Meeting Professionals International Honors Excellence in Meeting and Event Best Practices with Global Paragon Awards
Winning meetings serve as examples of how meetings and events contribute to organizational success and ROI
MIAMI – 10 July 2005 – Meeting Professionals International (MPI) announces the 2005 Global Paragon Award winners, whose excellence in meetings and events warrant the profession's most prestigious award, sponsored by Omni Hotels.
The Category I (meetings with budgets up to US$1,000 per attendee) winner was Vancouver, British Columbia-based Sea to Sky Meeting Management Inc.'s 23rd International Conference on Offshore Mechanics and Arctic Engineering. Seattle, Washington-based CRG Events received the Category II Global Paragon Award (meetings with budgets exceeding US$1,000 per attendee) along with Opts Ideas for the 2005 Washington Mutual State of the Group Annual Company Meeting. There were no awards of excellence awarded this year.
Global Paragon Awards recognize exceptional meetings/events that deliver measurable successes to an organization's bottom line. These meetings/events--which can serve as powerful educational tools and examples of best practices for the entire profession--complement MPI's strategic plan, Pathways to Excellence, which aims to elevate the role of meetings in business and communicate the value of meetings to organizations' senior decision-makers.
All Global Paragon Awards were judged based on innovation and creativity as related to the meeting's goals, objectives, results, content, execution and return on investment.
According to Colin Rorrie, Jr., PhD, CAE, president and CEO of MPI, "These winners demonstrate the importance of proving the measurable return of a meeting or event and its strategic impact on an organization. They are proven models of success that students can look to when searching for best practices or are aspiring to a career in the meetings industry. Meeting professionals can use the winners as examples of the strategic role of meetings in business."
"Omni Hotels is proud to continue its support of the Global Paragon Awards," said Tom Chevins, senior vice president of sales and marketing for Omni Hotels. "These winners illustrate the importance of meetings in business, and as our industry continues to evolve, we will look to the Global Paragon winning meetings for models of excellence."
In addition to receiving the meeting profession's highest honor for meetings excellence, winners of the Global Paragon Award receive career advancement opportunities, feature coverage in The Meeting Professional, media coverage, opportunities to use the award as a strategic marketing tool for their organization, and more. For more information, visit www.paragon.mpiweb.org.
Global Paragon Award -- Category I Winner :
Sea to Sky Meeting Management Inc. produces the 23rd International Conference on Offshore Mechanics and Arctic Engineering
The International Conference on Offshore Mechanics and Arctic Engineering (OMAE) promotes technological progress and international cooperation in ocean, offshore and arctic engineering. OMAE is the gathering place for engineers, managers, technicians, researchers, academia and students from around the globe to discuss ocean, offshore and arctic technology developments and their applications .
Sea to Sky Meeting Management Inc. was hired as the conference management company. The success of the conference can be attributed to many elements, but the three controlled by Sea to Sky were: 1) the strategic approach to the management of the conference; 2) the extent to which the objectives were achieved; and 3) the usefulness of the evaluation process throughout the conference.
Sea to Sky began its planning by identifying the conference's major stakeholders, in order to seek their approval on the conference's goals and objectives, located in the Memorandum of Understanding and in the business plan. The goals and objectives provided the strategic framework around subsequent decision making.
During the course of the conference, five objectives were clearly defined: 1) To promote ocean, offshore and arctic engineering to an audience wider than past attendees; 2) To attract 450 paying attendees, of which 10 percent were from outside of traditional markets and 25 percent were non-presenters/authors; 3) To have a financially successful conference, where the surplus was at least ten percent of the revenues; 4) To produce an exceptional scientific program addressing topical issues for engineering and society, including a minimum of four workshops on tropical issues and special sessions, and an industry exhibition of 10 or more organizations; and 5) To produce two memorable social events showcasing the West Coast of Canada. All of these objectives were fulfilled or exceeded at the conference's end.
In keeping with the strategic framework, Sea to Sky implemented an evaluation process, which consisted of monitoring and controlling mechanisms to ensure that the conference's objectives would be met, and also allowed Sea to Sky to report to stakeholders on the conference's progress and to identify and solve problems.
Because of its strategic approach, Sea to Sky did not come up against any major challenges. The logistics were flawless, communication was complicated but controlled, and participants enjoyed their experience in Vancouver, Canada. The one challenge identified early on in the planning stage was establishing the budget in a climate of uncertainty, and the issue of the Canadian versus the American dollar. Despite past OMAE practice, Sea to Sky decided to operate registration in Canadian dollars, which ended up creating significant savings in the budget.
The judges selected this event for its brilliant execution against measurable and defined objectives. It serves as a prime example of good ROI, outperforming every metric. Sea to Sky's strategic approach to OMAE 2004 allowed for successful management of the conference, its finances, registration, marketing and PR, program content, logistics and evaluation.
About MPI
Established in 1972, Meeting Professionals International (MPI; www.mpiweb.org) is the largest association for the meetings profession with more than 20,000 members in 66 chapters and clubs. As the global authority and resource for the $102.3 billion meetings and events industry, MPI empowers meeting professionals to increase their strategic organizational value through education and networking opportunities. Its strategic plan, Pathways to Excellence, is designed to elevate the role of meetings in business via: creating professional development levels to evolve member careers to positions of strategic understanding and influence; influencing executives about the value of meetings; and ensuring MPI is the premier marketplace for planners and suppliers.
|
![[Photo]](/wp-content/themes/seatosky/images/header_gen.png)
