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PCMA@LinkedIn: Volunteer and Speaker Gifts Megan Andrews, meeting planner for The Institute of Navigation, recently posted to PCMA’s LinkedIn group: “I’m looking for some ideas for original and inventive gifts for our program commit- tee members (10 people) for our annual meeting in September, and have a budget of about $50–$75 per person. Any ideas?”
I’m in house atthe OCCC in Orlando, and a common thing we do here is have a couple of chair-massage therapists in the Speakers’ Lounge so they may get a 10–15-minute neck and shoulder massage before going on to speak. Many return after they speak to get a 15–30-minute chair/foot massage. It’s a big hit with the speakers; they always say they feel special and/or pampered. Plus it helps relieve any tension or stress that they may have prior to speaking, not to mention it shows con- cern for their health and well-being.
John Wayne Cosby, Owner, Cosby’s Corporate Massage Services
I received a lovely bottle of Chilean wine after speaking at a conference in Santiago. Very nice gift and much appreciated, but the only option was to share and/or consume before my flight out. (Can’t sneak a wine bottle in a rol- laboard these days!) So, for practicality, it’s probably best to avoid anything that doesn’t meet TSA regulations (any liq- uids or gels, dagger-like letter openers, etc.). In fact, with most travelers not checking bags, avoiding bulky or easily crushed items altogether is a good idea.
Roger Dooley, Founder, Dooley Direct LLC
This may not work for your program committee, but I know all of my speak- ers travel constantly, so I have tried to focus on unique gifts that will make their lives a little easier as they travel. The one that, believe it or not, was the
best received over all the years and which they keep asking when will I do it again was a mini power strip! They rave about its usefulness in airports, where they share it with other travelers, in hotels, where you can’t find plugs, etc. You can bundle it with a PPT laser pointer, headphones, or other items that make traveling a little easier, and all of these can be branded.
Michele Nebel Peake, Owner, Ashton Conference Planning Professionals
I encourage my clients to select a char- ity and then make donations to that charity on behalf of the speakers rather than a gift. This is easy to promote at the meeting. The charity’s website can be added to the event website and used in promotion for the event. I find del- egates, clients, and speakers all appreci- ate this approach. And charities are of course thrilled.
Caroline Aston, Principal Planner, Aston Events & Communications
From Convene’s blog For more on the meetings industry, visit our blog at pcmaconvene.com.
WORKING WITHOUT CLOCKS AND WALLS A recent visit to a new workspace in Manhattan left Assistant Editor Sarah Beauchamp pondering the complexities of “work+life fit”: “‘How do you manage “work+life fit” without clocks and walls?’ asks Cali Yost, author of TWEAK IT: Make What Matters to You Happen Every Day. ‘Because they’ve com- pletely disappeared.’ As an editor of Convene, I work remotely from my apartment in Brooklyn. Between working from home and traveling to cover the latest events and des- tinations, the importance of Yost’s work+life fit philosophy makes a lot of sense to me. But it’s not just about when we work, it’s also about where. “‘We seem to be concerned with
when we’re going to get work done,’ Yost said in an interview held at the new Regus Business Lounge at Midtown, when I toured the space last month, ‘but not where.’ She explained that communal work- spaces, like the Regus lounge, a new three-story, flexible workspace in New York City, ‘give you an option to think about the “where.”’ “Yost stresses that work+life fit is
Flex Space Communal workspace at the new Regus Business Lounge in Manhattan.
not one-size-fits-all. Everyone needs to find what works for them. She notes that a key component to making time for what matters is ‘giving power to the small things.’ This means taking time out of your week to make that doctor’s appointment you’ve been putting off, get lunch with a friend, or pay those bills that have piled up. By giving just as much power to the small things as you do the tight deadlines and stressful demands of your day job, it’s easier to strike a harmonious work/life balance.”
Read the whole post at convn.org/ worklifefit.
AUGUST 2013 PCMA CONVENE 7