1.
Dan Berger
CEO
Social Tables
Trends to Watch and Strategies for Success
The Meeting Professional of the Future:

2.
● You’re free to leave any time.
● Questions welcome whenever.
● Take as many photos and share as you please.
● Engage on social: @danberger | #CS2017
Presenter-Audience Agreement

3.
120 employees
Raised $22.6 million
Founded in 2011

4.
The #1
software for
planners
and
properties
to
collaborate
online.

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4,229 customers creating
1.73 million events with
210 million participants

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We envision a world where face-
to-face events achieve great things
Sample of the 40+ awards Social Tables and its leadership have received.

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● Develop insight into how our industry is performing.
● Review trends, predictions, and strategies for what’s
ahead and how you can be successful.
● Identify ways you can invest in your career now.
Learning Objectives

8.
open_discussion
How would you describe the
health of our industry?

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Politics and Policies
A potential trade war and ongoing immigration issues will impact the global hospitality industry, hospitality leaders
believe.
Demand
Industry leaders believe corporate travel will bounce back in 2017 due to the stock market’s performance, “lessening
regulations on corporations, slashing their tax rates, and building up a more robust transportation infrastructure.”
This will contribute to an increase in ADR, which will increase RevPAR by an estimated 2.3%.
Supply
An increase in hotel room supply will marginally outpace growth in demand, resulting in a decline in occupancy to
65.3%. Airbnb remains a wildcard.
Airbnb continues to grow and just raised $1bn. They were profitable in 2H 2016.
The State of Travel and Hospitality in 2017
Source: Hotels Mag, MeetingsNet, CNBC, PwC, internal reports.

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The Overall Climate
We are still in a supplier market. Chains are reporting strong group booking toward the end of the year and
beyond but tepid short-term booking due to market and government uncertainty.
Budgets and attendance in 2016 grew from 2015 but at a slower pace. Exhibitor numbers grew in 2016 at a higher
clip than 2015 so more space was used.
The Biggest Challenge
Safety and security are top-of-mind for planners.
The State of Group Business in 2017
Source: Hotels Mag, MeetingsNet, CNBC, PwC, internal reports.

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From 1945 to 2001, and 10 cycles, recessions lasted an average 10 months and expansions an
average of 57 months.
We’re currently on expansion month #91 and counting.
Year The Economy
2008 Recession began
2009 Recession ended (1.5 years)
2018 Next projected recession
2019 Expansion
2025 Projected end of an expansion
Beyond 2017: A Recession on the Horizon
Source: Wikipedia

12.
conclusion
Our industry and the
economy are both healthy so
we should be cautiously
optimistic.

13.
open_discussion
What are some of the ways
the industry will change in
the future?

14.
trend_alert
Industries are changing in
front of our eyes.

15.
The industry processes we
know today will be
obliterated.

16.
take_action
Stay alert of what’s
happening around you.

17.
trend_alert
Events are getting a
makeover.

18.
The Annual Meeting will become endangered.

19.
Events will be reimagined as festivals.

20.
take_action
Look at consumer shows and
events for inspiration.

21.
trend_alert
Software is eating the world.

22.
Coordinating event logistics
will be automated.

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Artificial intelligence will make
events better for everyone.

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We won’t be able to tell the difference
between real and virtual events.

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Complex productions will be
cheaper and easier to organize.

26.
Most group business will be booked online.

27.
There will be fewer site visits
and site inspections.

28.
Venue sales people will become
value-added meeting consultants.

29.
A new computing platform will
change the way we experience meetings.

30.
Event apps will no longer exists.

31.
Serendipity will be less successful
than algorithms.

32.
take_action
Experiment with new
technology, even if it scares
you.

33.
trend_alert
Organizations are getting
better at collecting and
using data.

34.
There will be more events,
with bigger budgets.

35.
Event Professionals will join Executive Teams.

36.
The room block will play second fiddle to
economic impact.

37.
A governing body for the meetings industry
will emerge.

38.
take_action
Get comfortable with
numbers and use them to
show results.

39.
trend_alert
Hotel operators are more
focused on margins than
ever before.

40.
The hospitality industry will be more
profitable than ever.

41.
Technology will be an integrated part of the
convention service team’s offerings.

42.
take_action
Understand your suppliers’
financials to help them make
more money.

43.
trend_alert
Robotic capabilities are
evolving.

44.
Robotics will be used in facility operations.

45.
The best photographers will know how to fly.

46.
take_action
Reframe automation as an
opportunity for
augmentation.

47.
trend_alert
Travel is becoming easier
and less painful.

48.
Second tier cities will become
premier meeting destinations.

49.
The “Golden Age of Travel” will continue.

50.
take_action
Understand the economic
tides to unearth opportunity.

51.
open_discussion
What are you doing to keep
driving your career forward?

52.
The 5 Career Choices You
Can Make Right Now

53.
●
●
Step Up
Adapted from Beyond Automation, HBR, 2015

54.
●
●
Step Aside
Adapted from Beyond Automation, HBR, 2015

55.
●
●
Step In
Adapted from Beyond Automation, HBR, 2015

56.
●
●
Step Narrowly
Adapted from Beyond Automation, HBR, 2015

57.
●
●
Step Forward
Adapted from Beyond Automation, HBR, 2015

58.
Q&A

59.
Connecting | Q&A