Conferences provide opportunities for professional development and business networking, which are essential for innovation. A successful conference can have a large or small turnout, depending on the industry. For example, a weekend conference might have 200 attendees, while a week-long conference could have 15,000 attendees. 

As a conference planning manager, you have a lot on your plate. There’s a lot to consider, from booking the venue to arranging transportation and accommodation for attendees.

That’s why, with the help of Catering & Conference Manager Jake Zadjura, we’ve put together a conference planner checklist to help make your job a little easier.

Drama. Intrigue. Suspense. No, It’s not the latest Netflix series. It’s what you get when you plan a murder mystery team-building experience in West Virginia!

Businesses can choose from all sorts of activities when it comes to team building. One option that is often overlooked is the murder mystery team-building exercise. This type of activity can be highly beneficial for a corporate event, as it can help promote teamwork and communication while providing some fun and excitement.

Designed to test your teamwork, communication, and problem-solving skills, Robin Poling shares the murder mystery experience Stonewall Resort hosts for groups. 

According to a Harvard Business Review, having a feeling of inclusion at work leads to more than just pleasant sentiments and friendships. It promotes employee performance, higher revenues, and low turnovers.

However, two-thirds of employees still tend to feel isolated, and their opinions are not valued. Feeling disrespected or unheard is one main reason people quit (and quiet-quit) their jobs.

Building an inclusive culture where everyone feels like they are part of the decision-making process is important if you manage a team. Starting with your team meetings is a great way to do this.

In inclusive meetings, each staff member has a say and feels motivated to engage actively and present their unique ideas. Meetings are the way to get started if a company wants to create a more inclusive culture — and executives want to exemplify the feeling of belonging.

Sales manager Shelley Gutta shares a few tips on fostering an inclusive culture through inclusive meetings.

When building a solid and cohesive team, few things are more important than communication and morale. The key to a secure and productive workforce is to let team members participate in the company readily so they can understand where and how they fit in. And this requires a spirit of camaraderie in the workplace.

Competitive team-building activities foster team bonding and a sense of belonging that creates a positive work environment. It also encourages healthy competition and promotes peer-to-peer recognition. It’s the process that enables corporate teams to reach their common goals more effectively.

With some help from Stonewall Resort’s sales manager, Robin Poling, we’re sharing a few ideas, tips, and tricks for infusing competitive team-building activities into your next corporate meeting.

We’ve all been there – a corporate meeting filled with PowerPoint slides and jargon-laden language. Our eyes start to glaze over, and our minds wander. We’re daydreaming about anything and everything else.

Now, imagine a corporate meeting that’s the complete opposite. A meeting where the content is engaging, the dialogue is lively, and we’re actually excited to be there. What’s the difference?

In short, it’s about incorporating opportunities for “white space.”

Let’s explore the concept of “white space” and learn what to look for in a meeting venue, thanks to some tips from our sales manager, Shelley Gutta. 

You know that networking is vital for your career, but you may still be hesitant to attend networking events. Maybe you’ve had your share of expensive conferences that seemed like a waste of time. Maybe you’re wondering if LinkedIn and other social media are enough on their own.

The truth is that face-to-face communications still carry more weight than emails and texts. Plus, events can be an efficient way to meet a large number of potential contacts in a short time.  

Robin Poling, our sales manager here at Stonewall says, “I believe that the in-person meetings  allow us to be authentic, and it also allows meeting attendees to have that human touch, which we so desperately missed in the last 24 months or so.”

Making that in-person connection can elevate your business relationships and increase your ROI. If you want to come home from your next networking event with something more valuable than a pile of business cards and memories of free cheese, read our tips for networking at your next meeting, conference, and other in-person events.

With spring comes warmer days and plenty of opportunities to explore outside.  And while there are plenty of tried-and-true team-building activities out there, why not shake things up with something a little bit different at your next meeting or corporate event?

We have a few ideas to help you do just that!

Here are seven unconventional ideas to get your team working together and having fun this spring.

There’s no denying that today’s organizations are turning to group meetings as a way to boost productivity and drive innovation. Naturally, that became tricky when the pandemic changed how the entire world operates. We are seeing a return to in-person events overall, but not all venues are created equal in terms of their ability to return to bringing teams together in person safely. 

Safety, social distancing, varying vaccination requirements, and health screenings are now a part of our daily lives which can make gathering in one place increasingly difficult. As they say, the show must go on, and your business has to continue moving forward, even through difficult circumstances.

If you’re planning to implement group meetings again, be sure you choose a venue that can accommodate your needs while making the health of your attendees a priority. 

As we move further into the future, event planners will need to keep up with ever-changing trends in order to put on successful events. Tech is king but event planning is more than just offering the latest and greatest technology. We’ve put together some corporate event planning tips that will not only improve loyalty and engagement but will also help with your ROI, too!