When we reviewed all the findings from our new corporate research report, a big question emerged: Why don’t many companies have actual meeting departments? The data shows that just 20% of respondents have a dedicated meetings and events team. And regardless of meetings sit in the org chart, respondents kept describing the same struggle to get the C-suite to recognize what events deliver. “Corporate events are not just events,” one respondent wrote when asked about the one thing they wished their leadership would change when thinking about meetings. “They are business investments that drive relationships, revenue opportunities, and brand growth.”
Head below to unpack more of the data, and if you’re looking for more insights into defining the role that events play in your company, join us in New York next Tuesday for Skift Meetings Forum. We’ve been deep in speaker prep calls this week, and the program will include voices who are solving that ROI-ownership problem and making an effective case for the business of events. — David McMillin
Next week: Skift Meetings Forum
The events lead who made it all the way to running the company is on stage in one week.
Dan Macsai, Chief Strategy Officer at Time Magazine, on how event work earns C-suite recognition instead of a ceiling. September 22, Javits Center, New York. Qualified senior planners can apply to attend at no cost.
FEATURED STORIES
How One Meetings Leader’s Cancer Battle Taught Her to Control Her Own Destiny
by Barbara Scofidio
Event Planner Gets Hacked — After Already Falling for a $20,000 Scam
by Andrea Doyle
Nearly a Third of Companies Are Spending $10 Million on Meetings. Few Have a Department to Run Them.
by Barbara Scofidio
The Apple Watch Can Now Recap Conversations. What Does That Mean for Meetings?
by Andrea Doyle
FREE REPORT
Our new research offers a look at how at corporate meeting planners are navigating the current landscape. Download it today to learn how 111 in-house corporate planners are dealing with geopolitical pressures, ROI expectations, AI, contracts, and more.
This report was produced in partnership with MPI and is sponsored by Caesars Entertainment and Convene.
WORTH YOUR TIME
Five things worth your time today.
Why does pharma face such a big struggle to track its meeting spending?
What does the FBI’s latest phishing warning mean for meeting planners?
How is an iconic city of firsts reinventing itself for the future of the attendee experience?**
What convinced an industry veteran it was time to go back to college?
Can $100 make a meaningful impact on reducing no-show rates?
** A sponsored message from Visit Atlantic City.
SKIFT PICK: TRANSLATING TRAVEL TRENDS FOR MEETINGS
Your Attendees’ Plane Wi-Fi Is Getting Better Than Your Ballroom’s.
Skift reported this week that airlines are dropping roughly $500,000 per Boeing 737-800 to install Starlink, plus $180,000 a year to keep it running. United, Alaska, American, Southwest, and Frontier have all signed on; Delta and JetBlue went with Amazon’s Leo instead. Either way, fast, reliable Wi-Fi in the air is becoming standard, not a perk.
Flying used to mean such terrible connection speeds that you might, gasp, actually stop looking at your screen. Now, if attendees are getting super-speedy connections in the air, convention center Wi-Fi is going to feel like it’s from another decade. When you’re negotiating next year’s AV contract, don’t just ask for a speed number on paper — ask what happens during peak concurrent usage, and get an uptime guarantee written in, the same way you’d negotiate force majeure language. No one’s going to be willing to accept bad Wi-Fi anymore.
Great events are built on strategy, innovation, and the right resources. The Skift Meetings Toolkit is your go-to hub for best practices in managing meetings and events.
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