Ronald Painter

President and CEO, National Association of Workforce Boards, Washington, DC

We are putting reduced attendance at our national meeting into the budget. We are also trying to launch or participate in more regional events where the travel is less costly and, in some cases, is drivable. I think this also has implications for event programming; it must be more compelling for members to attend.

Steven A. Barbato

Executive Director and CEO, International Technology and Engineering Educators Association, Reston, Virginia

Increased travel costs are causing concern for our annual conference attendance. To address this, ITEEA is identifying more destination locations for conference sites. The idea behind this strategy is to entice members to make the travel more comprehensive and possibly connect it to a family vacation.

Carol L. Watkins, CAE

Executive Director, National Dental Electronic Data Interchange Council, Phoenix

We have been trying to consolidate meetings to get the best possible hotel rates and work with airlines to provide discounted airfares. While not everyone has used the discounted airfares, there is a strong perceived value among members. We ask that they let us know which of the food functions they will not attend to help keep our costs down.

Marie N. Hollein

President and CEO, Financial Executives International, Morristown, New Jersey

Our meeting strategy now includes more virtual options for members, such as webcasts and teleconferences. Also, we have added “Communities of Interest,” which are topic- or title-focused webcasts or virtual networking opportunities that provide a no-cost, no-time, and no-geographic-barriers opportunity for members to engage and learn.

(Illustrations by Monica Hellstrom)