Patrice Knapp, CTSM (1995)
Senior Meeting Planner, Mutual of Omaha, Omaha, NE |
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After
several years as a Marketing Event Coordinator I was transferred to the Convention
Services Dept, at Mutual of Omaha, where I became a Meeting Planner in 1996. I
was promoted to Senior Meeting Planner for Mutual of Omaha in January of 1999.
Today, I am primarily responsible for the planning and coordination of anywhere
from 150 to 200 yearly off-site business meetings and over 20 incentive trips and special events for the company,
and supervise a staff of 4. I still coordinate our largest trade show, NAILBA,
which was the subject of my CTSM thesis in 1995. This is our tenth year of participating
in NAILBA, and we are still as successful today with the same trade show and marketing
strategy as we were in 1994 . Our incentive trips have taken me to the far corners
of the earth - Australia, Bali, China, Vietnam, Rome, Venice, Florence,
London, Paris, Dublin, etc, and our business meetings have taken me all over the United States...yes, including Alaska and Hawaii!!
I keep up with my professional development, and am presently studying for my CMP
(Certified Meeting Professional) certification. I am a member of MPI (Meeting
Professionals Int'l), and ICPA (Insurance Conference Planners Assoc.).
I continue to use many of the skills that I learned and developed in the CTSM
certification process, and I've always been glad I went through the experience.
My thanks still go to Christine Christman and Joe Ries for their encouragement
and support. I served as a CTSM advisor and have fond memories of my phone conversations
with the late Margie McNamee, whom I supported through the CTSM certification
process. Margie and I became friends going through that process and I think of
her often. It was also an honor to serve on the thesis review committee
for two years.
When I'm not on the road (when's that?), in my spare time (what's that?) I am
a recent first time homeowner, where I've found a new passion for gardening, and
sometimes I even cook! (Martha Stewart still has nothing to worry about...OK,
she does, but not where I'm concerned!). And the only love of my life is still
my "daughter" Molly, a 6 year old tortoise-shell Persian cat who is incredibly
spoiled by me and my mother, who "babysits" when I'm on the road. |
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| Contacting the
CTSM Program: |
CTSM Program Administrator (Wendy Lewis)
206 South Broadway Suite 745
Rochester, MN
55904
507-252-4624
Fax: 507-289-5253
wlewis@exhibitormagazine.com |
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