Las Vegas. Show organizers have also increased the capacity of the show’s education theater, the Inspiration Hub sponsored by Maritz Global Events, by 12 per cent to allow more people to benefit from its in-demand program. Ron Renee Roley, board member LGBT Meeting Professionals Association and Senior Event Manager for Global Events at Nike, discusses diversity in Creating environments of acceptance: gender expression in the workplace and beyond. As a champion for trans workers’ rights, gender neutral bathrooms, safe travel for trans employees, they will share personal experiences and advise attendees on how to develop an understanding of gender expression.
Women and risk: rewriting the rules sees Dr. Mara Catherine Harvey from UBS Switzerland share steps on addressing economic gender equality. Dr Harvey, also the keynote at She Means Business conference, is committed to advancing equality in finance and her session sheds light on tackling pay gaps both now and in the future.
Diversity and inclusion is the focus of sessions by Katie Wells from SMG – she will share examples from her company culture to show how inclusion can benefit businesses. Her session, Being who you are is an advantage in the workplace, will show how there is a measurable, positive impact on a company’s performance and business results when an open and collaborative culture exists.
Collaboration is one of three ‘pillars’ of Imagination, IMEX’s Talking Point for this year, and many education sessions at the show explore this in more detail. Take The science behind imaginative events by EventMB.com. As research partners on this year’s #IMEX19 industry research report, EventMB.com will present findings and case studies from their report into some of the most imaginative events in the industry. Julius Solaris’ sessions will show how to translate inspiration into business action and use imagination to elevate performance, both professionally and personally.
Founder of the Event Design Collective, Roel Frissen, will show how the event model canvas enables planners to collaboratively design innovative events in an MPI education session#EventCanvas: your map to extraordinary meetings. Make delegates ‘stop, stare and say wow’ is the aim of Do you remember when? Emma Pitts, Founder and CEO of PullSpark, draws upon her experience in live events and production to share tips on how to captivate an audience and create a truly memorable event.
Various facets of sustainability, a core consideration for many event professionals, are covered in multiple sessions including one that enlists the help of superheroes! Greening the events industry: sustainability superheroes assemble! is a panel of industry-leading professionals – including IMEX’s own COO Nalan Emre – discussing how to work together to imagine new initiatives, minimize waste and how this feeds into designing a better event experience.
Next-level sustainability – Global Climate Action Summit case study is a deep dive into the sustainability strategy of the Global Climate Action Summit, winner of the IMEX-EIC Innovation in Sustainability Award at IMEX in Frankfurt this year. Jaime Nack, President of Three Squares Inc, reviews its key impact areas and how it became the first event to achieve third party certification to ISO 20121. Mariela McIlwraith from EIC and Guy Bigwood from Global Destinations Sustainability Index introduce the UN Sustainable Development Goals in Events as conservers, creators and catalysts for the UN Sustainable Development Goals. They’ll share case studies of events which are creating positive change in communities and prompting participants to take action.
Finally, technology continues to feature highly with the latest in gamification, apps, AR and cyber security all explored in detail. Speaker Tim Altbaum, CEO of Vario, believes the next five years will see the fastest growth ever in event technology. His session Mixed reality and event technology trends focuses on how advances in AR/VR and AI will change event environments and the resulting impact on attendees.
Carina Bauer, CEO of the IMEX Group, explains: “Beginning with Smart Monday, powered by MPI, and also running throughout the three days of the show, education is a firm focus for IMEX America. We recognize that, although event planners need to remain up to date on the latest issues and trends, it can sometime be a challenge to carve out time for professional development in between their business appointments. Our sessions – all free of charge – are offered in a variety of learning formats and cover 10 tracks including business skills, trends and research, creative learning, technology and marketing. We and our partners craft ‘something for everyone’ so they can hit that perfect balance between business, networking and inspiration.”
The IMEX America education program is now live. Registration for the show is free of charge and open to all who work in the meetings, events and incentive travel industry.
