VenueConnect 2016 attendees volunteered to help clean up local Minneapolis parks on Friday morning, July 22, before the conference began. The volunteers pruned rose bushes, pulled weeds, and cleared undergrowth at Lyndale Park and its four gardens.

Landmark Event Staffing Services and PROjection Presentation Technology sponsored the project. Please check out some photos below of the day’s activities.

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(Photos: Rob Price)

iCommit, IAVM’s member referral campaign, is in full swing now. Goal: If every member strives to add just one new member, we could DOUBLE our membership; currently, we have 5,083 members. Realistically, we are targeting a minimum of 300 new professional members by December 31, 2016. With the addition of the Group Membership program, these numbers are very attainable—all new members will count towards your referral total. If you know of a venue in your community that is not a part of IAVM, encourage them to consider Group Membership. As of today, 113 active venues participating as group members. Do you have interns, students or young professionals working for you now? Encourage them to become a part of our network.

What’s In It For You?

More members means more collaboration, a bigger and more diverse network for you, and a greater pool of experts to create inspiring and motivating educational content. Besides feeling good about supporting your association, for each new member you refer, your name will be entered into a raffle to win one of five, $500 Apple gift cards to apply toward the purchase of any Apple product, sponsored by Ungerboeck Software International. The more members you refer, the more chances you will have to win. *The gift cards will be mailed to the winners in January 2017.

Prizes

• The grand prize will be a complimentary registration to VenueConnect 2017 in Nashville (value $895).
• Win one of five, $500 Apple Gift cards – receive one raffle entry for each new member you refer.
• The IAVM region that adds the most new members will have one CVP application fee waived; the Region Director will choose the recipient within that region.
• The campaign ends December 31, 2016.

• List your name in the Application Section titled, “Who Recommended IAVM To You/How Did You Hear About IAVM?”
• Enter “iCOMMIT” in the Promotional Code field in the Professional/ Allied Membership Application.
• For new members only, the $150 one-time initiation fee will be waived, if applicable*

Hurry! Start referring new members today. Contact me or Summer Beday, member care manager, at 972.906.7441 for a copy of the recruitment tool, “Why be a member of IAVM?” – for speaking points to encourage prospects to join.

We value and appreciate your support of IAVM!

(photo credit: SimpleSkye via photopin cc)

Here’s an intriguing statistic: 50 percent of the buildings included in the VenueDataSource “Firearms in the Venue Study” had to take some action in response to state or local open carry laws. To be the first to know what they needed to do, come to a workshop and fireside chat at VenueConnect in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

VenueDataSource representatives will contribute to the workshop, “The Impact on New Gun Laws on Public Venues” (Saturday, July 22, 9-11 a.m.) along with panelists Andy Jabbour (founder and president of Gate 15), Russell Read, CFE (vice president of operations at the AT&T Performing Arts Center), and Marcus Travis (guest and security services manager for the Minneapolis Convention Center). Attendees will learn about recent gun laws and how venues are complying with them. This will surely be a highly engaging workshop.

VenueConnect attendees can also be the first to obtain the results from the “Firearms in the Venue Study” at a fireside chat presented by the Research Committee on Sunday in Booth #1347 from 1:10-1:30 pm on the trade show floor.

Be sure and visit VenueDataSource anytime during the trade show at IAVM Booth #1435 and talk to the members that help provide valuable information for the association.

Please welcome our newest members who joined IAVM in June 2016—a total of 73 new members. Thank you for being a part of the association!

Also, let us get to know you better by participating in the I Am Venue Management series. Please visit http://www.iavm.org/i-am-venue-management-share-your-story to share your story and photo.

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If you are a young professional (YP) or student attending VenueConnect 2016 this July, you will not be alone! Thanks to numerous new initiatives through IAVM and the IAVM Foundation, like the 30|UNDER|30 program, the Minneapolis area will be flooded with young professionals and students with an interest in the venue management industry. If this will be your first VenueConnect conference and trade show, here are some quick tips on how to get the most out of your experience.

UpStart: Emerging Leaders Experience

If you do anything while you are at the conference, be sure to attend UpStart on Saturday morning. This awesome educational and networking session was started last year. It is a great way to connect with other young professionals and students within the industry, learn from educational sessions targeted directly to the millennial generation, and meet veterans in the venue industry. For more information on UpStart, visit http://www.iavm.org/venueconnect/upstart-2016. Special thank you to the IAVM Foundation and Western Kentucky for continuing this great program!

Meet People

You’ll quickly see that VenueConnect is like a huge family reunion for many of venue industry veterans. It’s a great conference to reconnect with old acquaintances and make new contacts, as well. Search out other young professionals and get to know them. Look for opportunities to meet experienced people in the industry. There will be countless opportunities to network!

Interact with the 30|UNDER|30 Class

This is the second year for this great program that works to engage young talent in the venue management industry. And thanks to the IAVM Foundation, SearchWide, and Ungerboeck Software International, each 2016 recipient has been awarded complimentary registration and a travel stipend to be at VenueConnect. The group will be recognized at the Venue Industry Awards Luncheon on Monday, July 25, and should be out in full force all weekend. Don’t be afraid to reach out and connect with them! As a YP myself, I want to thank IAVM and the IAVM Foundation for their generous support in the Build An Amazing Future campaign. It is initiatives like these that are truly making an impact on young professionals in the venue management industry.

Experience All that VenueConnect has to Offer

Attend the educational sessions—each day you’ll find that there will be sessions tailored directly to your venue type or topic of interest. Hit up the Trade Show floor—even if you don’t have buying power now, learn what is out there and meet our friends within the Allied sector. Some day, you will have buying power, and you’ll look to those companies to meet your needs. Attend opening and closing keynote speeches, the awards luncheons, and the closing party. Find other socials and dinners to go to with new and old friends. VenueConnect truly is a great conference, especially if you make an effort to get the most out of i. And look around you, other young professionals and students will be all over!

*Special note: For those of you who are not YPs, look out! This year at VenueConnect, we want to meet you and pick your brain. You have been warned! 🙂

(Image: Orange Photography)