of Operations, Event Engineering
Sharon J. Vojtek, CMP, CEM, Director of Customer Service, McCormick Place

- NETWORKING LUNCHEON -

Roadmap to Successful Vendor Negotiations
2:00 pm – 2:45 pm

The key to successful vendor negotiations is knowing what to give in order to get what you want. This session will arm you with simple, yet effective techniques for getting your best deal, while creating win-win relationships with your vendors. Don’t miss this primer on negotiating techniques sure to improve the cost effectiveness of your deals and make you a hero.

Speaker: Barbara Dunn, Esq., Attorney and Partner, Howe & Hutton, Ltd.

Design Trends 2009
3:15 pm – 4:00 pm

As budgets continue to get the squeeze, your design choices need to be more effective than ever before. This session will discuss a shift in design trends and the direct implications for event and meeting planners. Come away with 2009’s “big picture” AND the hottest design ideas for any budget.

Speaker: John Beran, Senior Event Designer, Kehoe Designs
Bridget Johnson, Creative Director, Kehoe Designs
Pavel Juricek, Head Designer, Kehoe Designs

Workshop:
How to Green Your Events
4:15 pm – 5:00 pm

As a planner, every choice you make is magnified by the number of attendees at your events –which is why green events continue to become more and more prominent. Learn how to create more eco-friendly events in a can’t-miss, real world workshop that will teach you tips and skills to “green up” your events through simple steps and critical decisions.

Speaker: Shannon Downey, Owner, Pivotal Production

Making Meetings Memorable and Motivating
10:45 am – 11:30 am

Citing case studies, learn techniques and approaches to create exceptionally successful meetings. Discussion will include: techniques to captivate and motivate the audience; keys to selecting the right theme; making the meeting more experiential, personal, and interactive; obtaining management support and buy-in; and closing on a high note. Take away tactics and methodologies to improve your own meetings.

Speaker: Anne Trompeter, Creative Director, Live Marketing

Beyond the Gift Bag:
Using Events as Catalysts for Ongoing Customer Relationships
11:45 am – 12:30 pm

Many event organizers simply pack up and go home, missing key opportunities to connect with attendees post-event. Whether you’re producing a meeting, fundraising event, marketing event or another live platform – continued communication with attendees is crucial in creating loyal attendees, customers or donors. Learn how to harness your event’s full power by creating an engagement strategy that continues long after the room clears.

Speaker: Haley Schaefer, Production Manager, Multi-Media, Events & Sponsorships, Chicago Tribune

- NETWORKING LUNCHEON -

Next Generation Meetings:
Cause Tie-ins that Strengthen Live Events
2:00 pm – 2:45 pm

As media scrutiny on the meetings industry grows, it’s more important than ever to provide sponsors, management and attendees with validation for the travel and operational costs associated with live events. This session will examine a new and remarkably effective way to counter negative perceptions towards events by building volunteerism (along with a powerful message) into your event strategy.

Speaker: Ed Graziano, Founder, Corporate Event Interactive

Targeting High End Clients
3:15 pm – 4:00 pm

One of the biggest challenges and joys for any event planner is to create an event that will appeal to an upscale audience. But how do you motivate your most discerning guests to attend, let alone impress them? In this session, we’ll take a look at some simple, some novel and some just plain unexpected ways to attract a high-end clientele.

Speaker: Natasha Freimark, Director of Special Events, Mpls.St Paul Magazine

How to Bulletproof Your Event Portfolio
4:15 pm – 5:00 pm

If your events came under corporate scrutiny, would you be able prove their value? In a climate where every dollar is analyzed, it’s crucial to have a game-plan for proving the contribution of your event department to business growth. Attend this session to get an inside look at how 5 corporate event departments demonstrate their business value. You’ll find tips and strategies to help you fortify your department – and possibly even your job.

Speaker: Kerry Smith, Founder, Event Marketer and the Event Marketing Institute