CEMA Summit 2019 is less than three weeks away! Not registered yet? You still have time to join 300 of your peers from July 21-23 at MGM Grand Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas — and if you work directly for a client-side brand, you don’t even have to be a CEMA member to attend (although we recommend you consider joining).

The Corporate Event News Event Expert Profile series features interviews with some of the many talented corporate event professionals who make this industry thrive.

Michael Dominguez has been named president and CEO of Associated Luxury Hotels International. The well-known, well-liked industry veteran previously served as senior vice president and chief sales officer for MGM Resorts International for the past seven years. He also directed sales development for Loews Hotels as vice president of global sales prior to MGM.

PCMA EduCon 2019 will take place June 25-28 at JW Marriott Los Angeles LA Live. Known among PCMA’s portfolio of events for taking a more focused, practical approach to learning through small-scale, collaborative education sessions, the conference will bring in around 800 attendees (compared to PCMA’s annual Convening Leaders events, which draws 4,500).

Cincinnati USA has become known in the DMO world for making strides in diversity markets over the last few years, notably with the appointment of Jason Dunn as vice president, multicultural sales and community development. This spring, he was promoted to group vice president of diversity sales and inclusion — and is stepping into a role that’s quite novel in the industry. Corporate Event News sat down with Dunn to learn more about what changes he’s striving to make, and where the industry stands as a whole on diversity and inclusion efforts.

Caesars Entertainment is an acknowledged industry leader in corporate social responsibility (CSR) which encompasses its commitment to employees, suppliers, communities and the environment. This work is done through Caesars' PEOPLE PLANET PLAY framework. In the past six months, the company has received significant news coverage around these initiatives, including:

One way event professionals choose to share their expertise within the industry is through books. In the past several months, I’ve read a number of editions that run the gamut from self-help to event design and strategic planning to improving sales. Here are some of our top picks.

You could say the team members behind MAD Event Management are masters of creativity. Based in Warwick, New York, they’re owners and operators of several large pop culture conventions, from Long Beach Comic Expo to C3: Comic Creator Conference. As such, they’re frequently managing events that involve large numbers of attendees dressed in costume, as well as in-depth education sessions designed to help high-level comics creatives learn and grow in the industry.

Adrian Segar is one of the most interesting people that I know, and also one of the smartest. In his extensive career, he has been at the leading edge of several industries. He also happens to be the pioneer of what has become most commonly known as the “unconference,” although he prefers “participant-led and participation-rich event.”

It’s late; you’ve skipped dinner, again; and the hotel mini bar beckons. What will it be: overpriced potato chips, M&Ms, or maybe both? With a little advance planning, you could have prevented the strike of nighttime hunger — and perhaps a multitude of health issues down the road.