The Same But Different
A
re you a corporate meeting planner wondering what it would be like to be involved with doing work for a non-profit organization? Or maybe you’re working with government and find yourself daydreaming about being able to plan a meeting at a luxury resort instead of the hotel that will honor your per diem. In the vast and varied world of meet- ing planning, there are similarities and differences between the dif- ferent market segments. For this two-part article, Midwest Meetings spoke to planners from a variety of backgrounds, corporate, govern- ment, non-profit, and independent to share their unique perspec- tive. This issue, Midwest Meetings will feature corporate planner Jennifer Mell and non-profit meeting planner Jody Weyers. Check out the Summer issue of Midwest Meetings to learn about a third party independent planner and a government planner!
MM: Who are your stakeholders and what role do you have in planning and executing their events?
Mell: Our stakeholders vary from event to event. They are gen- erally one or more members of our executive team. Most of our
events have more than one decision maker as they tend to work in committees/teams. My team serves mostly as a source for planning framework, booking venues, vendor relations and logistics manage- ment both in planning and onsite. We partner with various depart- ments throughout the company for meeting content, marketing and travel. I tease that we are the “ring masters” to the circus, not the entire show.
Weyers: Everyone! It’s not just locally or even within region
because we send people all over the country to help when needed. When you look at our organization, it’s hard to find a household that hasn’t been touched in some way by the American Red Cross.
MM: What do you see as your biggest challenges or obstacles within your market?
Mell: Our biggest challenge is usually getting our stakeholders/ decision makers on the same page in order to make swift decisions
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Meet our planners:
Corporate: Jennifer Mell, CMP, Events & Recognition
Coordinator, Kohl’s Department Stores
Part 1
Non-profit: Jody Weyers, Regional Volunteer and
A closer look at two different types of planners
Communications Director, American Red Cross Northeast Wisconsin Region
and keep the planning process moving along. I’m not sure if that is typical for the corporate market, or just our industry as a whole. It’s great that people are so interested in what we do and want to be a part of it but it can also be challenging as there is an internal learn- ing curve to how meeting planning actually works best.
Weyers: Time. There is never enough time to get things done, there is always something more we can do. There are also the chal-
lenges of meeting financial goals and finding the right volunteers.
MM: What do you find most rewarding about your job? Mell: I love when something that seemed impossible logisti- cally works out well. So often when I get pulled in to a project I
think “How in the world are we going to do that?” so it’s a great feeling nine months later to stand in the middle of it and then think, “We figured it out!”
Weyers: Making a difference in the community, especially with disaster services. We are literally bringing hope and help to
people when they have none or have no idea where to go or who to turn to. I believe in doing one-on-one training with our volunteers to find out what they want to get out of it and see if we can offer a good fit. I met someone recently who had a house fire two years ago and the Red Cross helped her with her family’s immediate needs. The Red Cross also gave them some quilts; she shared with me that her and her children still have those quilts two years later because it was their first sign of comfort that things would be okay.
MM: How has public perception on meetings and conferences affected your events (if at all)?
Mell: Our company is certainly conscious of the perception of our meetings/events, but I wouldn’t necessarily say it’s because of
other events that became more high profile in the last year or so. We are very self-aware as an organization. I think it also helps that most of our events are internal and not open to the public.
Weyers: Not too much, we have expense budgets but largely work with local community members to help offset the costs to
MIDWEST MEETINGS SPRING 2013
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