I started my career as an accountant and when I was with the AIDS Committee of Ottawa, I added the role of fundraising which led to planning my first event – a gala on the stage of the National Arts Centre (NAC) called The Stage for AIDS. From that time on, I was hooked on the meeting and event industry. After 25 years as a planner, I brought my planner skills to the supplier side of our industry and began working with DMO’s. Tourism Saskatoon was an amazing place to begin – working alongside Candace to help grow awareness of that amazing city. Through my work with Cities in Sync, I now have the privilege to work with Paul and our amazing team at Destination St. John’s.

Leanne Calderwood, CMP, believes developing a personal brand is the key to setting yourself apart in the hospitality industry. Serving as a Conference Direct site selection associate for the past 14 years, Leanne used the industry's hiatus in 2020 to help other sales professionals to find their voice and create a brand that attracts business and opportunities. Her true passion was ignited through this work, and now Leanne serves her community through her blog, videos, online courses, and consulting services around LinkedIn and Personal Branding.

Courtney Stanley is recognized globally as an award-winning changemaker, compelling keynote speaker, energetic event emcee and acclaimed creator of the women-inspired podcast, Dare to Interrupt. She has spent 10 years helping women, young professionals, entrepreneurs and organizations engage in game-changing, impactful conversations. With a degree from Central Michigan University in Experience Design, Leadership Studies and Business Hospitality, Courtney helps people from all walks of life fiercely lean into the power of leading with empathy, build confidence and advocate for themselves and others, and seize “silver lining” opportunities to grow personally and professionally.

Lori Pugh Marcum has 16 years of experience in the meetings and events industry on both the planner and supplier side of the business. She worked for six years with Meeting Professionals International as Head of Meeting Innovation before joining EnsembleIQ as the Events Content Director. She holds a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) focused in Communications and Advertising from the University of North Florida and graduated with her Master’s Degree in Meeting and Event Management from San Diego State University in December of 2020

The biggest challenge in my career other than the last two years? Probably taking the leap from being an Event Services Manager (ESM) to a Sales role. A very different skills set for each of these roles. One is so detailed, and the other is big picture/strategic. One lesson I learned from one of my colleagues in the industry, to be a great ESM, you must “breathe the meeting”, meaning that you have to think about every aspect, every step of the event. For sales, it’s all about relationship building that hopefully turns to business in the future. I think I’m a better Sales Manager having come from the Event Services role.

To raise awareness and funds for the MPI Foundation, to assist in the meeting & event industry recovery. The funds will be directly donated locally via scholarships and financial support to our local members in the MPI Ottawa Chapter and across Canada.

I’ve made so many valuable connections within the industry after becoming an MPI Ottawa member and even some friends! Being an active volunteer within the chapter has provided me with the opportunity to learn new skills or enhance existing ones.

The main objective of this keynote session was to learn the three pillars to improving employee retention and growing stellar cultures at fast-growing firms in the meeting industry. Attendees left with actionable steps to lead happier and more connected teams and can immediately apply the lessons to their work with planners and suppliers. The result of Delaney's Nice Methodology saves you the costly effort of replacing and retraining your people.

My Role in partnership has taught me that trying something new will always make you stronger, and it builds confidence not only for me personally but also for the partners. This pandemic has presented multiple opportunities where thinking outside of the box has benefitted our chapter and members by moving to virtual events such as The Breakout Room, June BASH and the Prix Prestige Gala.

This was our first in-person convention and trade show since 2019, so it was very exciting to be able to reunite the industry. With the large trade show component and an industry that places a lot of focus on in-person relationships, the ability to see and taste the produce was important for everyone. As well, there was a large number of American participants who have begun attending events in the US over the last year or so that were itching to get back to the Canadian market.

This monthly article series allows MPI Ottawa Chapter members to share their recent professional and personal accomplishments with the MPI community by highlighting the News Around Town. Get in touch with Élodie Lortal (elodie.lortal@nac-cna.ca) to make a submission for the next issue!

I had participated at most of the events during Ottawa meet week, but the Charity Auction Dinner was the first industry dinner I’d attended in two years. I was looking forward to seeing everybody and the chance to reconnect, however; I was also a little nervous because of the number of people catching the Omicron variant was increasing. You don’t want to be ‘that person’ who brings it home.

After more than a 2-year absence due to COVID, the Salon came back in full force with a wide variety of exhibitors and a great ‘Auteur.e Studio’ that featured talks with authors. The objective of the Salon is to create an opportunity for connection between readers and the literary world, including authors.

This article will cover topics ranging from a high-level overview of the virtual and hybrid landscape and then Disa will take a deep dive of specific key considerations such as engagement, sensory activation, and return on investment.

I came out of university with an arts degree and then pursued a college diploma in Human Resources. I did have plans on going that way but ended up landing a temporary job as the assistant for the head film buyer for Famous Players. This is where my love of sales began. I never looked back at HR and continued to pursue different sales jobs throughout my career.

This monthly article series allows MPI Ottawa Chapter members to share their recent professional and personal accomplishments with the MPI community by highlighting the News Around Town. Get in touch with Élodie Lortal (elodie.lortal@nac-cna.ca) to make a submission for the next issue!

The IPAC Leadership Summit offers training and development for growing leaders within the public sector. Our members are looking for industry best practices on current and relevant topics that public servants are facing or going to face. Training and developing leaders are main themes that sets this conference apart from our annual conference. This conference allows us to have some innovative and thought-provoking content.

When Carla arrived in Ottawa, she began the Recreational Facility Management Program at Algonquin College, then moved into the Events program. Carla joined CICan in 1994 and progressed up the ladder and in 1997 she became a Meeting Planner for their many events, including the large annual conference that takes place across Canada. This has been great, because she's gotten to visit most places in her country of origin. She has always been an avid themed party planner, and in 2022 she plans to take it on the road for other families to enjoy.

Disa started out doing audio engineering, lighting, and video in my high school theatre called the Terry Fox Theatre. She had amazing mentors from my Juno award winning music teacher, Steve Sainas, to the technicians that were employed to work at the theatre and took me under their wing. She was about 16 years old at the time and by the time I was graduated from high school, she had 1000’s of hours of experience and was already applying for my Audio Engineering certification.

This 2021 Breaking Bread, Breaking Stigma event featured a roster of Ottawa’s top chefs who competed in a gourmet sandwich showdown to crown the next “Sandwich Sovereign of Ottawa”. The event had both an in-person attendance option hosted at All Saints event space and a virtual option for those who were not comfortable to attend the live event or who were unable to vaccinate.