Ed Shartar, president and CEO of event management firm Experient since 2004, left the company on June 6. Shartar's contract was up for renewal, but a "mutual decision" was made to hire a new CEO that would be focused on "execution and operational excellence" and who could reside near one of Experient's offices. Shartar and his family live in Atlanta.
Shartar was hired to lead a rebranding effort and extend Experient's geographic footprint. He was also tasked to realign Experient to support an integrated service approach, grow revenue, enhance its presence in the corporate market, and enter the government market.
Experient's board chairman, Andrew Strauss, praised Shartar. "As a result of Ed's commitment and passion,we are well on the way to making our vision a reality." The board is looking outside the company for a CEO. George Benson, an operating partner at Riverside Company, the major shareholder of Experient, is interim president and CEO.
In other Experient news, the company has released the results of a study it sponsored on strategic meetings management processes (SMMP) among corporations. Study results revealed that spending on large corporate meetings and events has not been part of a centralized budget in most corporations. According to the "Strategic Meetings Management" study by Aberdeen Group, a decentralized structure, combined with a lack of a comprehensive meetings management strategy, sets the stage for ineffective management and misspending.
The study of Experient customers focused on practices in five areas: sourcing, attendee registration/management, developing a preferred supplier program, establishing standardized contracts, and controlling meeting spend.
Top corporations used unique company strategies and technology to manage their meetings and events, said the report.
"By utilizing meetings management technology and establishing a collaborative relationship between meetings and event planners and procurement, best-in-class enterprises are achieving better policy compliance and higher rates of cost savings," said Andrew Bartolini, vice president of Aberdeen Group. "These corporate meetings and events management leaders are successfully using procurement strategies to improve program performance."
Complimentary copies of the study are available through Experient.
Originally published June 16, 2008