Rush to Prepare?

I just returned from MPI's World Education Conference (#WEC17) in Las Vegas. There were plenty of education topics to choose from, but there was a focused view on meeting security and safety.

Attacks in Paris, Brussels and Berlin have been in the news but are an entire ocean away. And although the United States has experienced other terror acts on American soil before and after 9/11—such as the Oklahoma City bombings, Boston Marathon explosions, and mass shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, and Fort Hood military base near Killeen, Texas—none of them has had nearly the same impact as 9/11.

Stories about emergencies, security and safety seem to pop up nonstop, however, thanks to the 24-hour cycle of social media and news sources. It’s a giant wheel, with many spokes, including active shooters, terrorist attacks, power outages, contagious diseases, stolen equipment, data thefts, weather disasters, political upheavals and economic blunders.

For those who plan and manage large events, such as conferences, these recent acts of terror remind us that we must be proactive when it comes to security, both cyber and physical.

It was good to see safety and security come to the forefront at WEC 2017 and I hope it's a fixture in the future of all meeting planners.