- Corporate meetings should answer three goals
1. Compliment overall company goals
2. Foster corporate strengths and help reduce weaknesses
3. Increase their efficiency
- Once these objectives are set, two ways a company can proceed to create a meeting
-An in-house meetings department can plan a meeting to answer previously determined objectives
-OR tender all planning and organizing to travel
management companies (TMC), destination
management companies (DMC), or professional meeting planners
2. Travel Management Company (TMC)
- In case a company wishes to solicit planning and organizing support for a corporate meeting from external service providers, the first contact point is normally with TMCs
- Information needed in a typical proposal includes:
- Contact information
- Meeting profile-event name, starting and ending dates
- Other requirements-food & Beverage, audio, audio & lighting systems , venue requirements, other activities
- Past experience in corporate meeting organization
- Budget required
- Differentiation between traditional travel agencies and travel management companies, referencing the Association of Travel Management Companies (ATMC) by Young (2005)
The advent of TMCs brings to business travel the core competencies of specialization and professionalism and understanding. Without these three attributes, your TMC would just be another travel agency.
- After proposals are submitted by TMCs, he company can then ask short listed candidates to present their proposals prior to selecting the TMC to render the services required
- Once selected, the next step will require the TMC to contact a destination management company (DMC) and specialty contractors to submit their proposals
3.Destination Management Company(DMC)
- DMCs can be expected to perform a range of services such as arranging accommodation and transportation to planning and providing activities following the meeting