Successful Meetings - December 2008 - (Page 45)

College University M E E T I N G S A N D FA C I L I T I E S PLANNER & business district, just off the “Miracle Mile,” is a prime example. The center’s off-campus location in the heart of the bustling city is one key reason why Tammy Kockaya, associate director for contracting for the Arlington, Virginiabased Corporate Executive Board, books more than 100 of the 818 meetings her firm does a year into the Gleacher Center. “We love the tiered amphitheater space, and the way the center creates a great environment for executive meetings,” she says. “Plus, we’ve developed a strong relationship with management. It’s almost like a home away from home now.” Kockaya started small, holding one Audit Leadership Conference, which drew about 130 people. She was pleased by the efficient way that center staff assisted in moving people around the event, the smooth break service, the way they completed lunch service in an hour, “which was essential,” and the fact that A/V was handled quickly and smoothly. Now she confidently runs four or five meetings simultaneously at the Gleacher Center. The Center’s architecture easily accommodates these multiple meetings. Its dozen tiered lecture halls, complete with writing desks, include nine that seat 70, two seating 100, and one that can seat 134 attendees. Its nine classrooms range in size from 702 to 808 square feet, are fully A/V-equipped, and can each accommodate about 30. Five executive meeting rooms and six board rooms, plus generous reception areas, complete the picture. Jeff Russell, senior associate director of the Gleacher Center, says that being downtown offers a number of pluses for attendees—ranging from proximity to good hotels to the absence of “8,000 students milling around.” Another plus typically not found in a university setting: Wolfgang Puck does the catering, which means that meals often exceed the level of nearby restaurants. Kockaya says that she likes to hold meetings in Chicago because it is a convenient “day” destination for many prospective attendees, even those flying in from the East Coast. For attendees who want to overnight, she has developed a separate relationship with nearby hotels. “We find that it is more cost-effective to use a center that doesn’t offer rooms,” she says. Bottom line: While meeting planners choose university centers for the value they add in terms of programming and the quality of facilities offered, many choose centers tied to educational institutions because they are easy on the budget. Tammy Kockaya sums up that sentiment. “If planners are looking to do an affordable meeting at high-quality standards, the university environment is ideal,” she concludes. I You don’t need Nobel prize winners to design a conference center. But they don’t hurt. The University of Chicago’s Gleacher Center was conceived by the world’s top business educators to educate the world’s top business people. CALL US FOR MORE INFORMATION. GLEACHER CENTER 450 North Cityfront Plaza Drive Chicago, Illinois 60611-4316 312-464-8787 • www.gleachercenter.com info@gleachercenter.com 50,000 square feet of flexible meeting space to include 41 meeting rooms spanning six floors. 45 http://www.sfsu.edu/~meetings/ http://www.sfsu.edu/~meetings/ http://www.gleachercenter.com http://www.gleachercenter.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Successful Meetings - December 2008

Successful Meetings - December 2008
Contents
Editor's Note
Corporate Events
On the Record
Calendar
Research
Planner Spotlight
Personal Success
Technology Talk
Food & Beverage
Professional Development
Quick Tip
Tools of the Trade
On Site: Retire Those Tired Power-Point Slides
On Site: 12 Tips for Thriving on a South African Safari
Deep Impact
Recession-Friendly Speakers
Showing Off
Hawaii Insert
Places & Spaces
Mississippi Gulf Coast
Fort Worth
South Florida
Beijing
Gurus

Successful Meetings - December 2008