Planner Confidential: Legal Q&A for Planners

John S. Foster, Esq., CHME

Session Description:
Did John’s keynote spark some questions for you as a planner? Then this planner’s only program is for you! This session will provide essential legal tips to help you survive in today’s business climate and avoid expensive lawsuits. In addition to Q&A, John will cover topics on contract formation and revision issues, how to sign contracts correctly, the importance of option deadlines and the mailbox rule, indemnification language, the elements of attrition and cancellation clauses, and the concept of damages versus penalties and what is enforceable.

Ask the legal expert!  Click here to submit a question for the Planner Confidential session.

Speaker bio
John S. Foster, Esq., CHME is a platinum series presenter and an attorney and counsel whose firm FOSTER, JENSEN & GULLEY, LLC specializes in the legal aspects of meetings & conventions, trade shows & events, and association management. He has been an associate or general counsel for over four hundred (400) national and regional associations and companies since 1986 and has been named as one of the 25 most influential people in the meetings industry by MeetingNews.

Training Techniques That Get Results

Janet Sperstad, CMP

Session Description: 
Do you lead sales or staff meetings?  Want to improve your training skills and engage the participants more?  This session will use multiple intelligences to show how you can communicate and connect faster with your audience, get your message across and get results that you want.  

Objectives:

• Define the eight multiple intelligences and how they impact learning and communication
• Discover ways to increase participation
• Experience “field tested” training techniques

Speaker Bio
A 20-year MPI member, Janet Sperstad, CMP, lead instructor for the Meeting and Event Management Degree Program at Madison Area Technical College, has devoted much of her life to the development and success of the meetings industry. She has held the role of MPI Wisconsin Chapter president and has served on dozens of chapter and international committees.
      While serving as a member of the MPI Professional Development Strategy Group, Sperstad helped develop a program – the first of its kind in the profession – to define the extensive body of knowledge in meeting planning.  She has received numerous awards and recognition from the Wisconsin Chapter, including induction into its hall of fame for lifetime achievement.
      Known for her passionate dedication to education, Sperstad helped create and develop the first U.S. associate’s degree in meeting and event management, and at the World Education Congress á la Montréal in July she was named MPI’s 2007 International Planner of the Year.

Shockingly Excellent Customer Service

John DiFrances

Session Description:
The Real Reason Customers Return & Continue Buying

When was the last time you were actually shocked by customer service? Think about it — it happens all the time. Unfortunately, being shocked by customer service isn’t usually a pleasant experience. However, being shocked by excellent customer service, typically creates a longlasting impression and strong consumer loyalty. Then why is excellent customer service the exception and not the norm? And why do organizations continue to invest heavily in customer service training, without experiencing significant improvement?

John will demonstrate the Power of Shockingly Excellent Customer Service in:

• Developing New Customers in Highly Competitive Environments
• Winning Back Lost Customers Who Say “I will never buy from you again!”
• Successfully Fending Off Competitors Trying to Steal Your Best Customers

Speaker bio
John Di Frances is an international business veteran with 30+ years of global experience including 20 years of professional speaking and senior executive level consulting.  His unique presentations focus on the high audience take-away value that results in improved individual and organizational performance.  Through carefully developed and targeted keynotes, seminars, conferences, and executive retreats, John empowers his audiences.  His highly personable style touches both the mind and the heart.  With thought-provoking insights, vivid stories, and frequent doses of humor, John impacts his audiences in a way they do not soon forget.  Each presentation is created by John from a blank sheet of paper and is designed for the unique needs of that specific audience.  In this manner, John provides the vision and impetus needed to take the organization to the next level.  Whether your audience is corporate, government, or association, John will deliver the results you need for success.

Supplier Confidential: Legal Q&A for Suppliers

John S. Foster, Esq., CHME

Session Description:
Did John’s keynote spark some questions for you as a supplier? Then this supplier’s only program is for you! This session will provide essential legal tips to help you survive in today’s business climate and avoid expensive lawsuits. In addition to Q&A, John will cover topics on contract formation and revision issues, how to sign contracts correctly, the importance of option deadlines and the mailbox rule, indemnification language, the elements of attrition and cancellation clauses, and the concept of damages versus penalties and what is enforceable.

