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ConventionPlanit.com gets inside the brains of meeting professionals. How? Before we launched the site, we asked meeting professionals what they need in a Web portal. What they told us is what you see on ConventionPlanit.com!
The Advisory Council continues to play an active role, sharing advice and recommendations for new features and additions to ConventionPlanit.com. Members of the Council are listed below:
Chris Brown
Executive Vice President
National Association of Broadcasters
Washington, DC
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For Chris Brown, a 21-year veteran of the trade show industry, succeeding in today's
business world is about paying attention to the changing needs of customers.
At the National Association of Broadcasters, where he is the executive vice president, Brown
manages three annual trade shows, one of which is among the top 15 largest trade shows in the nation with 100,000
attendees and 850,000 square feet of exhibit space.
ConventionPlanit.com is an important tool for him in trade show planning. "The site is a great
tool for time-stretched event planners…nobody has the time or inclination to get on a plane these days to do a
six-city site tour, or to wade through mountains of information on hotels or convention facilities. The Internet
provides a perfect medium to sift this information quickly and efficiently," he explains.
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Windy Christner, CMP
Senior Director, Meetings & Exposition
American Pharmacists Association
Washington, DC
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Windy Christner has more than 20 years of experience in the meetings industry and
has been at the American Pharmacists Association (APhA) for more than eight years. The APhA meetings include an
Annual Meeting and Exposition held in the spring with about 7,000 attendees and an exposition of over 200 companies,
and a Combined Forces Pharmacy Seminar held in the fall for approximately 1,200 attendees and an exposition of over
100 companies.
A big fan of ConentionPlanit.com, she calls the site "a reliable and current source for anything
and everything meeting related. It's a one-stop shop for any planner."
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Karen Malone
Vice President of Meetings
Healthcare Information & Systems Society
Chicago, Illinois
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Karen Malone oversees nine staff at the Healthcare Information & Systems Society (HIMSS) and runs the HIMSS Annual Conference & Exhibition, an $18 million event that is ranked #64 on the nation's Tradeshow 200 list. Nearly 900 exhibitors and 25,000 attendees participate in the conference.
Malone has 20 years of experience in meeting planning, and before joining HIMSS in 1997 worked at Smith Bucklin Associates, the nation's largest association management company.
She has been recognized numerous times for her accomplishments. She was named by Meeting News Magazine one of the 25 most influential people in the meetings industry, in July 2006 was featured on the cover and the main story of Meetings and Conventions Magazine, in October 2006 was named by Tradeshow Week as one of the 100 most influential people in the tradeshow business, and in December 2006 was named by the ExpoGroup as Show Manager of the Year.
Malone uses all the resources she can find to help her plan events, and appreciates what ConventionPlanit.com has to offer. "The site is an excellent resource and toolkit," she says.
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Mary Power, CAE
Executive Director
Human Resource Certification Institute
Alexandria, Virginia
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Well-known industry player Mary Power planned on entering the profession ever since her days at Michigan State University, where she majored in Hotel, Restaurant and Institutional Management.
Power's leadership skills distinguish her in the industry. As immediate past President & CEO of
the Convention Industry Council (CIC), she fostered consensus on the industry's biggest issues among the 32
meetings-related associations that belong to the CIC.
In her new position as the Executive Director of the Human Resource Certification Institute, she works to strengthen the Institute's international presence. Powers is also making HRCI's certification designations a worldwide standard for the HR profession. She has a broad perspective on the industry, having worked for Sheraton and Inter-Continental Hotels for 20 years.
Always looking for new ideas herself, Power is a big fan of the "Stellar Tips" section of ConventionPlanit.com, where she finds some of the best new ideas from meeting professional colleagues.
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Annette M. Suriani, CMP
Director
PACE Meetings and Exposition
Fairfax, Virginia
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Annette Suriani, CMP, specializes in the creative side of meeting planning. In her current position, she was hired to merge two distinct trade shows into one, using her organizational abilities and her experience in creating new ventures. In previous positions, she created meetings departments where there were none.
