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Crossing the Divide….A Planner’s Search for a Chance to Supply
By admin | August 21, 2006
It was only when I began my job search that I truly understood the great divide between planner and supplier. To me, asking for services and providing those services did not seem to have some vast wall between the two, but the meeting industry disagreed with me.
It was while attending Meeting Professionals International’s (MPI) Institutes I in 2004 that I realized there were two sides to the industry. I had fallen into meeting planning in college and didn’t realize there was an entire industry of professionals who understood what I did and didn’t give me a strange look when I explained my job. For the first time I was asked, “Are you a planner or supplier?” and since I didn’t know the term supplier I figured I was a planner and left it there. Over the course of the week I quickly grasped the terminology.
After returning from Institutes, I begin searching for a new position within the industry. I checked the MPI job boards (nationally and the Chicago Chapter) and there were many positions I thought interesting and demanding. I considered my 4 main goals:
- Growth from new challenges and responsibilities.
- An organization (preferably non-profit) with a mission I believed in and could contribute to.
- A position I could see myself being happy and challenged in for 5+ years.
- Ability, and organization support, for professional development including involvement in industry organizations.
Believing I would benefit from industry veterans advice, I contacted MPI-CAC board members and joined the MPI Mentoring Program. I was astounded by the generosity and openness of the members I contacted, including Eric Johnson of SmithBucklin, Kelly Woods of Omni Hotels and Gretchen Stegall of Ambassadors (my mentor), who took time out of their busy schedules to discuss their experiences, as well as offer advice. Those discussions helped me realize that my strengths and talents could translate across the planner-supplier divide, but they also cautioned me that I would be considered against those with previous experience
I was intrigued by Conference Coordinators, Event Coordinators and Account Managers; the position is as varied as the venues themselves. To me, it meant providing the ultimate customer service. From the moment the client makes contact with the venue to the final goodbye at the end of the event, the responsibility is to anticipate any need before it arises and let the client enjoy the event he or she has spent so many hours planning.
How does a planner compete for these positions? I focused on my 7 years of providing superior customer service, ability to relate to meeting planners, and my knowledge and dedication to the industry. My biggest challenges were meeting my own criteria and not having the precise experience certain companies were focusing on. I found for-profit organizations did not match my goal of working for an organization that has a deeply rooted educational mission and that I didn’t match their criteria of having previous experience in these positions. I was told I was a great candidate, but we chose someone who has done the job before. I had an opportunity for a position that met a few of my goals (educational mission, long-term growth), but it didn’t relate directly to the industry and I realized I wasn’t ready to compromise on this aspect.
It was The Field Museum that saw my experience as consistent with the skills necessary to be successful as a venue manager. Our Director, Megan Beckert, explained that it was certain qualities, not just experience, that led me to be offered a position within Special Events. Passionate, articulate and knowledge of the industry led her to believe I would thrive in the position as well as my experience and dedication to non-profits and educational institutions. My acceptance of the position was based on it meeting all the criteria I had set forth for myself and my future organization.
Today, I promote The Field Museum as a stunning special event venue to the association and convention market, as well as manage these events. I am part of a team of professionals who seek to provide clients of this unique venue with the extraordinary service that makes it world-renowned. Any change is a risk, but I feel both the position and organization have turned out to be an exceptional match. I struggled through nine months of searching and questioning my goals, but feel that it was all worth the effort since it brought me to The Field Museum. By sharing my story, I hope that more organizations will look at candidates and see more than just experience as a planner or supplier, but qualities that offer endless possibilities ……
Kara Gifford is an Account Manager with the Special Events Department at The
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