Incentive - June 2009 - (Page 10)

COVER STORY Incentive Industry Roundtable Edited By Leo Jakobson 8th Annual E Photos: Aldo Martinez/Zuma very year, Incentive gathers a group of experienced and knowledgeable industry professionals in New York to talk about the state of the incentive business. This year, gathered at the Crowne Plaza Times Square, our 10 participants had a lot to talk about. The worst economy in decades was bad enough, but then AIG set off a wave of anti-incentive sentiment in the media, in Congress, and on Main Street. As Corporate America canceled incentive programs and even meetings by the hundreds, the industry finally rallied as one team to defend them. Besides that, there were normal issues to discuss, like the environment and corporate social responsibility, the need to prove ROI, and the growing involvement of procurement departments and marketing firms in corporate incentive buying. Excerpts of that discussion follow, with a full transcript available at www.incentivemag.com/2009AnnualRoundtable. Incentive Incentive: It’s been about six months since AIG’s incentive program to the St. Regis Monarch Beach caused a firestorm of bad publicity for the incentive industry. How badly hurt has the incentive industry been and how are things now? Is it getting any better? Brenda Anderson: Obviously, [incentive] travel has been hit really hard. I think within the first two months of the year we were getting feedback from our members that there were close to 30 percent cancellation rates. We’ve seen that level off, and some moved into postponements versus cancellations. We’re even starting to see some rebookings. Rodger Stotz: The Incentive Research Foundation has done some Pulse surveys [in the past seven months]. In March, 58 percent of [corporate planners] who responded said they expected a decrease in their incentive travel budgets for this year. The good news is that 27 percent saw no decrease and 15 percent thought there might actually be an increase. Our 10 Roundtable participants gathered for a picture in the lounge of the Crowne Plaza Times Square. Full details of who’s who are on the map of the cover photo in the Editor’s Note (p. 4) For quick reference, across the bottom of the facing page, from left, are: Mike Landry, Tumi; Michael Ruege, USMotivation; Brenda Anderson, Site; Rodger Stotz, Incentive Research Foundation; Jimmy Beyer, Sony Premium Incentive Sales Group; Fay Beauchine, Carlson Marketing; Michael Massari, Las Vegas Meetings by Harrah’s Entertainment; Danielle Baruch, InterContinental Hotels Group; Dennis Borst, Patriot Marketing Group; and Dick Gaeta, Premier Incentives 10 | | June 2009 | incentivemag.com http://www.incentivemag.com/2009AnnualRoundtable http://www.incentivemag.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Incentive - June 2009

Incentive - June 2009
Contents
Editor’s Note: Motivation 2.0
Headlines
Cover Story: 8th Annual Industry Roundtable
Interview: Roger Dow
Research: Sales IQ
Marketing Trips to Success
HR Guide to Incentives
Strategies: In the Loop
Primer: Cash Is Secondary
Case Study: Centennial Comm. Connects With Gen Y
Travel News: Where To Go
Captivating Colombia
South Africa Beckons
Potentials: Here and Now
Electronics: Thin and Green Are the Trends
Power & Hand Tools: Building Up When Economy’s Down
Concern Grows Over A Genuine Scare: Luxury Counterfeits

Incentive - June 2009