March President’s Message

As I enter in to my Olympic detox, I am inspired by the dedication of our Canadian athletes. Their quest for excellence is something to which we can all relate. What I love best about the Olympics is how these 225 athletes can unite a country for a common goal, and how proud they make us feel. As event professionals, I think we achieve something similar by coming together for the betterment of our industry.

Over the past few months, I have come to recognize another value of my MPI membership. As a small business owner, my clients are varied and not only from the meeting industry. What I have learned to appreciate is the legitimacy that being a part of MPI provides. The MPI standard represents a group of qualified and committed event industry individuals. By deciding to join an association, you are showing yourself to be a credible event professional in your respective area of expertise.

Not all segments of the event industry are regulated. I don’t think they need to be and I would never want to stifle the entrepreneurial spirit, since not every business can start off with hundreds of staff and millions of dollars in inventory. I have spoken to many small business owners who are working hard to maintain their reputation in this changing landscape of social media and online feedback. It is just unfortunate that a few unscrupulous people think “fly-by-night” business is an option. They start companies that pop up and then disappear, leaving clients scrambling on event day to find replacements. Customers should do their due diligence, but sometimes it is hard to see past the beautiful Instagram filters and Pinterest posts.

As members of MPI, we can be proud that we hold ourselves to a professional standard of excellence that is sometimes lacking in other corners of the event industry. We know our strengths, and as members of MPI Ottawa, we use our abilities collectively to be a vibrant and boundary-pushing chapter. Within the MPI global community, we are considered leaders; we should all be proud of this and continue to propel our organization forward.

As an MPI member, not only are you aligning yourself with a great group of people, but you have a world of opportunities open to you—through the MPI Foundation, as well as through the educational offerings from our chapter and global headquarters. Many of these sessions are complimentary.  Make sure to visit https://mpiottawa.ca/ and https://www.mpiweb.org/ for inspiration on ways to grow professionally. If you haven’t already, register for “the Event”, a cutting edge conference to be held at the Brookstreet Hotel on April 12-14, created through a partnership between MPI Toronto, MPI Montreal & Quebec and our own MPI Ottawa.

Thank you for your continued support of MPI Ottawa and bringing your talents to our Chapter!

Article written by Jennifer McAndrew, Mastermind Event Rentals

Article edited by Melanie Hudson, National Association of Federal Retirees