This post is part of the HopSkip Planner Spotlight Series where HopSkip spotlight's planners across the industry to bring awareness of how they adapted to COVID-19, communicating and lessons learned and sharing how they are viewing the meetings and events industry in a post-pandemic world.
Name: Kathy Coppi
Company Name: National Electrical Manufacturers Representatives Association
Job Title: Sr. Meeting Planner
Years of Experience: 26
How do you think you are positioned, after months of persevering with the pandemic, to take advantage of our new and disrupted meetings/events landscape?
I am extremely fortunate to work with an amazing team NEMRA. We were forward thinking during the pandemic and hosted the only virtual Electrical Industry conference in 2021! In Early 2022, we were the first in the industry to hold an in person conference hosting over 1200 attendees!
As our community moves forward with planning in-person meetings, what new technologies or processes are you implementing that you may have not looked at before?
We are looking into new ways of how we communicate to our membership. Shifting to more precise newsletters and hosting podcasts to highlight different areas of the industry. We have also implemented kiosks at our conference for check-in, both main check-in and for sessions, as well as badge printing - quick and painless process that mirrors an airport check in. Members loved how easy the process is!
As we see virtual meetings transition back to face to face, hybrid meetings are beginning to be the vehicle to return to normalcy. What are your thoughts on hybrid meetings versus traditional fully in-person meetings?
While hybrid meetings are a great option and we still host some, our industry is excited to get back to in person. Our members understand the value of engaging face to face, networking and building relationships in person, which you just are not able to 100% achieve virtually or in a hybrid setting.
In your opinion, what do you think the biggest value for your attendees is in regards to returning to live events?
The biggest value is definitely the engagement and participation for our members. Live events offer the opportunity to engage in small talk, networking and building relationships.
As the pandemic fades away and we return to face-to-face events what do you hope changes, either for planners or hoteliers, in the traditional RFP and proposal process as a result of all of the learnings from the last 20+ months?
I hope there is patience and flexibility with deadlines, proposals, contract negotiations, etc. Hotels are not back to full staff and I find it is taking longer for responses. Sadly, the hospitality industry has lost a lot of great people and its going to take time to build it all back up. I am seeing that hotels are excited and ready to rebuild and are eager to work with planners to welcome groups back to in person.
This post is part of the HopSkip Planner Spotlight Series where HopSkip spotlight's planners across the industry to bring awareness of how they adapted to COVID-19, communicating and lessons learned and sharing how they are viewing the meetings and events industry in a post-pandemic world.
