Corporate Meetings Leaders Launch Collaboration Group

Senior event leaders from blue chip companies like Cisco Systems, McDonald’s, Microsoft, Siemens and Wolters Kluwer have formed Event Leaders Exchange, a collaboration group to develop research and promote industry initiatives around critical topics. To-date the invitation-only group has formed initiatives around both sustainability and diversity, equity and inclusion, working to understand how these issues can effectively figure into supplier sourcing and partnership relationships. ELX will also serve as a benchmarking group for large corporates as meetings continue to recover from reductions forced by Covid-19 and now emerging into a high-demand, high-cost environment.

The group is spearheaded by Meetings Strategy & The Data Angel principal Kimberly Meyer, meetings consultant David Kliman, Explori VP senior corporate relations Chloe Richardson and Explori CEO Mark Brewster. 

Meyer, in the lead-up to announcing ELX, told BTN the group is looking to leverage the collective influence of large meeting buyers to push needed change through the industry. In a press statement, she reiterated that intent, calling the group “a place where the leaders of corporate programs can get candid insights, ideas and support from other leaders navigating major meeting and event portfolios. … Together, we’ll be able to drive some important initiatives forward across the industry in weeks, not years.”