{"id":5203,"date":"2020-09-08T13:44:33","date_gmt":"2020-09-08T13:44:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/leoevents.com\/?post_type=newsroom&p=5097"},"modified":"2021-11-01T17:00:10","modified_gmt":"2021-11-01T17:00:10","slug":"survivor-diaries-lessons-for-meeting-planners","status":"publish","type":"newsroom","link":"https:\/\/leoevents.com\/newsroom\/survivor-diaries-lessons-for-meeting-planners\/","title":{"rendered":"Survivor Diaries: Lessons for Meeting Planners on Conquering Epic COVID Disruptions"},"content":{"rendered":"

JT LONG | SMART MEETINGS<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The last six months have been a roller coaster for meeting professionals. In a lively webinar last week,\u00a0Smart Meetings<\/em>\u00a0founder and CEO Marin Bright gathered four\u00a0Smart Women in Meetings Award winners<\/a>\u2014Cindy Brewer, principal with LEO Events; Desi Whitney, senior vice president of sourcing operations and industry relations with HPN Global; Stefanie Maragna, vice president of corporate marketing and events with Sage Intacct; and Cheryl Rogers, corporate events manager with Solara Medical Suppliers\u2014who have been buckled in for the ride.<\/p>\n

Bright asked how they conquered COVID disruptions and positioned themselves to thrive in the future. Here\u2019s a look back at how we\u2019ve been feeling over the last 180 days.<\/p>\n

Relive the Survivor Diaries Conversation Here On-Demand.<\/a><\/p>\n

For\u00a0Smart Meetings<\/em>, the shift to\u00a0working from home<\/a>\u00a0happened in a day. California Governor Gavin Newsom made the decision that within 24 hours everyone in the state would be required to shelter in place. The team quickly learned new processes and communication skills.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt that point, a fight-or-flight mechanism kicks in. Some probably thought they would have time to catch up on a few books or television shows. Nope,\u201d Marin Bright said. \u201cInstead, we launched a series of products, including\u00a0Smart U<\/a>\u00a0career education and\u00a0The Smart Connection<\/a>\u00a0networking platform. Then we dove into producing\u00a0virtual events<\/a>\u00a0right away.\u201d<\/p>\n

Emotional whiplash was a common symptom during those early days. \u201cWe were on track for having the best year ever, and we were loading in for a Walmart show the first of March when the cease-and-desist order came in. It was a shock,\u201d said Cindy Brewer of her team at\u00a0Leo Events<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe quickly realized that there were many stages of grief, and that out of our 60 employees, everyone was in different stages of processing. As an employer, we had to help pull those people through while dealing with the fact that all our business had just disappeared,\u201d she recalled.<\/p>\n

Then the uncertainty kicked in. \u201cWe thought it would be three weeks at most,\u201d Marin ventured. \u201cJust a few temporary snow days. We basically left the coffee pot going for when we would get back.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cheryl Rogers decided this was the time to take the advice of friends and family who had long suggested she share her adventures while doing site visits and learning about destinations. That is when\u00a0All About the Experiences: Living Without Limits<\/a>, her podcast, was born. \u201cIt\u2019s been a blessing to be able to spotlight and highlight positivity,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Desi Whitney defined her COVID months as a time of \u201cscrambling.\u201d In addition to her role with HPN, she focused on helping meeting professionals by creating a\u00a0medical contingency plan<\/a>\u00a0she made available through her company,\u00a0Emergency Concierge International<\/a>. \u201cWe had such a lack of resources back in March and April, and we wanted to\u00a0support planners<\/a>\u00a0on site and tell them exactly what to do and how to manage and be a resource,\u201d she said. \u201cWe hope it helped save a meeting or two.\u201d<\/p>\n

Stefanie Maragna had just come out of a 1,000-person event for\u00a0Sage Intacct<\/a>\u00a0when the stay-at-home order came and quickly had to make a decision about an\u00a0in-person meeting<\/a>\u00a0happening in five days. She transformed it into a\u00a0virtual event<\/a>\u00a0that drew 10 times more registration than projected for a physical meeting. \u201cI think we will keep a virtual component even when we are back to meeting in person, because they enhance our programs,\u201d she predicted.<\/p>\n

She spent the following months refining that virtual experience, working with partners and trying to stay positive. \u201cIt has been challenging but also innovative, and we have been able to find ways to figure it out.\u201d<\/p>\n

Stefanie\u2019s secret weapon? \u201cWe didn\u2019t do this alone. It\u2019s amazing how this community is supporting each other with tips and words of wisdom.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The last six months have been a roller coaster for meeting professionals. In a lively webinar last week, Smart Meetings founder and CEO Marin Bright gathered four Smart Women in Meetings Award winners\u2014Cindy Brewer, principal with LEO Events; Desi Whitney, senior vice president of sourcing operations and industry relations with HPN Global; Stefanie Maragna, vice president of corporate marketing and events with Sage Intacct; and Cheryl Rogers, corporate events manager with Solara Medical Suppliers\u2014who have been buckled in for the ride.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":5509,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","tags":[],"newsroom_cat":[13],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nSurvivor Diaries: Lessons for Meeting Planners on Conquering Epic COVID Disruptions - LEO Events<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The last six months have been a roller coaster for meeting professionals ...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/leoevents.com\/newsroom\/survivor-diaries-lessons-for-meeting-planners\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Survivor Diaries: Lessons for Meeting Planners on Conquering Epic COVID Disruptions - 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