Successful Meetings - September 2008 - (Page 8)

Editor’s Note > By Vincent Alonzo vince.alonzo@nielsen.com Pat a Partner on the Back It’s time to start thinking about who were the best convention/ conference service managers (CSMs) in 2008. Each year, Successful Meetings and the Association for Convention Operations Management (ACOM) team up to present the CSM of the Year Awards for the professionals who make sure the meetings you hold in hotels, convention centers, and with convention and visitor bureaus are top-notch. Finding a creative CSM is one of the most effective strategies a planner can employ to ensure that a meeting will run smoothly. If you are lucky enough to find such a professional, it’s important to strengthen that relationship and reinforce that behavior with some sincere, meaningful recognition. If someone does something good and immediately receives a positive response in return, there is an increased likelihood that he or she will continue that behavior. Recognition of good work is the best way to ensure that a supplier will continue to strive for excellence. And people who are motivated to excel are usually much easier to partner and work with. If you’ve worked with a CSM from a hotel, a convention center, or a CVB who truly went above and beyond the call of duty to fix a problem, find a resource, or just generally make sure that you looked good to your employer or client, here is the opportunity to get them some real recognition— not only from you, but from their employers, and the industry as well. So go to www.successfulmeetings.com, click on the link for the CSM of the Year ballot and nominate a deserving CSM by describing his or her exceptional performance that benefited your meeting or event. Award winners will be honored at a ceremony at the ACOM annual conference in New Orleans this January. All things considered, now more than ever, good CSMs are worth their weight in gold. If you know of any, nominate them, and let them know how truly valuable they are. PUBLISHER: NELLA VELDRAN vice president and group publisher, travel group, (646) 654-7325, nella.veldran@nielsen.com VINCENT ALONZO editor-in-chief, vince.alonzo@nielsen.com KINLEY LEVACK managing editor, kinley.levack@nielsen.com CORRIE DOSH destinations editor, corrie.dosh@nielsen.com ANDREA DOYLE senior editor, andrea.doyle@nielsen.com NANCY LAZARUS research director, nancy.lazarus@nielsen.com CONTRIBUTING EDITORS: ROBERT CAREY, RAYNA KATZ, WILLIAM NG, MICHAEL GOLDSTEIN, TOM MCDONALD NEELAM MATHEWS (ASIA); ED SCHMIDT JR. (FLORIDA); HEIDI WALDROP BAY (WESTERN U.S.) ART (646) 654-7348 DON SALKALN art director, don.salkaln@nielsen.com PRODUCTION (646) 654-7293 GRACE CASEY production manager CUSTOM PUBLISHING (646) 654-7360 MARILYN MOORE editorial director; ALISON GOLUB executive editor; KAREN GINES executive editor (performance); SARAH VEIT associate editor; DENNISTON BROWN creative director; MICHELLE TROPIANO art director; JONATHAN CHANG associate art director; TESSA SESTINA associate art director INFORMATION MARKETING (646) 654-5879 TRACEY associate director, audience marketing, tracey.dwyer@nielsen.com SUBSCRIPTIONS (847) 763-9050 MARKETING (646) 654-7263 JENNIFER PEPPER STAM senior marketing manager, travel group, jennifer.pepperstam@nielsen.com ADVERTISING (646) 654-7327 FOR THE NEW YORK OFFICE REPRINTS The YGS Group, Jenny Kintner, (800) 324-2930, successfulmeetings@theYGSgroup.com. For one-time use of our content: Barbara Grieninger, (646) 654-4675, barbara.grieninger@nielsen.com LIST RENTAL (646) 654-7220 MICHELLE WIESNER EDITORIAL OFFICES: 770 Broadway, New York, NY 10003, (646) 6547361; fax (646) 654-7365; www.mimegasite.com DWYER 8 successfulmeetings.com SEPTEMBER 2008 SUCCESSFUL MEETINGS http://www.mimegasite.com http://www.successfulmeetings.com http://successfulmeetings.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Successful Meetings - September 2008

Successful Meetings - September 2008
Contents
Editor's Note
Industry Trends
Supplier News
Technology
Calendar
Incentives
Association News
Corporate Meetings
Independent Planners
Management Matters
Meetings Law
Mouth for Sale
Planner Spotlight
Pre-Event
On Site
On Site
Tools of the Trade
Where All That Glitters May Bring Gold
Stepping Up in Class
Going for the Green
10 Great Drive-To Destinations
Charter Members
Night at the Museum
Places & Spaces
Charleston and Savannah
Los Angeles
Phoenix/Scottsdale
Rocky Mountain Resorts
Caribbean
Monaco
Malaysia
Gurus

Successful Meetings - September 2008