Suriani also enjoys developing sponsorship packages, marketing materials and special events. She likes to see each meeting unfold and watch attendees gain knowledge that helps them run their businesses better.
Her skills in these and the many other areas of meeting planners have led to a 20+ year career in associations, 18 of which have been in meeting management. Suriani is responsible for several conferences each year, including an annual meeting with exhibits and several board meetings. She also does some independent work on special events and even planned a public show on residential housing for the District of Columbia.
In particular, Suriani finds ConventionPlanit.com to be especially helpful.
"Just like the old commercials for yellow pages, I like letting my fingers do the walking," she says. "Just a couple of clicks and I can get information on a hotel, on a city, get tips from other professionals - without having to be put on hold or leave a message."
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Gail M. Tannenbaum, CMP
Director of Meetings & Education
Rehabilitation of Engineering and Assistive Technology Society of North America
Arlington, Virginia
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Gail Tannenbaum is currently working at RESNA, after working at the Electronic Industries Alliance (EIA), for over six years. She planned and executed board meetings, executive leadership forums, legislative and regulatory roundtables, annual meetings, and other events for EIA. EIA is comprised of four stand-alone associations (sectors) that each operate as part of EIA and represent a different segment of the electronics industry. Occasionally Tannenbaum also worked with these sectors by helping them in planning their meetings, site selection, contract negotiations.
Tannenbaum also has experience with the National Council of Farmer Cooperatives and the
Plumbing, Heating, Cooling Contractors Association. She began her career in meeting planning with IBM and Xerox in the corporate arena in the 1980s.
One way Tannenbaum stays up-to-date with innovative ideas and trends is by accessing resources
such as ConventionPlanit.com, which she calls "an amazingly efficient navigation tool." She appreciates the many resources the site offers and many ways information can be gathered and displayed.
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Barry Zidel
Owner
Meeting Connections Inc.
Delray Beach, Florida
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Barry Zidel, owner of Meeting Connections Inc., has more than 25 years of experience
in the meetings industry.
He is the consummate "dealmaker" who enjoys the negotiating process on behalf of his meetings
clients. He specializes in corporate meetings, and most of them are international, ranging from full blown
conferences with seminars, general sessions, and exhibits down to smaller events.
In his work, he appreciates resources and services that are geared to his needs.
"Over time we have all been inundated with products and services such as ConventionPlanit.com," he observes. "But
what intrigued me about ConventionPlanit.com was that above all else they wanted to know about me and my company and
what our needs and wants are. All the others wanted to expound their virtues without wanting to know what we need.
Beyond that I have a wonderful working chemistry with ConventionPlanit.com staff."
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Mike Tringale, M.S.M.
Director of Marketing & Communications
Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America
Washington, DC
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On a ConventionPlanit.com Advisory Council dominated by meeting professionals, Mike
Tringale brings an added dimension - an expertise in communications and marketing. Before taking his current position - where he serves as the official AAFA spokesperson - Tringale was director of strategic planning for Kircher & Company Advertising, a tradeshow marketing firm.
His background also includes positions as marketing communications director for Georgetown
University Medical Center and director of marketing communications for the Brookings Institution. For over 17 years, he has directed, promoted and managed a variety of national, regional, and local events for trade professionals and consumers.
Tringale is also a frequent user of ConventionPlanit.com. His favorite feature? "Without a
doubt, my favorite feature is the destination locator." he says. "The scope and quality of the content about each and every location is breathtaking! ConventionPlanit is truly my first stop and top priority when a new event project begins."
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Jeffrey Wood
Director of Meetings
American Institute of Chemical Engineers
New York, New York
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Jeff Wood's career began at the front desk of the Statler Hilton Hotel in Boston.
He later became assistant director of sales at the Capital Hilton Hotel in Washington, DC before taking his first job as a meeting planner at the American Bankers Association.
His career has taken him to several associations, including the New York State Food Merchants
Association in Tarrytown, New York, and later to the Direct Marketing Association in New York, where he worked for 12 years before joining the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE).
Wood especially likes the "user-friendly functionality" ConventionPlanit.com has to offer.
