Meetings Today Podcast

Meetings Today's Tyler Davidson caught up with new San Diego Tourism Authority President & CEO Daniel Kuperschmid at ASAE's Annual Meeting to find out what the new DMO leader's objectives are, how his 30-year career in hotels informs his new position, major meetings-related developments in what may be the hottest destination in the U.S., and some of the undiscovered gems of this So...

Meetings Today's Tyler Davidson caught up with Al Hutchinson, former president and CEO of Visit Baltimore, to explore his new venture, AVH Enterprise, and its mission to provide comprehensive leadership development, strategic planning and social impact solutions tailored specifically to DMOs.

Visit Irving Executive Director Maura Gast explains how this Dallas Metroplex meetings destination is making strides in wellness and its skill at hyper-personalizing its meetings offering for planners and attendees.

On this episode of the Meetings Today podcast, digital content coordinator Logan Pratt sits down with Carolina Viazcan, vice president of sales for Visit Greater Palm Springs, and Laruen Bruggemans, director of sustainability and community engagement, to learn how the destination is both creating new developments while balancing its commitment to environmental and social sustainability. This podca...

With $10 billion in infrastructure investment and new dining, retail and entertainment districts such as OCVIBE, Anaheim, California, has embarked on what it has dubbed the "Golden Decade." Meetings Today caught up with Ronnie Collins, senior vice president of sales for Visit Anaheim, to learn the details, and also about mega events coming to the destination, a major property renovation...

Phoenix has earned the moniker "Championship Valley" because of its extensive experience in hosting big sporting events like the Super Bowl and basketball championships. Lorne Edwards, chief sales officer, Visit Phoenix and Eric George, special events administrator, City of Phoenix, discuss what goes into the execution of large-scale sporting events and world-class conventions in Phoenix...

Gaylord Pacific Resort & Convention Center DOSM Russ Mitchell talks about the brand's massive new $1.3 billion property near San Diego, which will be the largest hotel on the West Coast. Located in Chula Vista, California, and set for a May 15, 2025 opening, the property will offer a whopping 1,600 rooms and more than 477,000 square feet of meeting space that includes the 47,000-square-foo...

The threat by the Trump Administration to levy significant tariffs against three of the biggest trading partners of the U.S. became reality March 4, 2025, and the impact on the meeting and events industry is still unfolding. Meetings Today’s Tyler Davidson engaged Voices in Advocacy’s Roger Rickard, the leading expert on political advocacy in the meetings industry and beyond, to gauge how the 25%...

Former Freeman Company CEO Bob Priest-Heck has helmed one the largest events industry companies in the world, collecting a vast reservoir of knowledge on the profession. Now, in tandem with Freeman Board Chair Carrie Freeman Parsons, he's put that knowledge down on paper in their new book  Inside Live Events . Meetings Today's Tyler Davidson sat down with Priest-Heck to discuss why the boo...

Michael Krouse, president and CEO of the Greater Ontario, California CVB, aka GOCAL, and regional vice president convention centers for ASM Global, shares details on a massive expansion project that will double the size of the Ontario Convention Center (including a parking garage that can double as an event venue!) as well as a new entertainment district, Empire Sports Complex and baseball stadium...

In this episode of the Meetings Today podcast, Senior Content Director Danielle LeBreck speaks with Lisa Bethea, director of destination services for Visit Frisco, about how planners can host memorable events in rapidly growing Frisco. Learn how to tap the Destination Services team at Visit Frisco, what new developments are on the horizon and more.

Tyler Davidson checked in with David Peckinpaugh, president and CEO or global MICE giant Maritz, at PCMA's Convening Leaders event in Houston, Texas to discover findings from two major, recent Maritz surveys and what they reveal about the incentive market.

Tyler Davidson sat down with Casandra Matej, president and CEO of Visit Orlando, and Mark Tester, executive director of the Orange County Convention Center, to discover what’s new and coming down the pike in what is perennially the most popular meetings and conventions destination in North America.

Eric Zimmerman was named a 2024 Meetings Trendsetter for his innovative work at TripZero, which helps meeting planners host sustainable events at no extra cost. In this Trendsetter Tuesday episode, Zimmerman shares his personal sustainability journey and offers practical tips for greening your next event.

Mandi Graziano, vice president, global accounts at HPN Global, wears many hats—a sales coach, podcast host, author, professional speaker and now, a 2024 Meetings Trendsetter. Meetings Today's Taylor Smith sat down with this Trendsetter to hear her story and learn about how Graziano stays motivated and inspired.

Cape Cod is a destination that has been home to or frequented by some of the most influential people in U.S. culture, from literary lions like Kurt Vonnegut to American icons such as Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis and playwright Tennessee Williams.  Former Meetings Today editor Maria Lenhart, who has also written and edited for some of the other top meetings industry trade publications in a career mea...

Traci DePuy talks about her journey in the event marketing space, from her start as a PR representative to the Chief Marketing Officer for one of the largest associations of event professionals.

Monique Ruff-Bell is the Chief Program & Strategy Officer for TED, where she oversees TED’s flagship global events and conferences, TEDx programs and initiatives, global partnership sales and key marketing verticals. But before she was helping to run one of the most well-known conferences in the world, she was just a humble intern who decided to commit herself to the industry after meeting rap...

A 20-year food and beverage operations veteran, Thomas Whelan, director of events – Northeast for Access DMC, has helped launch off-premise and on-premise catering companies and curated experiences for millions of people at corporate events and social gatherings. Whelan, a Meetings Today Trendsetter that was formerly the assistant GM for Levy Convention Centers at the Boston Convention and Exhibit...

In this Meetings Today podcast, digital content coordinator Logan Pratt sits down with Roger Rickard, founder and president of Voices in Advocacy to learn about how some of the key issues in the 2024 presidential election could impact the meetings industry. Rickard also talks about the effectiveness of destination boycotts, how groups can advocate for themselves in legislative policy and why there...

On this spooky edition of a Meetings Today podcast, Meetings Today's own Taylor Smith and Logan Pratt read and react to some of the worst meetings horror stories submitted by Meetings Today readers. From firetrucks to bathrooms to palm trees, don't miss out on these hilarious horror stories this Halloween!

On this episode of the Trendsetter Tuesday podcast, Taylor Smith sat down with Amani Roberts, Chief Musical Curator at The Amani Experience to learn more about how Roberts uses tools like music to help those in the meetings industry unleash their creative minds. 

AI represents a massive sea-change in the business world and beyond, and the business events segment is quickly adapting its benefits to workflows. Meetings Today's Tyler Davidson sat down with Amy Kramer, market and product innovation leader for Maritz, to see how the global MICE giant has integrated AI into its workflow, and also tips on how meeting professionals can implement this remarkable ne...

In this Trendsetter Tuesday podcast, Meetings Today digital content coordinator Logan Pratt sat down with Bill Reed, Chief Event Strategy Offer for the American Society of Hematology (ASH) and one of this year's Meetings Trendsetters. Reed talks about his journey in the meetings industry to this point, why he is always asking questions and innovating and why he is never complacent with the status...

Native Los Angeleno Javier Cano wears many hats, from overseeing 10 hotels in Greater Los Angeles, including LA LIVE’s JW Marriott and The Ritz-Carlton, to being chair of the Los Angeles Tourism Marketing District and on the executive committee of the Los Angeles Tourism & Convention Board as well as the California Hotel & Lodging Association. In addition, he’s on the board of directors of...