Congratulations to MPI Minnesota EMPI Winners!

Congratulations to MPI Minnesota EMPI Winners!

Lisa Albers – Rising Star

As a new member of MPI this Fall, Lisa jumped in right away, volunteering to work with the venue for the November monthly meeting and taking care of all the details and provided helpful feedback to better the Education Committee Volunteer experience.

As an active participant in monthly committee meetings, Lisa shares her knowledge of events and ideas on how to increase attendance, better the education or help the flow of a monthly program.

Lisa has committed herself to MPI by volunteering to be a co-chair for the MPI MN May Gala.  Arranging site visits, conference calls, scribe of notes and following up on all aspects, Lisa has taken on a true leadership role for the May Gala.

With her commitment to time, details and positive attitude, the Education Committee has benefited from Lisa joining our team this year.

Supporting Company – Elan Speakers

Elan Speakers Agency has supported MPI and our MPI MN chapter for many years. They always provide our Education team with a list of speakers that could provide educational and exciting content for the up-coming meetings. Devie Hagan's ability to follow through is remarkable. She uses everything from tweeting to networking in person to good old fashioned telephone calls to provide the chapter with the information it needs to make decisions in their educational programs.

Denise Woods personally recommended Devie and has the following to say:

There are few who can equal Devie's ongoing support for our chapter. She has served on numerous committees, mentors other chapter members, and has been an invaluable asset to me, sponsoring numerous guest speakers at the annual CMP/CMM Recognition Breakfast.  It is rare to attend a chapter or industry event and not see Devie, fully participating in and supporting all activities.

Devie Hagen personifies this award's requirements as an exemplary supporter of not just MPI, but the meeting and event industry as a whole.

Outstanding Supplier Member – Melissa Leal, Hotel Sofitel

Sue Daly, who served on the MPI MN Board of Directors has the following to say about Melissa:

She was a team player encouraging her committee volunteers to use their talents. She had several students or new meeting professionals on her committee that she trained and gave opportunities for growth and involvement.

Once her term on the Board of Directors ended Melissa stepped right into a role that is very important to the financial health of our chapter. Melissa believes in what our chapter has to offer and is able to convey those values and opportunities to our sponsors. Our chapter is in a strong financial position, better than where we thought we would be financially, partly due to Melissa's contribution and success in finding monthly sponsors.

Melissa is a leader that values her relationship with her MPI colleagues. Melissa makes a point to take advantage of all the networking opportunities available. I have witnessed Melissa lead as well as use her talents for the betterment of our chapter.

I have consistently been impressed with Melissa's dedication to the chapter and to her position as Senior Sales Manager at the Hotel Sofitel. She has continually demonstrated a strong work ethic, is honest with people and will go the extra mile to ensure success. 

Outstanding Planner Member – Staci Kvasnik, Boston Scientific

Staci has been with Boston Scientific for less than 5 years, but has made a significant impression. She created a new registration process for the company's Medical Advisory Board Meetings and collaborated with other departments within BSC to ensure that the process ran smoothly and efficiently for the end user. She used her negotiation skills with her vendor to create a program that was within our budget as well as her influence skills with legal to bring this program to life. Staci also did a tremendous amount of work behind the scenes, and was tireless in her efforts to see this become a reality.  Streamlining this process and providing a quick turn-around to allow physicians to schedule their travel is a valuable process for these attendees so important to our Medical Advisory Board meetings.  We now have a strong registration program for our Medical Advisory Board customers that will be adapted by other divisions within BSC – and a best practice that was created.

Outstanding Meeting / Event – Brave New Workshop

The Brave New Workshop hosted a very innovative and creative MPI MN Mingle event.  By collaborating with other MPI members, they provided unique and fun décor elements to set the atmosphere and showcase their venue and the capabilities that they can offer.  The event also featured a community service element for the Harriett Tubman Foundation.  Perhaps the most unique element was the live Skype session with the MPI International Headquarters in Dallas.