MPI Honors Strong Field of Leaders and Innovators

If the recipients of Conference Gurus International’s 2022 Rise Awards are any indication, volunteerism is alive and well in the activities business. In fact, the robust industry of candidates led MPI to present two Member of the Calendar year awards this year—a initially.

In all, three persons and four chapters were known as out for their excellent function during MPI’s live International Conferences Sector Day broadcast on April 7. The Increase Awards, which stands for Recognizing Business Achievement and Excellence, celebrated recipients’ initiatives and accomplishments for MPI, its chapters, and the conferences business globally.

The two 2022 Member of the Year recipients are Pawntra Shadab, CTA, CIS, CITP, (still left) vice president of events and marketing at Elite Productions Worldwide, and Shannon Jones, CMP, conferences and gatherings supervisor at Location South Meetings + Situations, a DMC Network Company.

Shadab is aligned with the MPI Orange County Chapter, where she has served as a chapter chief and chapter president. In addition to her endeavours in building business alliances and chapter fundraising, MPI observed her do the job on the two a chapter-stage range, fairness, and inclusion initiative and MPI’s World-wide DEI Committee. She has been “vital in the growth of the MPI World wide DEI Committee’s 1st at any time Resource Site and Regional Ambassador Software,” in accordance to MPI.

Shannon Jones (proper) has an similarly impressive MPI resume. She served on the MPI Tennessee Board of Directors for eight yrs, on the MPI Chapter and Membership Advisory Committee for two years (one 12 months as chair). She has also had her hand in a selection of subcommittees and programs, not long ago serving on the Chapter Restructure Undertaking Pressure. MPI also pointed out her volunteerism at Center Tennessee Point out College, where she mentors college students and sits on the advisory board for the creation of a new hospitality important.

The third person Rise Award went to Valeria Serrano, PCS, (left) for assembly sector management. Serrano, CEO of Cancun-centered CTA Event Designer & DMC, was the founding president of the MPI Caribe-Mexicano Chapter. Launched in 2019, the chapter grew to 52 members in three months and has created alliances with the hotel associations in Cancun and Riviera Maya, the Quintana Roo Tourism Board, and Mexico’s Anahuac University. Serrano has also served on the board of administrators for Web site Mexico and is now a trustee on the board of the MPI Foundation, chairing its LATAM Council in its inaugural calendar year. 

A single of the 4 MPI chapters earning a Rise Award was Serrano’s. The Caribe-Mexicano Chapter gained the “Marketplace Excellence” award for its VIVA MICE networking/fam vacation that introduced 95 prospective buyers from the U.S., Mexico, and Latin The us to the Yucatan to assistance relaunch the location after the pandemic shutdown.

The other 3 Increase chapter awards went to:

MPI Oregon Chapter and the Aloha Chapter, Membership Achievement: When Hawaii’s Aloha Chapter was in risk of dismantling since so quite a few associates experienced still left the industry all through the pandemic, MPI Oregon Chapter stepped in to aid. The chapters made a system in which they merged on a short term foundation until eventually Aloha can stand on its own all over again. Previous leaders have joined an advisory committee to enable with the rebuilding approach.

MPI Kansas Metropolis Chapter, Marketplace Advocate: The chapter constructed an affiliate-member method with MPI Heartland Chapter, MPI Oklahoma Chapter, and MPI St. Louis Chapter, which permits larger entry to education and learning and networking opportunities. The chapter also worked with community universities to recruit and mentor learners in hospitality and events diploma packages.

MPI Italia Chapter, Progressive Academic Programming: The chapter group-sourced appropriate educational matters and developed 26 activities in 2021, six of which were being confront to facial area, with around 2,000 participants. Also, MPI noted, “After 3 many years of collaboration with UNI (the nationwide standardization corporation), Intertek (a certification business), and federal government officials, [the chapter’s] new Assembly and Celebration Supervisor professional certification was accredited in May perhaps 2020.” Extra than 101 people have gained the designation.