Spring Forward
Speakers Bios/Introductions
Overcoming Destination Misperception
Eli Gorin, CMP, is President of Aventura, Florida-based
gMeetings, Inc., a meeting management boutique focused
on the logistical development and coordination of corporate
meetings and events, with a specialization in the Latin
American market. Mr. Gorin received both his undergraduate
and graduate degrees from George Washington University’s
prestigious Event Management program, as well as an MBA
in Leadership and Quality Management from the University
of Miami. He is a member of the adjunct faculty of the
GWU Event Management Certificate Program, taught as an
adjunct professor at Johnson & Wales University in
North Miami, FL and speaks frequently at industry events.
Eli worked in various capacities within the meetings
industry prior to launching gMeetings, Inc. in January
2006. His work focusing on creating awareness of the
Latin American market for corporate meetings and events
earned him a spot on MeetingNews’ list of “25
Most Influential People in the Meetings Industry in 2007”.
He is currently serves as a member of the MPI Body of
Knowledge Task Force as well as an MPI Platinum Series
speaker. In June 2009, Eli launched Train2Meet, the first
collaborative of top industry trainers providing continuing
education within all the major segments of the meetings
and events industry.
The Future of Meetings
Marc L. Goldberg
Partner
Marketech, Inc.
A seasoned executive, Marc brings over 40 years of experience
to his marketing and exhibiting seminars. During the
past two decades, he has worked in all facets of marketing
and has devoted himself to maximizing the results attainable
through the exhibiting medium. Combining his skills
developed through marketing and management positions
with his concepts in tradeshow marketing, it is plain
to see why he one of the most highly rated trainers at
conferences nationally and internationally.
Steve Gogolak
Director of Media & Webcasting
Cramer Productions
Greg Clark
Director of Sales & Marketing
Westin Boston Waterfront
Social Media
Bryan Lavin
National Sales Manager
Providence Warwick Convention & Visitors Bureau
As
a National Sales Manager at the Providence Warwick Convention
and Visitors Bureau, Bryan Lavin is an active member
of the MPI New England Chapter and currently the Board
Liaison for the Marketing and Communications Committee.
Beginning as the Social Media Manager for the chapter
in November of 2008, Bryan over sees the Chapter’s Facebook,
LinkedIn, and Twitter accounts. These three sites provide
members a place to interact and network through the internet
as well as keep all of the “followers” up to date on
events, news, and announcements from MPI. Since accepting
this volunteer position, Bryan has had the opportunity
to present the business aspects of social media to several
organizations throughout New England.
Partnering with Hotels to
Get What You Need
Mark Bice
Regional Vice President, HPN Global
Mark has over 25 years of experience within the hospitality
industry in various sales, meeting planning, and operations
roles and currently serves as the Regional Vice President
of HPN Global, a meeting planning and site selection
Company based in Scottsdale, AZ.
Prior to joining HPN Global, Mark spent many years with
Starwood Hotels and Resorts and also held positions within
ITT Sheraton, Wyndham Hotels, and The Greater Boston
Convention and Visitor’s Bureau.
Mark earned a Bachelor’s of Arts in Journalism/Public
Relations from the University of Massachusetts-Amherst
and a Masters in Business Administration from Boston
College.
Mark is also an active member of Meeting Professionals
International’s New England Chapter where he serves on
the Board of Directors.
Michael Dominguez
Loews Hotels, Vice President of Global Sales
Colleen Kenney
Manager of Events, Meetings & Conventions at Millennium
Pharmaceuticals
Prior to that, Colleen was at Sepracor as a Senior Project
Manager. She started her career in the hotel industry
and participated in various roles for 15 years. Her
roles included Banquet Manager at numerous hotel properties,
Assistant Director of Catering at Wentworth by the Sea,
Sales Manager at Wentworth by the Sea, and Director of
Sales at the Black Point Inn. Four year ago, Colleen
decided to switch her career path to Meeting Planning
and has been doing that since. She is a member of MPI
and actively supports their mission.
Raul Moronta
Director of revenue management, the Westin Copley Place
Has Bachelors in Hotel & Restaurant Management from
Dominican Republic and an MBA Concentration in Hotel
Management from the University of New Haven. Raul moved
to Boston in the spring of 1994 and worked 5 years at
the Hilton Boston BackBay in various management positions
within Front Office and Housekeeping. I moved to the
Hyatt Harborside and was Front Office Manager and Executive
Housekeeper. In October 2000 I began my career with Starwood
and Revenue Management and worked at the following properties:
- Sheraton Lexington
- Four Points Waltham / Burlington
- Westin Waltham
In 2004 I was responsible for developing Starwood’s
first centralized revenue management program for the
Four Points by Sheraton Brand where I was responsible
for development, deployment and operations of the program.
In December of 2008 I joined the Westin Copley Place
where I have been working as the Director of Revenue.
Moderator
karen m. king, cmp, cmm
principal, meeting strategists, llc
was founded in June of 2004, it is a
consultancy focused on four major areas: conference
planning, product launch, spend optimization, training & development.
In February of this year King became an Accredited
Trainer for the MPI Global Trainer Center. Our focus
is to advise clients on opportunities to manage, leverage,
and optimize meeting, event and travel spending. It
is our expectation that business will continue to grow
as client partners come to rely on outsourced business
model for disciplines outside of their core mission. King
serves as the President Elect for MPI New England board
of directors; King recently completed a term as a member
on the advisory board of Associated Luxury Hotels (ALHI).
