Hilton Orlando Bonnet Creek

Type: Venue Review

Orlando, FL

Overview: Hilton Bonnet Creek has primarily taken over as the go to event venue at Disney. 

Ballrooms: There are two very large ballroom spaces.  The Bonnet Creek Ballroom and the Floridian Ballroom.  Both ballrooms share a side foyer so there needs to be attention given to audience flow if you have the Floridian Ballroom.  When we have worked in the entire Floridian, we have used the side foyer for entrances which works out well.  Some clients have used the connected foyer as an audience lounge area or vendor booths.

Event Space: Multiple breakout rooms are directly below the ballrooms and the dock is workable but is a shared space so coordination is key.  The hotel is connected to the Waldorf Astoria which also has ballroom and breakout space.

Challenge: The walk to the Floridian ballroom is a little far from the attendee elevators and you pass through the Bonnet Creek foyer. 

Solution: We have done some interesting displays (demonstrated above) to brand the Floridian space which we would be happy to share.

Producer’s Notes: Bonnet Creek is definitely a hotel that should be on your site visit list for larger events in Orlando.

KI Convention Center

Type: Venue Review

Overview:  There are not a lot of good options in the Green Bay market but the KI convention center is one to consider.

Ballrooms:  The property has a wide variety of ballroom space.  The original footprint includes a couple of good size ballrooms which can be divided into smaller breakout space as well as a large expo hall.  A recent renovation added a large upstairs ballroom with additional breakout space.

AV Staff and Equipment:  In house is currently PSAV and they are exclusive for rigging but we have never had an issue bringing in outside av to the venue

Location:  The convention center has two attached hotels which works well in the colder months.  The onsite restaurant is the basic bar/restaurant however, there are multiple good restaurants very close.  Lambeau Field (the Packers stadium) is a short drive away and is a highlight for attendees to visit.

Con:  The rigging in the upstairs ballroom has a few holes so any larger set-up needs to take into account the rigging options.  The expo hall on the first floor can get cold.  Load in is also something that needs to be coordinated as the dock is small and the push upstairs is not short.  We often will coordinate a load in using the expo hall and pull our trucks into the hall for load and unload.

Loews Chicago

Hotel:  Loews Chicago

Location: Chicago

Overview:  Great Chicago property for small to mid-sized shows.  This is a very popular property in a great location and it books far in advance. 

Ballroom:  The main ballroom is the Wright ballroom and it is only 109 x 78.  It is well suited for a mid-sized event and can be divided for smaller events.  The Sullivan ballroom Is right across the foyer and is a nice option for meals or breakouts.

The foyer around the Wright ballroom is great and offers opportunities for breaks and attendee networking.  The two ballrooms are next to the lobby but the entrance to the meeting space is built to provide separation from the main lobby.

If you do not have both ballrooms there will often be another event in the Sullivan ballroom which will require some coordination as the Sullivan foyer is not large and attendees will walk through the Wright foyer to get to their space.  This is not a big issue just something that should be addressed.

One important note.  The loading dock is a very long push through many hallways and dock space needs to be reserved and confirmed prior to arrival.

Breakouts:  On the other side of the lobby are the main breakout rooms.  They are on the second floor so there is great separation from the general public.  There are multiple rooms of varying sizes.

One note, many rooms have built in LED screens but the rental cost is fairly high so we often bring in monitors on rolling stands for these rooms.

Outdoor Terrace:  The outdoor terrace on the top floor is a great space with an amazing view.  Clients have used this space for meals, welcome receptions and parties.  If the terrace is a space you would use pay particular attention to any construction on adjacent properties as the noise can be an issue during the day.

Producer’s Notes:  Great property in a great location.

Palace Hotel

Type: Venue Reveiw

Location: San Francisco

Overview:  It is always fun to produce events in historical great hotels like the Palace.  Older hotels like this one are great for attendees and provide a great backdrop for events. However, they do offer some logistical challenges.

Ballroom:  There are a number of ballrooms on the first floor of the Palace, all of which are the same size. These are good for small to medium meetings. For this event we were in the Grand Ballroom.  The Gold Ballroom is very close the Grand and works great for attendee meals.  The foyer area is also very nice and offers a great location for registration and event support.

The second floor offers numerous ballrooms of various sizes.  In contrast to the historical look of the main ballrooms, the breakout space has a modern look and feel.

AV Staff and Equipment:  PSAV is in house. For this event we continued our trend on smaller events to partner with in house.  Main show leads were provided by Tri-Marq and primary audio and projection was shipped in.  PSAV provided support for the general session and all breakout rooms.

One note, PSAV has a union contract so if you use in house av you need to utilize local union techs.

The loading dock is very small and any trucking needs to be carefully coordinated.

