Presidents Message – March 2017
Welcome to CAEM’s new member communications ‘EXPO Ready’. Congratulations to the Marketing & Communications Committee on the development of new communication initiatives to better serve our membership. This Committee is led by board members Catherine MacNutt (CAEM’s 1st Vice President), Bianca Kennedy, Dominique Gagnon CEM, and Tony Gallagher CEM.
Speaking of new initiatives…following the full day planning session conducted by your Board in July, CAEM redesigned the workflow of the standing committees and staff to increase efficiencies and better serve our members.
View the new CAEM structure and standing committees with a list of the chairs and vice chairs.
Your Board has taken significant steps towards increasing the value of membership by creating a policy that allows non-members to attend a CAEM signature event one time only. After this initial trial, the individual must join CAEM to register for future events. This one-time non-member participation will be at a much higher rate of 60% or more than the member rate.
CAEM’s focus for 2017 will be the production of five signature events to increase education & networking opportunities for our members across Canada.
CAEM’s signature events for 2017 are:
- 9th Annual Awards Gala, March 1st at the Holiday Inn Toronto International Airport Hotel (led by director Dion Burt)
- Annual Summit, April 24th & 25th at the Coast Canmore, Alberta Hotel & Conference Centre (led by directors Nick Samain CEM & Laurie Paetz).
- Annual Conference & ExpoCAN 2017, June 25th to 27th, Sheraton on the Falls, Niagara Falls(led by Rita Medynski CEM, Isabella Wai CEM (past president) and directors Bev Hill & Nancy Milani CEM, CMP (CAEM’s 2nd Vice President)
- Summer Social, July 26th, Woodbine Racetrack (led by director Kelly Antonaros CEM)
- Holiday Luncheon, December, Location TBA
As part of the new workflow structure, your directors and committees are passionate about making changes to create viable and valuable events for all of our members. The Holiday Luncheon held in December was a true testament of this new direction. Congratulations to the Events Committee led by directors Heather MacRae, Dion Burt (CAEM Secretary), and Kelly Antonaros CEM!
In addition to the signature events, targeted education will be provided through the CEM (Certified in Exposition Management) Learning Program. CEM courses can be taken as stand-alone experiential learning or towards the completion of your professional designation that is globally recognized within the exposition & events industry. This year, we will offer eight courses with two pre-Summit, two pre-Conference, and four in the GTA. The CEM Learning Program is led by the Certification Council under the leadership of Sonia Moffatt CEM and director Laura Purdy CMM, CEM.
New policies, including a cost-containment initiative, are being developed by the Finance Committee led by directors Mike Russell CEM (CAEM Treasurer) and Laura Purdy CMM, CEM. These new policies will assist in protecting the Association’s reserves while working towards long-term financial sustainability.
All of these new initiatives and signature events would not be possible without the support of our member company sponsors. CAEM’s director and past president Julie Pike and our executive director Serge Micheli CAE, CEM are developing an initiative to engage and support the CAEM sponsors through a Member Engagement Program (MEP). This program will increase member engagement by creating sponsorship opportunities that match the values and goals of each sponsoring organization. Our sponsors have our commitment to keep them at the forefront within the industry to promote their brand, products and services. For more information on sponsorship and the MEP program, please reach out to our Executive Director ([email protected]).
I look forward to seeing you at future CAEM signature events.
Don’t hesitate to contact the CAEM Office at any time for more information on membership, sponsorship, the signature events, and to sign up for the CEM courses ([email protected], 416-787-9377 or 1-866-441-9377.
Jennifer Allaby
President