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Making Our Voices Heard
to the point
Deborah Sexton President & CEO deborah.sexton@pcma.org
Educating our nation’s leaders on the value of face-to-face meetings is an ongoing process.
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Engagement Futurist Mike Walsh was such a hit when he spoke at the PCMA 2013 Educa- tion Conference in Denver in June that we’re bringing him back again — he’ll be a General Session speaker at Conven- ing Leaders 2014 in Boston, Jan. 12–15. Senior Editor Barbara Palmer’s interview with Walsh kicks off our PCMA Convening Leaders 2014 Preview coverage (p. 73).
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y now you’ve probably heard plenty about the need for our industry to join together and educate our nation’s leaders about the value of face-to-face meetings. It’s a frequent
topic of conversation here at PCMA and across the meetings community. As individuals and as an industry,
we’ve made progress in driving home the many benefits of face-to-face col- laboration. But there’s much more work to be done. In July, legislation was introduced
in the U.S. House of Representatives that calls for the Office of Manage- ment and Budget to develop a plan to use videoconferencing to reduce federal travel expenses by 50 percent by 2017. The “Cut the Waste, Stay in Place Act of 2013” — which as of press time had not been called for a vote — implies that all meetings and travel are wasteful and ignores the value of face-to-face collaboration. Yet, despite the proposed legisla- tion, there’s evidence some members of Congress might be hearing us. Just a few months ago, three House members called for a full report on how current efforts to reduce travel spending by 30 percent (from 2010 levels) have affected federal agencies. That these legislators recognize the potential nega- tive business implications — and want to press for more specific answers — is a major step forward. An independent study recently released from Rockport Analytics, on behalf of the U.S. Travel Association, found that government travel for meet- ings leads to greater productivity and efficiency. What’s more, the report found that across-the-board cancella- tions offer short-term savings at much
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greater long-term costs. (To access the report, visit traveleffect.com.) As an organization, PCMA is work- ing on several fronts to advocate the value of face-to-face meetings on your behalf. We’re providing financial sup- port for an update to the economic impact study that was completed two years ago. We’re continuing to work closely with other industry associations on a messaging campaign that will pro- mote the value of face-to-face beyond its benefits to the economy. We also have been helping our members contact their elected officials directly. With templates and sample talking points, you can personalize letters to your legislators while PCMA handles all the logistics of getting them to the right place. If you haven’t already reached out to your representatives, I encourage you to do so. You can get started by going to pcma.org/advocacy. Admittedly, the challenge of break- ing through to legislators about the many benefits of in-person education, idea exchanges, and relationship build- ing is not one that will be accomplished overnight. But it’s closer to being within our reach when we all work together to make our voices heard. Stay tuned for more on this critical issue.
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PHOTO BY MICHAEL ABRAMSON