People 3-1-2000

> Meetings & Conventions: People March 2000
February 2000
People

EDITED BY AMY DREW TEITLER

Emily Mathews, seminar coordinator for the National Alliance for Insurance Education & Research in Austin, Texas, organizes about 50 meetings and seminars annually. She has been planning meetings for almost seven years.

If you could pass off one meeting planning responsibility, what would it be and why?
Packing my supply boxes. It's bad enough packing a suitcase; packing supplies and educational materials is pure drudgery. Unfortunately, I'm too much of a control freak to let anyone else do it.

What advice would you have for someone just about to start his or her career in planning?
Check your ego at the door. You are not above jumping in your rental car and picking up an instructor, or anyone relevant to your event, at the airport. I have met planners who won't do any grunt work. I don't know how they keep their jobs.

If the sky were the limit, how would you reward yourself for a meeting well done?
My current method is taking a Dramamine and sleeping on the flight home. I would like a day off right after the meeting. If I planned vacation days better, this fantasy could become reality.

What was your very first job?
Baby-sitting. Actually, I was very in demand. That is sort of where I got my start. I had to plan meals and activities, didn't I?

How do you deal with the stresses of your job?
Truthfully, my co-workers help take the edge off. I also work out, nap, and there is nothing in the world like my cats laying on my stomach. Lest I sound like some batty old cat lady, I have a husband, too. We go to the movies when we can agree on one.

What is your best travel tip?
I got this great silk pillow cover from a catalog. It fits perfectly over airline pillows, which I wouldn't touch without it.

What song would make a good planner's anthem?
I saw ZZ Top on New Year's Eve, and they have one song that is apropos: "Got Me Under Pressure."

A.D.T.

PLANNERS

ANCHETA JOINS THE MEETINGHOUSE COS. INC.
Maureen Ancheta was named special event producer at The Meetinghouse Cos. Inc., an Elmhurst, Ill.-based production company. Ancheta, who previously was a wedding consultant and coordinator, has three years of experience.

MATTES MOVES TO CONFERON
Bill Mattes has been appointed senior account executive for the Washington, D.C., regional office of Conferon, a Twinsburg, Ohio-based planning firm. Mattes, previously national account executive for D.C.-based trade show firm The Aaron Group, has more than 15 years of experience.

MC2 EXPANDS ITS MEETINGS STAFF
St. Louis-based MC2, an event management firm, announced several new hires. Cecilia Bottrell and Melissa Holmes were named event/meeting coordinators. Bottrell, formerly event coordinator for Lutheran Family and Children's Services in St. Louis, has five years of experience. Holmes hails from London, where she had been an independent planner for two years. Adele Gianino was named meeting planner. Gianino, who has five years of experience, previously was membership sales manager at the St. Louis Convention and Visitors Commission. Tammie Ormsom, formerly a special events manager for Saks Fifth Avenue's St. Louis location, was named account executive. She has three years of planning experience.

SUPPLIERS

If you would like notice of a career move considered for inclusion in this column, contact Amy Drew Teitler, Senior Editor, M&C, 500 Plaza Dr., Secaucus, N.J. 07094; fax: (201) 319-1796; e-mail: [email protected].