Recently, I had the opportunity to attend the Professional Education Conference of the Kansas City Chapter of Meeting Professionals International (KCMPI) at the newly renovated Elms Hotel and Spa in Excelsior Springs. The hotel has undergone a multi-million dollar renovation and it has been restored to the Grand Dame that it was upon originally opening in 1912.  It is light and bright while retaining all the character and charm of a time gone by, and provided a beautiful setting to host the event.  The Elms has lovely grounds, a wonderful outdoor pool and is close to downtown Excelsior Springs with several historic attractions, shops & restaurants.  It’s a great place not only for a meeting or event, but also for a weekend getaway.

We were greeted by a wonderful staff that took great care of us throughout the day.  The talented chef prepared interesting meals and snacks for the event that were flavorful and appropriate for the occasion.  I look forward to going back to try the hotel restaurant.

The conference was a successful day providing education with interesting speakers for both the planner and supplier – a wide variety of topics that provided “fresh ideas to renovate our thinking.”  It was hard to narrow down which breakout to attend with topics offered on how to get the best value for your money, risk management, tradeshow strategy, mobile event technology to improve your attendee experience, and comfort foods from around the world.  Our general session speakers provide interesting topics as well including:

 1. How to understand your meeting costs.
2. Successful event planning with multiple stakeholders.
3. The All-In Way: 5 strategies to high performance.
4. Meet Like A Mouse: apply theme park methodology to deliver magical results.”  This was my favorite session. The speaker provided insights and some simple behavior models to generate ideas for successful and magical events. 

At the end of the day, we were treated to a wonderful reception with lively entertainment both inside and outside.  It was a day full of refreshed ways of positioning ourselves better to make our meetings and events more successful, as well as connecting with our industry friends and colleagues.  I highly recommend visiting The Elms Hotel & Spa. And, I also encourage you to register for the next KCMPI Professional Education Conference (next spring) – you don’t want to miss out on this great event.

~Jeanne