MSERA OPERATIONS MANUAL: Committees
Local Arrangements Committee
Purpose
The Local Arrangements Committee is responsible for all
on-site preparations for the Annual Meeting held by the Association. These
preparations shall include selection of the convention hotel, negotiation
of rates for accommodations and food, and selection of meeting rooms.
Committee Selection
Once the site for the Annual Meeting has been selected,
the Local Arrangements Committee and its chair should be appointed by the
President of the Association. Upon consultation with the individual designated
as chair, it might be more advantageous to have only a single person vested
with this responsibility rather than to appoint a committee. It is important
that this committee and its chair be appointed as soon as possible because
many of the responsibilities must be completed at least two years before
the meeting is held. The chair should reside in the state of the city selected
as the site for the Annual Meeting.
Responsibilities
Hotel Selection: At least three years prior to
the Annual Meeting, the Local Arrangements Committee should contact the various
hotels in the host city and begin negotiations. The Committee should report
to the Board about the evaluation of these hotels. The following criteria
should be applied in selecting the hotel:
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Meeting Schedule - the hotel should be available from Tuesday during the
second week in November.
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Accommodations - at least 100-120 guest rooms at competitive rates.
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Meeting Rooms - at least seven breakout rooms and one large meeting room
will be needed. Additional space for registration and social functions should
be available.
It is preferable that there be sufficient space to allow
participants to leave the President's Address and go immediately to the
President's Reception.
Hotel Preparations: Once the hotel has been selected,
the appropriate number of guest and meeting rooms should be reserved. Initial
plans for other meeting functions should be made. These include:
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Board of Directors' Dinner - a dinner meeting of the Board of Directors is
usually held on the Tuesday evening prior to the start of the Annual Meeting.
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President's Reception - a social function for 150-200 people is usually held
Wednesday evening following the Annual Meeting.
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Joint Universities Reception - a social function for 150 -200 people is usually
held on Thursday evening following the Business Meeting.
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New Member/Graduate Student Breakfast - A continental breakfast for 50 members
is usually scheduled Wednesday and Thursday mornings from 7:30 a.m. to 8.45
a m. at the Annual Meeting.
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Presidents' Breakfast - A breakfast for current and past presidents of MSERA
is usually scheduled Friday morning at the Annual Meeting. Participants pay
for this meal.
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Coffee for the registration area Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday mornings.
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A luncheon for the MSER Foundation is held on Thursday at noon for about
15 people. The Foundation reimburses the Association for this activity.
The Local Arrangements Committee chair serves as the
MSERA contact with the hotel for any function requiring food and/or beverages.
The chair is responsible for making sure that hotel costs fit within the
MSERA budget for the Annual Meeting. The hotel staff should be notified that
they may receive special requests for breakout room modifications. All requests
should be checked with the chair of the Local Arrangements Committee prior
to being institute.
The Local Arrangements Committee chair is responsible
for securing audio-visual equipment for the Annual Meeting. There is to be
an overhead projector and screen in each of the seven breakout rooms. Other
audiovisual equipment will be at the expense of the presenter. If the hotel
has provisions for supplying additional equipment and billing it to registered
guests, the chair should relay such information to participants who indicate
a need for equipment other the overhead projectors. Personally examine breakout
rooms to decide if microphones are needed (large rooms), and whether rooms
already have screens for overhead projectors or white walls that make screens
unnecessary.
Once the Board has accepted the recommendation of the
Local Arrangements Committee chair regarding the choice of hotel for the
Annual Meeting, the chair proceeds to coordinate the signing of a contact
with the hotel. The Executive Secretary of MSERA is authorized to sign for
the organization. It is important to check the terms of the cancellation
clause. While hotels may want to stipulate a cancellation fee of "one night's
anticipated room revenue based on the single occupancy rate and the number
of rooms held on the peak night of arrival,'' the organization has thus far
been able to have this "reduced to a one-time charge of $2,000.''
Suggestions
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When signing for catering services, try to make sure that the contact states
that the hotel's costs cannot be raised more than 2-3% of the quoted price.
Food and service prices may increase between the time they are contracted
and the Annual Meeting.
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Coordinate with the Program Committee chair regarding times of all addresses
and functions. Times should be confirmed by the hotel in writing.
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Work with the Secretary-Treasurer regarding the preparation and availability
of signs for registration. Making the signs is not the responsibility of
the Local Arrangements Committee but the hotel may have some restrictions
regarding the construction, appearance, and display of signs.
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If local Tourist Bureau services are used, the chair of the Local Arrangements
Committee coordinates the activities.
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Contact the sales manager at the hotel approximately every six months to
make sure everything is stall valid.
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Contact an airline that has good connections to the host city for reduced
air fares for participants if it is likely that a number of people will fly
in. lf the meeting is in the middle of the MSERA region and most people are
expected to drive in, this may not be worthwhile. If reduced airfares are
secured, provide information, including the discount number, to the members
through the Researcher in late summer (August issue) so that they can take
advantage of them when making their travel plans.
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The organization pays for a suite for the President and a room for the
Secretary-Treasurer. When negotiating room rates with the hotel, one common
arrangement is for the hotel to provide one complimentary room for every
50 rooms utilized on a cumulative basis. In this arrangement, suites may
be equated to anywhere from 100 to 200 rooms. In order to determine how many
rooms to block (hold back for MSERA), the hotels will want to know how many
rooms were booked at recent Annual Meetings. If you know the hotels and cites
that hosted the previous Annual Meetings, the hotels that you are contacting
will follow up to determine how many rooms were blocked and actually used.
Then they will have some idea how many rooms to block.
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Basically, there should be no charge for the meeting rooms. The hotel is
making its money from the guest room charges. Once a contract that specifies
the daily rate for rooms there is little bargaining power.
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The hotel should agree to provide 600 complimentary reservation cards, which
are to be obtained by the Local Arrangements Committee chair and sent to
the editor of the Researcher by Mid-July for inclusion in the August issue
(that also contains the pre-registration card for the meeting)
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The Executive Secretary has a tax exempt number that can be used in Tennessee
and another that can be used in Kentucky.
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Work with the catering services beginning six to nine months prior to the
Annual Meeting. It is helpful to obtain a copy of the previous year's budget
and the budget list from the President. Then meet with the hotel catering
service before the spring Board meeting (in the year of your Annual Meeting).
When you go to the spring Board meeting, you need to have some idea regarding
prices at the hotel and how they fit into the budget.
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Visit prospective hotels, eat there, go into meeting rooms. If possible,
make an unannounced visit as a "regular" customer to see how "normal" people
are treated. See if what the sales force tells you is actually delivered.
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Each meeting room should hold 30 or more and allow for theater-style seating,
a head table for speakers, and a lectern. Check for sound bleed-through between
rooms. Are the rooms separated by walls or by a partition? Check the ease
of access to the hotel, parking availability, and amenities.
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Be available and easily accessible during the Annual Meeting.
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Obtain copies of the reports presented by the Local Arrangements Committee
chair during the year preceding your meeting.