Ask the legal expert!  Click here to submit a question for the Supplier Confidential session.

Speaker bio
John S. Foster, Esq., CHME is a platinum series presenter and an attorney and counsel whose firm FOSTER, JENSEN & GULLEY, LLC specializes in the legal aspects of meetings & conventions, trade shows & events, and association management. He has been an associate or general counsel for over four hundred (400) national and regional associations and companies since 1986 and has been named as one of the 25 most influential people in the meetings industry by MeetingNews.

Training Techniques That Get Results

Janet Sperstad, CMP

Session Description: 
Do you lead sales or staff meetings?  Want to improve your training skills and engage the participants more?  This session will use multiple intelligences to show how you can communicate and connect faster with your audience, get your message across and get results that you want.  

Objectives:

• Define the eight multiple intelligences and how they impact learning and communication
• Discover ways to increase participation
• Experience “field tested” training techniques

Speaker Bio
A 20-year MPI member, Janet Sperstad, CMP, lead instructor for the Meeting and Event Management Degree Program at Madison Area Technical College, has devoted much of her life to the development and success of the meetings industry. She has held the role of MPI Wisconsin Chapter president and has served on dozens of chapter and international committees.
      While serving as a member of the MPI Professional Development Strategy Group, Sperstad helped develop a program – the first of its kind in the profession – to define the extensive body of knowledge in meeting planning.  She has received numerous awards and recognition from the Wisconsin Chapter, including induction into its hall of fame for lifetime achievement.
      Known for her passionate dedication to education, Sperstad helped create and develop the first U.S. associate’s degree in meeting and event management, and at the World Education Congress á la Montréal in July she was named MPI’s 2007 International Planner of the Year.

Strategies for Must-Win Negotiation

John DiFrances

Session Description:
Effective negotiation enables us to resolve conflicts and disputes as well as to find that Win-Win position where both parties achieve success. The goal of win-win negotiation is to find a solution that is both beneficial and acceptable to both parties, leaving them each in a better position than they were previously.

"In a successful negotiation, everyone wins. The objective should be agreement and preservation of relationships, not victory."

Collaborative negotiation is the most effective means of negotiating a solution to a conflict or dispute.  Thus, this should be the most desirable approach to negotiating resolutions in our personal and professional life.  This approach also preserves an on-going relationship with the other person with whom we negotiate, which is normally a highly desirable outcome of the process.

Preparation is a key ingredient to developing excellent negotiation skills and to achieving success. Lack of preparation, will prevent you from being able to clearly define the results you want and what are your relative priorities in rank order and also, may preclude you from properly evaluating highly beneficial alternatives that may arise as the negotiation progresses. Successful negotiation is a very satisfying experience that both rewards the negotiator with the desired outcome and provides a deep sense of satisfaction in building stronger relationships between the parties.

In this session you will learn the important key strategies necessary to achieving successful ‘Win-Win’ negotiations.  John Di Frances is a professional negotiator who works on behalf of corporations in high value negotiations and who teaches audiences how to succeed in Win-Win negotiations.

Speaker bio
John Di Frances is an international business veteran with 30+ years of global experience including 20 years of professional speaking and senior executive level consulting.  His unique presentations focus on the high audience take-away value that results in improved individual and organizational performance.  Through carefully developed and targeted keynotes, seminars, conferences, and executive retreats, John empowers his audiences.  His highly personable style touches both the mind and the heart.  With thought-provoking insights, vivid stories, and frequent doses of humor, John impacts his audiences in a way they do not soon forget.  Each presentation is created by John from a blank sheet of paper and is designed for the unique needs of that specific audience.  In this manner, John provides the vision and impetus needed to take the organization to the next level.  Whether your audience is corporate, government, or association, John will deliver the results you need for success.