We’re fans of the Convention Industry Council’s public information campaign “Face Time. It Matters.” that was launched in December 2009 because of the decline in off-site meetings being booked due to image concerns.

One aspect of meeting planning that we’ve seen affected by these concerns is whether or not to invite significant others to off-site meetings. Law firm partner retreats are back on the calendar but guests are staying home. The problem is that partners are then anxious to leave as soon as the meeting ends, skipping essential opportunities to strengthen bonds during activities and dinners. We’re encouraging clients to carefully consider this as well as these findings from the research conducted for the ”Face Time” campaign:

• Face-to-face meetings build trust and relationships;
• Both education and training are more effective in a live setting;
• Live meetings actually save time and money;
• Live meetings facilitate problem solving through a more effective exchange of ideas;
• Face-to-face meetings provide the human connection that powers business;
• Face-to-face meetings create jobs and powers the economy.