This Week's Herman Trend Alert Cyberbullying---a Growing Problem

The Herman Trend Alert February 11, 2009 Ripple Effects of Reducing Meetings Though we expect scaled back meetings and reduced incentives during economic slowdowns, this crisis has resulted in "a wave of cancellations". According to MeetingsNet.com, 56 percent of corporate meeting planners and 65 percent of financial or insurance planners report canceling one or more meetings or incentives due to economic conditions. Many planners expect to adjust their meetings, including shorter trips and smaller groups. Among corporate planners, 52 percent plan to shorten their meeting length, while 48 percent plan to reduce the number of attendees and 65 percent plan to choose more affordable destinations. All of these cancellations and cutbacks have produced ripple effects. Organizations responsible for planning meetings have been so hard hit that some have laid off workers. According to Smith Travel Research, convention hotels, 12 percent of the United States room supply, have trended lower than other hotels in both average daily rate and revenue per available room. The opportunity here is for smaller-market convention hotels to provide less expensive alternatives for price-sensitive planners. In fact, all segments of the meeting marketplace are attracted to destinations that offer enough direct flights at affordable prices, so that attendees don’t have to spend an additional night due to schedules. Expect to see an acceleration of this trend in the next year. We are also seeing more planners switching to a combination of in-person and online meetings. Unfortunately, virtual meetings eliminate the networking opportunities which are one of the key reasons most attendees invest in meetings. Some high profile cancellations are Wells Fargo's Las Vegas event, ING Life Distribution's 2009 incentive sale agent trips, General Motors' meetings at the National Association of Automobile Dealers Convention, and Cisco's annual sales meeting. These cancellations and others have resulted in reduced hours and reductions in staff for convention hotels. According to PKF Hospitality Research, hotel occupancy rates in 2009 are forecasted to be down by 4.4 percent over 2008, to an average of just 58.3 percent. We expect to see hospitality and travel to take a major hit in the near-term future. Given that these reductions are greater than we experienced post 9-11, it will be years before we see previous travel and meeting levels. © Copyright 1998- by The Herman Group, Inc. -- reproduction for publication is encouraged, with the following attribution: From "The Herman Trend Alert," by Roger Herman and Joyce Gioia, Strategic Business Futurists. (800) 227-3566 or http://www.hermangroup.com. The Herman Trend Alert is a trademark of The Herman Group, Inc." DISCOVER WHAT’S REALLY GOING ON... in the hearts and minds of your employees. Our InnerViews interviewing service uses SPHRs and PHRs, certified human resource professionals to probe for the information you really need to know. Exit and Stay Interviews, as well as Why-Didn't-You-Take-Our-Offer Interviews. Call Rosalie Catalano at 937-416-7066, or read more at: http://www.hermangroup.com/retentionconnection/exit_interviews.html. MOM ALWAYS TAUGHT IT WAS GOOD TO SHARE You have probably subscribed to The Herman Trend Alert for a while now and you know how valuable it is to you. Why not suggest that your friends sign up at http://www.hermantrendalert.com? Join the thousands who subscribe in 87 countries around the globe. Are there particular topics you'd like to see covered? Let us know and we will research "The Future of. . .". And let us know how else we may serve you? E-mail: joyce@hermangroup.com. YOUR EMPLOYEES NEED THEIR LEADERS MORE THAN EVER Help your leaders to excel. Thousands have used our weekly Lessons in Leadership to help their supervisors and managers remember how to hold onto top talent. The 52-week subscription is only $47, a bargain when you think about the savings to your organization in reduced turnover. Quantity discounts available by emailing Carol at carol@hermangroup.com. Order today at: http://www.hermangroup.com/store/subscription_all.html#3. Herman Trend Alerts are produced by the Herman Group, strategic business futurists, Certified Management Consultants, authors, and professional speakers. New subscribers are welcome. There is no charge for this public service. The Herman Trend Alert is received by over 30,000 subscribers in 78 countries, in addition to other websites and printed magazines. Do you enjoy receiving this weekly e-mail update? Contact us about our co-branded Trend Alert service. Click here to sign up for the Herman Trend Alert. Subscribe or Unsubscribe to weekly Herman Trend Alert View this week's Herman Trend Alert Archived Weekly Herman Trend Alerts

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