08/18/2017

Do We Need a Safety Standard for Meetings?

It’s can be a dangerous world out there

It’s can be a dangerous world out there. What does that mean for association meetings? In an #ASAE17 Learning Lab, two presenters made the case that a security standard is needed for venues and that it would benefit the industry as a whole.

Vicki Hawarden, current COO of Excellence Squared, was a meeting planner for much of her career. And while she always had what she calls “a standard safety and security plan” for her events, she says 9/11—and the anthrax attacks that followed a week later—changed everything. At the time, she was director of meetings for the American Association of Blood Banks. “It was the first time that I went into a venue and thought to ask them about how they control their air intake,” she said.

The response: blank looks and questions from venue managers are about why she was asking such a question.

Please click here to read the complete article from Associations Now.