Chicago — Despite an industry-wide emphasis on the importance of meeting planners being "strategic," a new survey indicates that skill in that area is still considered secondary, by far, to the core basics of meeting planning: logistics, budgeting and negotiating.
At least, that's the case for association planners. Four out of five CEOs of trade, professional and foundation non-profit organizations said meeting logistics/coordination was a "very important" skill for planners, while only about one in four said the same for strategic planning.
Two-thirds thought strategic planning was at least "important," but virtually every single CEO said so about logistics.
The survey, conducted by the Professional Convention Management Association, polled 269 chief executives on the importance of meetings and events to their organization, as well on the most important skill sets for senior level meeting planners.
The chart on the front page shows that 81.2 percent of respondents considered logistical skills to be very important for meeting planners, compared with only 27.2 percent saying the same about strategic planning. Adding together "very important" and "important" responses, the gap narrowed to 98.5 percent for logistics and 67.8 percent for strategy.
Budgeting/financial management was ranked the second most valued skill set, with 73.1 percent of CEOs finding it to be very important and 96.5 percent saying that it's at least important.
Gregg Talley, PCMA's current chairman and the president of Talley Management Group in Mount Royal, N.J, said many chief executives don't realize how valuable it would be for planners to have a strategic orientation simply because few planners demonstrate flair or initiative in that area.
"That makes for a disconnect in how it's perceived," Talley said. "If meeting planners could get to the [decision-making] table, they could improve their value."
He added that thinking strategically should be a natural progression after planners master leadership and financial skills.
Small Ponds, Bigger Fish
Interestingly, more than half of the survey respondents said their most senior meeting planner actually did have strategic planning responsibility and authority, particularly among nonprofits located in the West and Northeast and among those with annual revenue budgets of less than $1 million.
"If you're in a smaller organization, then you wear multiple hats," Talley said. "But when you get into the larger organizations, the more hierarchal ones, then you may have to fight more to get in on the strategic level. It's interesting that in many of the bigger organizations, the senior planners aren't seen as strategic players, even though they are responsible for so much revenue."
Stephen Lieber, president and CEO of the Chicago-based Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society, said that while he expects his senior meeting planner to be able to operate strategically within the organization, it isn't the most valuable skill set for the job.
"In our case, we don't have a large staff," Lieber said. "It's necessary to have someone with strong foundations in tactical meeting planning, because we can't afford to have a strategic thinker who must depend on someone else to execute. If I had to choose, I'd choose a planner who knows how to execute detail first, and then we'd work to develop the strategic thinking."
Dave Fellers, executive director of the Radiological Society of North America, in Chicago, said some of the top skills he expects from senior meeting planners include handling logistics, contracting and negotiations, and developing relationships with local suppliers.
Fellers said the ability to function strategically is of importance for the association's most senior planner, but like Lieber, he feels that strong logistical skills are the first priority.
The survey also polled CEOs on their level of satisfaction with the skills displayed by senior meeting planners, with meetings logistics/coordination placing first again (see chart, this page).
Other findings of the survey: 96.7 percent of CEOs rated meetings and events as important or very important to the mission of their organization; and on average, meetings and trade shows generate more than 40 percent of revenue.
Contact Loree Stark at lstark@ meetingnews.com.