Internship Thoughts 2.5

The first really large event during my internship was coming up in a week, and I was starting to stuff packets, stuff badges and all of those wonderful pre conference activities. Grooving along in my rut of mindless activities I was surprised when the planner in charge of the conference prairie-dogged into my view.

"Come with me" she said, smiling.

We went off to the department meeting room and were soon joined by the program manager and executive director. It was a pre-conference agenda meeting! We looked at a one page version of the agenda and reviewed pre-conference, conference and post-conference duties.

It was an interesting internal view of how the planner and program manager work together. The inclusion of the executive director was a reminder of the importance of the event. For me, it was a little surreal. I had no real input to add to the conversation, but it was critical I knew when to be where. I felt out of place partly because it had been sprung on me.

After it was over, I returned to my busywork, eventually stuffing packets including the approved agenda. It wasn't until the next week that we learned that the mini-agenda had misprinted information on it. We attempted to correct that with a new agenda passed out at check-in.

Internship Thoughts 3 - Fast as Molasses

Recently I was asked to check availability for a program in Las Vegas. We would like to hold a pre-meeting before a sister organization has their meeting.

It was a lock for the hotel. If they had space, we wanted it. No muss, no fuss. Just send us the contract. I was surprised there wasn't interest in negotiation on our part, but given that the location was already chosen... There wasn't much wiggle room.

However, it took two weeks to make live contact with the salesperson that handled our business segment at the right property. It was an unfortunate combination of my limited schedule, a two hour time difference and whatever factors restricted communication on her end.

From that point forward, our disjointed communication was via email. Our communication didn't improve, but at least I could copy the planner in charge of this event. Although I was still ashamed about the molasses like pace of the information exchange, I could readily prove that I wasn't limiting factor.

It took nearly 5 weeks to contract the event.

Internship Thoughts 2 - Check the WC

I've particiated in three events while working as an intern. Two were offsite, and one was held in our own small conference center. At both offsite events the women's bathrooms were a source of complaint.

Each time, they ran short on towels and toilet paper. Further the trashcans overflowed and general tidiness was a problem. I doubt that our attendees were wasteful and messy.

A simple scan of the attendee list of each event reveals that the women outnumber the men quite markedly. The bathrooms were simply overwhelmed.

Each of the planners I work with deals with it in a reactive manner. They simply alert the hotel when someone complains.

Wouldn't it be better to deal with the problem in a proactive manner? But where would the issues of bathrooms be addressed? The BEOs might be a good place; they could be scheduled right before or after the big rushes: breaks and meals.

However, the banquet staff isn't responsible for the bathrooms. Also, formalizing the bathroom schedule seems... tacky.

Proactive or Reactive?.. It probably won't be dealt with until it becomes a standard complain on the program evaluations.

Internship Thoughts 1 - "Armed only with a butter knife ..."

I am an intern. It's an affirmative statement because I'm quite happy with the situation. I'm getting paid to learn my profession.

The bulk of my responsibilities have been to: file paper backups of registrations; fold and stuff registration confirmations into envelopes; process substitutions and cancellations; and most importantly stuff badges. (Hence the name of this blog.)

It hasn't been rocket science.

Take as an example my first conference as an intern. I knew that my main role was to be super helpful. Stuff badges? No problem. Move tables, set out conference materials? Just point me in the right direction. Open boxes? I'd be glad to.

I wondered if the situation was a metaphor for my entry into the industry or possibly a reflection on my status in the company. I was tasked with opening approximately 40 boxes.

However, I was armed only with a butter knife. (Also a tempting name for this blog.)

I clearly didn't have the right tool for the job. I asked, politely as I could, if there was something more appropriate. However, the boxcutter wasn't in the supply box and a butter knife was the best the hotel could provide at the moment.

Sensing no other options, I attacked my tower of boxes and mauled my way through to victory.

In reality, it was probably just an affirmation of corporate life; The last box I opened contained a box cutter.

