Greg Oates

Meeting planners have a lot of opportunities to grow as professionals by becoming more involved in business strategy, but meetings industry organizations can do more to support that evolution with better event content, versus promotional and generic marketing-speak.

The $1.4 billion expansion of the Las Vegas Convention Center is significant because it cements the city as the meetings and events capital of the western U.S. for the foreseeable future.

The three primary trends in meetings in 2017 revolve around the growing convergence of different communities collaborating together, the festivalization of business events, and the role of conferences as experiential brand-marketing platforms.

The meetings industry is evolving beyond its preoccupation with event technology and the impact of Millennials over the last five years. The new focus for 2017 revolves around developing more multidisciplinary business events, integrating education and entertainment, to engage attendees in new ways on different levels.

Luxury hospitality groups and tour operators are saying that their guests today are craving more simplicity, better wellness options, and a greater convergence of experiences combined together in one place.

The new Dhawa brand brings a fresh face to Cuba's hospitality sector, but is it compelling enough to attract a lot of U.S. visitors to a remote region of the country?

Destinations are determining the need to focus more on the impact and value of meetings on their cities over the long term.

The BestCities Global Alliance and Dubai Business Events are focusing more on how convention bureaus can collaborate with association conference organizers to create a longer legacy impact of business events for both the organizations and host destinations.

Because the rewards are so big, luxury is always a noisy sector. Accor is smart to give the group its own CEO while it continues to acquire companies and focus on integration.

Marriott is promoting the fact that its eight luxury brands answer to the demands from different segments of luxury travelers, but it needs to make sure consumers understand what makes each brand unique.