Working with CVB’s and Convention
Centers – Dispelling the Myths
Maureen Buckley has held the position
of Director of Sales for the Greater Boston CVB since
2006 and will celebrate 12 years with the organization
in July. In her role as Director of Sales, Maureen
oversees a team of six professionals focused on filling
the short-term needs of hotel members located throughout
Boston, Cambridge and the six New England States. Prior
to overseeing the short-term sales efforts of the GBCVB,
Maureen worked from 1998 – 2004 on the larger, citywide
programs requiring use of the Hynes and BCEC Convention
Centers. During her entire tenure with the CVB
Maureen has managed the Washington DC & Virginia
association and government markets.
Prior to joining the GBCVB, Maureen sold luxury suites
and corporate seats for the Boston Garden and worked
in sales for Marriott, Sheraton and Omni Hotels.
Maureen has a degree in Political Science from Assumption
College in Worcester, MA.
Neil Schriever is the Senior Vice President
for the Providence Warwick Convention and Visitors Bureau
(PWCVB), responsible for the development, management
and guidance of the PWCVB’s sales and services divisions.
Neil has over twenty years of sales experience in the
hotel and travel industry. Prior to joining the PWCVB,
he worked for Starwood Hotels in Boston and other hotel
sales jobs throughout the US. Neil is an active member
of PCMA on a national and chapter level. Currently,
he serves as Chair of the 2011 PCMA Annual Meeting Program
Committee. Neil is also a member of ASAE, MPI and the
AMC Institute. He graduated from the University of Massachusetts
at Amherst, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in Hotel,
Restaurant and Travel Administration.
At 35 Patrick Lynch has risen to a
leadership position in his industry. Well known and
respected by his peers, Mr. Lynch has held several noteworthy
positions in the hospitality, meeting & events industry
including National Sales Manager at the Greater Boston
CVB, Director of Sales & Marketing , at the Crowne
Plaza Boston-Natick Hotel a Peabody Hotel Group property,
National Accounts Director at the Providence Warwick
CVB and now Executive Director of Destination Worcester
where he was hired to put his extensive experience to
work in Worcester establishing an effective destination
marketing organization. Adding to his professional accomplishments,
Mr. Lynch has successfully completed programs to achieve
his Certified Hospitality Sales Professional (CHSP) certification
from the American Hotel & Motel Association, his
Certified Meeting Professional (CMP) designation from
the Convention Industry Council and his Certified Destination
Management Executive (CDME) certificate from Destination
Marketing Association International and Purdue University.
Tim Walsh of the Newport and Bristol
County Convention & Visitors Bureau was born, raised,
and educated in Rhode Island. Twenty-six years ago he
made the long journey from Narragansett, RI to Newport
to enjoy the summer living with friends and working in
the restaurant business…He has never left. In that time,
Tim has worked in Newport’s hospitality industry in various
positions and is still involved in the restaurant business
in both Newport and New York City. Tim has been with
the Newport CVB for fourteen years and has the pleasure
of leading a dedicated staff of five in promoting Newport
and Bristol County as a premier meeting and event destination
for groups and also as a leisure destination for tourists
in the global marketplace. Tim has been an active member
of MPI for nine years serving on numerous committees
at the local New England Chapter level and earned his
CMP in 2005. He is also a member of PCMA and The New
England Society of Convention & Visitors Bureaus.
War Stories: Gnarly Production
Problems and Their Solutions
Joel A Feingold describes himself as a special event
planner on steroids with sub specialties in event marketing,
communications and sponsorships. Over his 20+ years in
the industry he has produced about 100 private concerts
with international stars, a half dozen alcoholic beverage
tasting events with 10,000 paid admissions, 9 major outdoor
festivals with 100,000+ attendees, and numerous company
meetings’ main stages and evening events. A published
author, his next article, a case study of a company awards
program, will be published in an upcoming issue of Events
Solutions Magazine.
He Said, She Said: Contracting
from Both Sides
Donna Wikstrand, CMP, is the Vice President
of Conference Hotels Unlimited, a company that specializes
in site sourcing and contract negotiations for the off-site
meetings of Corporate and Association clients.
Before joining Conference Hotels in 1990, she held Sales
Management positions at Chatham Bars Inn on Cape Cod
and the Copley Plaza Hotel Boston.
She is a past officer of MPI New England, a Past President
of HSMA, New England, and a past director of the New
England Society of Association Executives. Donna developed
the curriculum and taught a class in contract negotiation
and management for meeting professionals at Northeastern
University in their Certificate in Meeting Management
program.
Mark Bice, Regional Vice President,
HPN Global.
Mark has over 25 years of experience within the hospitality
industry in various sales, meeting planning, and operations
roles and currently serves as the Regional Vice President
of HPN Global, a meeting planning and site-selection
company based in Scottsdale, AZ.
Prior to joining HPN Global, Mark spent many years with
Starwood Hotels & Resorts and also held positions
within ITT Sheraton, Wyndham Hotels, and The Greater
Boston Convention and Visitor’s Bureau.
Mark earned a Bachelor’s of Arts in Journalism/Public
Relations from the University of Massachusetts-Amherst
and a Masters in Business Administration from Boston
College. He is also an active member of MPI New England
Chapter where he is currently serving on the Board of
Directors.
Excite, Interact and Measure
Using Tomorrow's Technology
Dave McCormack
General Manager
4Productions
Stop Your Drama: Leadership
Skills for Navigating Change
Marlene Chism is a speaker, author and founder of The
Stop Your Drama Methodology an 8-part empowerment process
to increase clarity and improve productivity and personal
effectiveness. Marlene combines universal principles
with sound business practices to bridge the inner and
outer game of success. Marlene has a masters degree in
HR Development from Webster University and she is the
author of "Success is a Given: Reading the Signs
While Reinventing Your Life." Learn more at www.marlenechism.com
or at www.stopyourdrama.com
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