Producer’s Notes:  Great hotel for smaller events in an amazing city.  Room rates can be expensive at this hotel but the attendee experience always seems very positive.

The Passing Zone

Type : Speaker Review

Overview: Whether you like the TV show America’s Got Talent or not, the show has become a good source for researching acts for corporate events. It seems that any act that is a finalist but doesn’t win quickly makes the rounds at corporate shows. The Passing Zone is one of these acts and one that is worthy of consideration for an opening act.

Pros: The act is part juggling and part comedy with a pretty good message on teamwork mixed in along the way. The juggling was impressive but what I liked most was the comradery that the two guys had with each other and the audience.  The act is funny and included audience interaction too—they pulled a few attendees into the act.

I believe they also have a breakout interactive component however, I have not seen this option.

Cons: This is primarily a comedy and entertainment act. The teamwork message was there, and if you are just looking for an act to support a message, but not have it central to the act, then this group could work great. Messaging is not the primary reason for booking this act in my opinion.

Producer’s Notes: Judging by the smiles and laughter from the audience I think the performance was a success.  I think this group would work great as a morning kickoff or in a time slot right after lunch.

Diplomat Beach Resort Hollywood

Type: Venue Review

Location: Hollywood, FL

Overview: This is a very busy hotel with lots of meeting space and a great location.  There are lots of ballrooms with different levels of features and challenges. The hotel is also split into two areas, the convention center with all of the large ballrooms and the main hotel with the majority of the breakout space.

Ballrooms: The main ballroom is the Great Hall on the third floor.   This is a very flexible space that allows for even the largest stage design and production.  Rigging is ample here and the space works great.

The next largest ballroom is the Grand on the second floor.  This room features windows that run the complete length of the east section (a drape can close them off for sessions).  The biggest challenge with this ballroom is that rigging is very limited.  We have done some very creative stage designs in this space but it can be a challenge.

The remaining ballrooms are mostly used for large breakout rooms and they work well.

The Grand ballroom also features a nice registration area and a nice foyer.

Power and Rigging:  This hotel is constantly booked, and their rigging and power rates reflect the demand.  You will want to price out both power and rigging at the beginning of the budget process so as not to get sticker shock.

Power is handled by an outside vendor and needs to be ordered well in advance of the event.

Entrance to the Ballroom:  The Grand ballroom is accessed by taking an escalator that exits directly into the foyer.  We have done a really interesting LED arch unit at the entrance to the space.  See this blog post for more details.

Producer’s Notes: This is a very large property with lots to offer mid to large size meetings.

Rick Perry

Type: Speaker Review

Overview: Rick Perry was a very entertaining speaker.  He had lots of energy on stage. His presentation centered around his experience as a governor and he touched on current politics.

The audience was mostly company executives, so part of his speech covered his views on the current business climate and his experience as the executive of a large state.

He took questions and no topic was off limits. The event was in Dallas so he fit nicely into the theme.

Producers Notes: If you are looking for a Texas connection and a speaker with some national political exposure he would be a good option.

Walt Coleman

Type: Speaker Review

Overview: If your audience likes stories about the NFL, then Walt Coleman is a great choice for a presenter.  The message of his presentation was centered on turning boos into cheers.  Drawing on stories from his experience being booed on the football field, Walt presents a positive message about how to turn even the harshest situation into a positive experience.

The real strength of his presentation are the stories from his 20 plus years in the NFL as a referee.  He took questions from the audience and took pictures.  The audience really seemed to enjoy the presentation.

Walt would be a great lunch time speaker or any session with a lighter approach.

Producer’s notes: One note for your audio engineer, Walt Coleman has an incredibly loud voice and uses it.

Polly LaBarre

Type: Speaker Review

Overview: Polly LaBarre is a founding member of Fast Company magazine and author of the book Mavericks at Work: Why the Most Original Minds in Business Win.

Her presentation is primarily about leadership.  She includes many stories about successful CEO’s and large companies.  Her message seemed to resonate with the audience.

Her presentation was a strong 60 minutes.  She took Q&A after her presentation and had many questions from the audience.

Producer’s Notes: Her presentation combined both insight and humor.  She was the first speaker in the morning and did a good job of maintaining the audience.

Erik Qualman

Type: Keynote Speaker

Overview: Eric Qualman speaks about digital leadership and innovation.  We have worked with Erik many times over the years.  The client has always been happy with the message and the audiences’ have been engaged and entertained.  The audience size has ranged from 150 to 900.

Pros: His presentation is a combination of information, entertaining media and stories.  He does not lack energy and tells the back story about his signature green glasses.    

His style: He generally takes Q&A about 2/3 of the way through his presentation instead of at the end.