Meet Brad Weaber, President of Courtesy Associates, a recognized leader in the full-service conference and event management industry. We recently talked to Brad about some of the current challenges and opportunities faced by event planners and event suppliers. Thoughts from the C-Suite directly to you.

WTTC:  How important is training and education to the industry?

BW: Training and education are the cornerstone of our industry.  It is imperative that we strive for more education so that we can continue to escalate the quality of the entire industry.  With the constant changes in our world and the fact that so many of the changes that take place directly impacts the meetings industry, it is crucial to constantly be learning.

WTTC: What makes a great planner, great?

BW: In my opinion, a great planner has an incredible balance of business acumen, common sense and instinct. The meeting planning profession is a very dynamic field and not for the “faint of heart”.  Great planners have the ability to meet the ever changing needs of all stakeholders – internal customers, external customers and industry partners.  Listening is a critical skill for a great planner as many times planners have to extract information that is not always readily available.  A great planner makes the event look seamless and easy (regardless of what is going on behind the scenes!)

WTTC:  How many and what kind of events does Courtesy typically produce in a year?

BW: We produce approximately 600 to 800 meetings of all size – 10 to thousands in attendance.  Government, commercial and association.

WTTC: When deciding on a destination, what are the key things you look for?

BW: Will the destination meet the specific requirements of the end user client and provide value to members … draw factor for members, ease of transportation/affordability, whether the destination is logistically feasible and quality facilities and service.

WTTC: Our Website is all about making the information gathering side of program planning fast and easy. In the spirit of this, do you have a special tip you would like to share?

BW: Ask yourself the question:  “If my organization was putting this event on for the first time, what would it look like?”  So many times planners get stuck in the “we have the same program” syndrome. By and by asking yourself this important question you will challenge the norm.

WTTC: Are there any pitfalls planners can avoid when negotiating with hotels.

BW:  Only focusing on rates. There are so many other factors to creating a win-win contract and so many times it boils down to rate and concessions.  Pay close attention to all terms and make certain that some of the less tangible terms are acceptable.

WTTC: What are the current challenges and opportunities faced by event management companies?

BW: The current economy has created both challenges and opportunities as we are being asked to do so much more with less financial support.  This presents a challenge as event companies are always trying to stay ahead of the technology and constantly introducing new content and concepts into events.  The opportunities in this down economy are endless as event companies are in a position to re-create, re-visit and re-think the way we conventionally have done business in the past.  This is the silver lining as it enhances our creativity and makes us more efficient.

WTTC: What role does service play in the current economy? Are clients making decisions based only on price? Are there other factors at play?

BW: While clients want to make certain that they are paying the best possible price, I find that prudent clients are definitely understanding that superior service, innovative thinking and ability to navigate to weather stormy economic times are more important than looking for the lowest price for valued services.

WTTC: The industry has seen a lot of changes in the past 10 years. Has the current economic climate changed how you’ll do business down the road?

BW:  I believe that the focus of the future will be on the quality of the program and content vs. the glitz of events.  The overarching goal should always be the value proposition to the attendee for their time.  Competition for events will continue to be fierce and the goal of any planner will be to make their event stand out in the minds of the attendees so that there is no question which event to attend.

WTTC: Has the economy affected how you do business with vendors? What is one piece of advise you can give to suppliers when bidding for your business?

BW: I think the economy has actually helped relationships to grow even stronger.  We all have to come together to take care of each other at all times, but especially these challenging times.  A piece of advice that I would give is to please understand the needs of your clients and show that you have done your homework so that you can present the value to the needs.

WTTC: What is the one key element of an event program that you just can’t do without?

BW: Quality content.