TOP MEETING HOSTS FOR CONVENTIONS, CONFERENCES AND EVENTS REVEAL ALL

Corporate event planners bring on meeting hosts for programs like sales conferences, executive summits, awards dinners and company retreats, as such get-togethers require thoughtful coordination to drive meaningful connections and engagement. While MICE pros excel at organizing logistics from seating charts to A/V and catering, many are turning to professional meeting hosts to master the critical human element.

Dynamic presenters fulfill a range of duties before and during corporate events to ensure a welcoming atmosphere that gets attendees comfortable to facilitate productive interactions. For multi-day conferences, meeting hosts set the tone each morning by energizing sleepy participants with ice breakers, recapping previous sessions, previewing the day’s agenda and speakers and lighthearted jokes to prompt smiles.

These experts roam around during breaks and meals to introduce executives, pull quiet people into conversations with groups that share their interests and get strangers exchanging business cards for post-event follow up. Meeting hosts also kick off and punctuate networking sessions by suggesting specific promising people that attendees should consider meeting and relevant talking points to break the ice.

By handling the responsibility of motivating guests to actively participate, corporate meeting hosts allow event planners to focus their energy on critical behind-the-scenes work rather than trying to also build connections face to face. Meanwhile, charismatic hosts have the job of knowing and engaging with each guest individually, using their names frequently and asking thoughtful questions to learn about their needs and interests at the event.

While program guides ensure all event segments flow smoothly from general sessions to specialized workshops and team building activities, their largest contribution comes through involvement in corporate culture. The best meeting hosts study a company’s values, initiatives and goals prior to events to emphasis and reinforce messaging around strategic priorities.

They build excitement around executive presentations on growth plans not just by cheering during key announcements but also referring back to elements post speech during networking to remind attendees about intriguing concepts and nudge in depth discussions. In doing so, corporate meeting hosts transform passive audiences into active brand ambassadors beyond major internal meetings. Event planners recognize dedicated hosts pay for themselves by driving post event action.