Context - My Current Plan

Take it for granted that I've done more than that first event previously mentioned. Enough so, that I'm serious about making this a career. And that's part of what this blog is about; how i'm getting from 'here' to 'there'.

So the question tonight is "How?".

I'm currently a student in the School of New Learning at DePaul University. It's a non-traditional program for non-traditional students. Founded on the premise that adults have different experiences and priorities than teenagers entering college, SNL flips some portions of traditional education on it's ear.

For starters, they provide a mechanism for adults to prove that they have earned college level learning for real life experience. Further, most degrees are designed by the student with approval from advisors from the academic and professional spheres. An academic advisor ensures that the degree meets rigorous academic standards. The professional advisor certifies the relavence of the degree in the real world.

Researching exactly how I want to design my degree hasn't been easy. I did a quick survey of what several different schools include as part of their curriculums. It gave me a general guildeline, but left me with more questions. Since then, I've been going through all the schools listed by MPI that offer courses in meeting planning. (Only about 20% of them have a certification, minor or degree in meeting planning.) My goal is to see what all the programs have in common (meeting planning fundamentals) and what some programs have in common (meeting planning specializations).

Of course, at some point, I'm going to have to present my degree design to my academic committee. For that to happen I'll need to choose a professional advisor or mentor. That search has been made much easier by the wonderful people on the Google groups related to meeting planning. Joining the MiForum and MeCo groups have connected me to a wealth of information and perspective that seem bottomless.

Given the amount of help I've received from these online communities I've decided that joining MPI and other professional organizations is critical to my growth. I think one thing that I see missing from other degrees is some kind of connection to the profession as a whole. In fact, I'm considering building into my degree a requirement that I join MPI and contribute in some manner. The contribution requirement would prevent me from being a wall flower and force me to make the connections that are critical for a sustained career.

Another avenue of growth I'm currently embarked upon is an internship. It's a good way to get some experience to put on my resume. I'm always afraid that my experience for a student organization is devalued because it's not... corporate. Also, I get a chance to see how people do planning in a sustained environment. I had to invent the wheel while working by myself; this internship is a chance to compare the two experiences. It's another thing I plan on building into my degree.

That's my plan right now. Think it'll help me become a meetings professional?

A little history - My first event

If there is a professional equivalent to love at first sight, I experienced it in 1998. One week as a member of a student organization I was thrown to the wolves. I was assigned to a team which was creating a seminar to prepare students for an internship abroad.

For the first time in my life I was given responsibility and authority in a way that gave me true ownership. There were no parents or other authority figures watching in a patient and benevolent manner. If we didn't do it, it didn't happen.

The challenge of planning a seminar from start to finish sparked inner qualities I had rarely used. A strategic nature emerged as we created our goals and overall framework. Sparks of creativity flew as we researched our seminar topic, created content and booked presenters. Deliberate consideration went into finding a venue, planning the schedule and ordering food. A bit of showmanship appeared as my team and I chaired the seminar.

It was a revolution and transformation. It was love at first 'site.'

The Basics

To begin with, my name is Brian. However, that may not really matter to you. On the internet, content is king. So you may be more interested in what I intend to blog, and why.

There's something about meetings and conferences that energizes me. The pre-conference planning is a challenge of strategy, negotiation, and risk. Once on-site, meetings are the choreographed execution of those careful plans, and a full on attack by participants, venue, other potential disasters. It is a job when well done goes unnoticed by all but the most grateful. However, done poorly, there is salvation for the unprepared planner.

No wonder so many planners I've spoken with sleep poorly.

So this blog serves as a catalog of my experiences as a planner becomming a professional.

I phrase it that way because I've met many, many 'planners.' Individuals who have hosted a tupperware party, organized a family reunion, or arranged the details of a company meeting often call themselves 'planners.' However, many of these 'planners' seem to know little of the industry and care less for it's advancement.

My goal then, is to escape the quotation marks that silently hang in the air when I describe myself as a meeting 'planner.' What I strive for is to become Brian, Meeting Planner. No quotation marks & no unspoken shame.