MPI Foundation Convenes Summit: Planners, Suppliers Gather in New York City to Identify ``Back to Business'' Challenges for Global Meeting Industry

Business Wire, Oct 19, 2001

Business Editors

DALLAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 19, 2001

Peer Foundations Also at Oct. 26 Event to Discuss Go-Forward

Research and Education Initiatives

The Meeting Professionals International (MPI) Foundation is conducting a high-level, industry-wide Summit on Fri., Oct. 26, 2001 at the Hilton New York in New York City. There, approximately 60 professionals including leading meeting planners and high-ranking representatives from hotel chains and airlines will participate in an exchange to identify and respond to "back to business" challenges facing the worldwide meeting and convention industry.

Top-line research on the current state of the meeting and business travel industries, as well as initial findings on likely business barriers, will be presented by Summit participants. Also attending will be representatives from peer foundations -- including the Professional Convention Management Association Education Foundation, the American Society of Association Executives Foundation, The Society of Incentive & Travel Executives Foundation, the Convention Industry Council and the International Association of Convention and Visitor Bureaus Foundation -- to discuss potential collaborative research and program development projects directly related to getting the meeting industry back to the business of doing business.

The MPI Foundation will release proprietary industry research conducted in preparation for the Summit, as well as Summit findings on Mon., Oct. 29, 2001.

Event specifics:

Date/Time/Place:             Fri., Oct. 26, 2001; 1:30 - 5:30 p.m.;
                             Hilton New York, New York City

Representative participants: Professional planners from top
                             corporations and associations, such as
                             Merrill Lynch, Metal Powder Industries
                             Federation, American Institute of CPAs,
                             Scientific-Atlanta, Sprint and McGettigan
                             Partners

                             Leading representatives from Starwood
                             Hotels and Resorts, Inc., Hilton Hotels
                             Corp., Omni Hotels, Loews Hotels, Wyndham
                             International, Dolce International,
                             Continental Airlines, and United Airlines

                             Business travel research experts from
                             PriceWaterhouseCoopers and Yesawich,
                             Pepperdine & Brown

Summit moderators:           Mark Sirangelo, Chairman, MPI Foundation
                             and CEO of Altadena, Calif.-based
                             Filmworks Corp.
                             Nancy Morrell-Swanson, Chairwoman-Elect,
                             MPI Foundation and president of
                             San Diego-based Global Marketing
                             Services, Inc.