With no registration process or third party commissions to be concerned about, ConventionPlanit.com is an "essential information source" for the meeting planning community.
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Katrin Becker
Event and Travel Manager
German Electricity Association
Berlin, Germany
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Katrin Becker is an experienced marketing and meeting executive with a wide range
of experience in the travel and meetings industry.
She has handled marketing for the openings of "La Bastide Saint Antoine" in Grasse, France,
the "Cliff Bay Resort Hotel" on the island of Madeira, Portugal, and the "Süllberg" in Hamburg, Germany. In 2005, she
transitioned from sales and marketing into meeting planning, becoming event and travel manager for the German
Electricity Association.
Becker has also been insturmental to ConventionPlanit.com in sharing her expertise of European
Internet practices, allowing the website to become helpful for a wider range of meeting professionals.
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Jane Ann Forsythe
Director of Conferences & Meetings
Investment Company Institute
Washington, DC
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Jane Forsythe is an 18-year industry veteran who has been working at the Investment
Company Institute (ICI), for over six years. The organization is dedicated to upholding the highest ethical standards
in the investment industry, advancing the interests of the industry, and promoting public understanding of these
investments. Forsythe oversees a variety of meetings, including six conferences, an Annual General Membership Meeting,
board meetings, workshops, and special events.
With all the additional time required to learn these areas, Forsythe believes it is more vital
than ever that meeting professionals find ways to do the meeting planning part of their jobs more efficiently, which
is why she is a big fan of ConventionPlanit.com.
"I think ConventionPlanit.com is a great 'one stop shop' for nearly anything a planner can be
looking for," she says. "I also really like the convenience of the online RFP feature."
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Leslie Zeck, CMP, CMM
Director of Meetings and Conventions
American Council of Engineering Companies
Washington, DC
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Leslie Zeck, CMP, CMM oversees a department of three meeting professionals as the
Director of Meetings and Conventions at the American Council of Engineering Companies. The team is responsible for
planning two annual conferences and up to forty additional educational and board meetings throughout the year across
North America, the Caribbean and Mexico.
Zeck has more than 20 years of experience in the meetings and events industry having planned
everything from Congressional receptions and gala dinners, to national and international conventions and meetings.
Before joining the ACEC recently, Zeck served as the Manager of Events and Conferences at the American Red Cross
national headquarters. She holds a Masters degree in non-profit management and health policy from Virginia Tech
University.
A big part of her online activity takes place on ConventionPlanit.com, which Zeck calls "user-friendly and reliable."
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Walter Holtsmaster
Managing Director
International Destinations, Inc.
Washington, DC
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For more than 30 years, Walter Holtsmaster, managing director of Meetingsworldwide
by International Destinations, Inc., has earned an outstanding reputation by opening doors for domestic and
international clients in the meeting and convention industry. Early in his career, he helped introduce such
prestigious domestic properties as Westin's Century Plaza in Los Angeles and the Hyatt Regency in Atlanta and was the
first representative in Washington, D.C. for Western International (Westin), the Fairmont and Hyatt Hotels.
In 1971, Holtsmaster founded the international representation firm, Conventus, and quickly
expanded his reputation amongst international meeting planners. After years of success, Holtsmaster merged his company
with PF Enterprises to form International Destinations, Inc., which represents cities including Paris, Cancun,
Istanbul, Johnannesburg, Mexico City, and Aukland. He has also been inducted into the HSMAI Washington, DC Chapter
Hall of Fame.
Holtsmaster says that new resources in the industry make it much easier for meeting
professionals to find what they are looking for. "It only takes a few clicks of the mouse," he says, "to conduct
extensive searches on ConventionPlanit.com, and that's what makes it so useful."
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Paul Neale, Chief Executive
Kingston Smith Association Management
St. Albans, England
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Paul Neale first started planning meetings more than 30 years ago. His company, Kingston Smith Association Management, plans more than 250 events per year in the United Kingdom and across Europe. These range from large three-day conferences to one-day training events.
Neale calls himself a "converted fan of ConventionPlanit.com as I now have at my disposal far greater information than I did previously…the time-saving is immense."
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