Responding to Emails and Phone Calls

I recently read a question on an industry message board asking members "What should be the expected/average response time for email and phone calls?" The responses were very interesting and ran the gamut from within 24 hours to 1-3 hours. This got me thinking about the standard for TD's who are on the road all the time and potentially have limited access to email and voice mail while they are working.

I hope most meeting and hospitality professionals who hire TD's realize that responding within 24 hours much less 1-3 hours is not always realistic. I have reviewed many corporate freelance staff policies and interviewed many INTD members who all say that most of their employers prefer they not make or take personal calls while on duty. In most cases checking email is extremely limited if not almost impossible on-site. When was the last time you had the opportunity to sit at a computer while on the road?

The downside to this is many meeting professionals responsible for hiring TD's need an answer quickly or if you are the last to respond to a job posting does that limit your chances? I find very few TD's activate an auto responder to their email account to let people know they are out of the “office”. So…by not responding quickly could potentially cause someone to lose out on a really great job opportunity.

This is the reason it was extremely important to offer text email messaging to our members. The hope is if a TD is not able to check email and does not have a blackberry, employers can send INTD members a quick text email message via their cell phone. I am really hoping this feature will take off and be a great benefit to our members.

Just like anything new, using this technology will take time. If you think this is something that would be helpful while you are traveling, be sure to enable this feature by logging into your account and posting your personal text email address in the "home base information" section.

What are your thoughts regarding this topic?

Volunteering & Networking

Today was a great networking day, well spent attending the MPI CAC All Committee Luncheon at the Hyatt Regency downtown Chicago. This year I have committed myself to volunteering on both the CMP Committee and Diversity Committee...Wow, it is going to be a busy year! I could not be more excited about both opportunities.

Believe it or not, but the food was actually really good. Based on the presentation of the plate I thought I was at a fine dining restaurant for a moment. Seriously, it was that impressive for a hotel banquet function!

I had the pleasure of sitting next to two great industry colleagues, Mr. Kevin Boland, Director of Sales and Marketing at The Drake Hotel and Mrs. Tanya Tarnoff, Account Executive with Minding Your Business. It was so nice catching up and sharing the news about INTD.

So what is the deal with the committees I selected to volunteer my time? Glad you asked....I chose the CMP Committee because as a fellow CMP I think it is an honor to help others accomplish such a highly regarded designation within our industry.

The CMP Committee is responsible for assisting MPI-CAC members to study for and pass the exam for their Certified Meeting Professional (CMP) designation within compliance of the Convention Industry Council’s (CIC) authorized program.

The Diversity Committee's objective is to celebrate the distinct and unique attributes each member of MPI brings to the organization and to the industry. On its own and in partnership with other committees, Diversity works to broaden members' understanding of and appreciation for what makes celebrating our differences powerful.

We are directly responsible for organizing the Women's Leadership Conference. The conference is hosted downtown Chicago this year and will be one of the best yet! Once the details are confirmed I will be sure to add to the blog and to INTD's Event Page.

INTD in the Press

This has been a very exciting week so far for INTD! We were recognized by Sue Pelletier, MeetingsNet Web Editor when she posted on her blog the launch of INTDONLINE.com and how we are connecting travel directors with meeting planners.

You can read the entire article on MeetingsNet.com.....Thanks so much Sue!

Next up is our press release on Midwest Meetings. Thanks to Serenity J. Knutson, Editor of Midwest Meetings Magazine who recently wrote the article "Why hire a Travel Director?" was nice enough to post the news on their site.

So what does this mean for our members??? Getting published and blogged about is extremely important for spreading the word and driving meeting & event planners, DMC's and tour companies to the site. The more visible we are in the public, the more employers visit the site, see your profiles and post jobs.

But members, please don't forget INTD is not just a job board but an industry resource! The network was founded specifically for Travel Directors for the purpose of networking, professional development and freelance opportunities. INTD is NOT a staffing firm and does not guarantee project work for our members. However, we do guarantee to provide the best online tool to maximize your career!