New Guide from ESPA Highlights Value of Event Service Teams
August 14, 2019
Everyone who works within the trade show and meetings industry recognizes the value that events — and all the individuals involved with helping to make them successful — bring to the table. But sometimes, those outside the industry don’t understand this quite as well. To remedy that, Event Service Professionals Association has launched a guide that showcases the expertise that event service professionals provide.
Consider “ROI of the Event Service Professional: ESPA’s Guide to Showcasing the Impact and Value of Event Service” the latest tool in your arsenal for demonstrating the value of, as well as the breadth of, event services that can be shared with management and stakeholders.
“Research has shown that event service professionals have a significant impact on event success, but prior to now, most of us struggled with how to show and prove that value,” said Julie Brakenbury, director of services for the Greater Raleigh CVB who led development of the guide. “Showing our value is very important to ensure we have the budget and resources to do our jobs well.”
She continued, “Organizations, venues and hotels all spend significant money marketing and selling to book events. If those events aren’t serviced well, they don’t return, and then those same entities go about spending even more money to market and sell and book more events.”
Event services managers at hotels, convention centers and CVBs work hard to manage all the logistics on an event, essentially bringing to life what the sales team has sold. They handle everything from coordinating F&B, audiovisual and outside vendors to connecting with local resources, providing expertise and coming up with creative solutions to logistical problems. They also put in long hours on-site, working closely with meeting planners to ensure the events run smoothly.
Often, that all can be easier said than done — and in that respect, these event services teams have a huge impact on meeting planner satisfaction, which ultimately impacts revenue and growth for their respective organization.
“The measurement of our work improves the services we provide and the results we bring to the organization and the event,” said Jamie Huckleberry, ESPA president and director of event services at David L. Lawrence Convention Center in Pittsburgh. “It helps to identify if we are staffed appropriately and recognizes the work being done.”
She added, “I have always considered us the on-site salesman in services. If the event doesn’t run well, the group won’t want to return. This all has an economic impact on the city and improving event services improves that impact.”
To download the free guide and learn more, go here.
Image credit: ESPA, showing Julie Brakenbury at left.
Partner Voices
MGM Resorts is committed to fostering an inclusive and diverse culture, not just among employees and guests but also within its supply chain. The company prioritizes procuring goods and services from businesses owned by minorities, women, veterans, people with disabilities, LGBTQ individuals and those facing economic disadvantages. This commitment is integral to MGM Resorts' global procurement strategy.
Through its voluntary supplier diversity program, MGM Resorts actively identifies and connects certified diverse-owned suppliers to opportunities within its supply chain. The company is on track to spend at least 15% of its biddable procurement with diverse-owned businesses by 2025, demonstrating that supplier diversity is not only a social responsibility but also a strategic business imperative.
Supplier diversity isn’t just the right thing to do – it’s good for business. A diverse supply chain allows access to a broader range of perspectives and experience, helping to drive innovation, entrepreneurship and resilience, while strengthening communities. At MGM Resorts, engaging diverse suppliers ensures best-in-class experiences for guests and clients. Supplier diversity ensures a more resilient supply chain while supporting economic development in the communities in which it operates.
The impact of MGM Resorts' supplier diversity initiatives is significant. In 2023, these efforts supported over 3,500 jobs across more than 30 states, contributed over $214 million in income for diverse-owned businesses and generated more than $62 million in tax revenue. The story extends beyond the numbers – it reflects the tangible benefits brought to small and diverse-owned businesses, fostering economic empowerment in their communities.
MGM Resorts also supports the development and business skills of diverse-owned businesses through investment, mentorship and education. Through the MGM Resorts Supplier Diversity Mentorship Program, the company identifies, mentors and develops diverse-owned businesses to fill its future pipeline, while providing businesses with tools and resources to empower and uplift. Since 2017, the program has successfully graduated 105 diverse-owned businesses and is on track to achieve its goal of 150 graduates by 2025.
MGM Resorts’ commitment to supplier diversity not only enhances its business operations but also plays a crucial role in uplifting communities and fostering economic development. This approach reinforces the idea that diversity is a powerful driver of innovation and resilience, benefiting both the company and the wider community.
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