When looking for a venue for your event, do you automatically assume that it should be in a hotel? You may want to take a step back and consider your options. While many of our programs are hosted in hotels with meeting facilities, this kind of booking comes with a room block that can be difficult to predict and manage. 

Another option could be a small footprint in a convention center, a conference center, or some type of unique space in a city. When looking for a venue - keep your mind and your options open.

Often times a city can offer suggestions, ideas for speakers or promotion, or even seed money. MCE works with many cities, and many of them actively support our organizers. If you need help to get started, please contact your relationship manager. 

Keep an open mind rather than narrowing in on a city location before doing your research. Come to the process with attributes such as - easy to get to, sustainable destination, and good industry base for your field of interest to maximize your options.

IEEE Corporate Contract Deadlines: Important 2023 Year-End Dates to Know

It is that time again when IEEE Finance begins to close up the fiscal year. As a result, and as part of IEEE’s regular annual process, all contracts that require a signature by 31 December 2023 and subsequent purchase orders (if applicable) must be submitted to the IEEE Legal and Compliance (L&C) Department by no later than Friday, 3 November to meet the deadline.

To allow for the pre-work that is typical, all event-related contracts should be submitted for review by Wednesday, 25 October.

MCE will make every effort to ensure that contracts submitted on or before this date are shared with the L&C team by their deadline, sent for signature, and then submitted to Strategic Sourcing before the Finance end-of-year processing deadline, to be announced shortly. Contracts submitted after these dates continue to be processed as quickly as possible in the order in which they are received.

We encourage you to plan ahead and avoid submitting at the deadline, if at all possible.

Kind regards,

The Conference Contracts Team

IEEE Meetings, Conferences & Events (MCE)

New Sender Email Address for Parley Pro Contract Notifications

Please note that all Parley Pro notification emails will now be sent from CounselLink CLM. This change results from LexisNexis acquiring Parley Pro and will only affect email branding, not content.

If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact the Conference Contracts Team.

Sustainability Questions Now Included in MCE's RFPs

MCE completed Phase 1 of its goal to include sustainability questions in event-related RFPs. Effective 7 August, our preferred tool for sourcing locations incorporates these questions into all event-based RFPs. Additional tools and users will be addressed in later phases. 

This effort leverages IEEE’s global impact to influence venues while also providing visibility into what prospective vendors are doing to practice sustainability within their organizations. Inquiring about sustainability efforts can motivate changes in suppliers and participants and enhance the attendee experience to benefit the environment and local communities. 

When organizing events, there are many opportunities to lead by example when it comes to sustainability. Partnering with sustainable vendors during the event planning process can make a difference in your event's carbon footprint. 

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the MCE team.

Erica DeProspo, Audience Development Specialist, MCE 

Tune in to Forums of the Future for Insights on Making Your Conference More Inclusive

In the latest IEEE Forums of the Future episode, David chats with Dalma Novak, Chair of the IEEE Technical Activities Board Committee on Diversity & Inclusion (TAB CDI). Hear Dalma share her perspectives on embracing our differences and how to ensure the broad representation of people who make up our communities and contribute to technology development within IEEE. DE&I is ever-important when running a conference, creating your agenda, considering your speaker pool, helping participants establish a sense of belonging, and building a heterogeneous organizing committee. Tune in for this timely conversation on an essential topic.