MEETINGPLANNERPROFILE
Roberta Dexter Present: Plan Ahead Events Past: Credit Union Atlantic, The Globe and Mail Expertise: Strategic Design, Conference Management, Financial Management Specialty: Academic, medical and association conferences Tell us about yourself. I have been in the events industry for over 10 years and in project management for more than 25 years. I love helping clients quantify their event goals and design a program to deliver based on the metrics. I also love being a business owner and working with an amazing team who inspire me every day with their commitment to the industry and our clients. I have been involved with Meeting Professionals International since 2006 and am a past Chapter President serving in that capacity in 2010/11 and again in 2015/16. Tell us about your work. We work with groups of all sizes and programs of varying complexity. We love to work with academic and medical groups who focus on knowledge sharing and scientific presentations. We look after all the details of their program, presenters, setup and logistical delivery. We are experienced in medical accreditation and the rigorous process for approvals. We have a robust conference management system that allows us to strategically manage all aspects of the projects. How did you get to where you are today? I have been very fortunate to have a series of amazing people in my work and personal life who always challenged me to do the best I can. I have had wonderful mentors, friends and industry colleagues who all supported my decisions to leave the corporate world to open my own company, Plan Ahead Events. I work with people I love both on the client side and as part of my team. Why are you good at what you do? I am good at what I do because I truly care about delivering excellence in service to my clients. I am also a natural problem solver with a relaxed demeanor and a happy disposition which is perfect in the midst of what can be perceived as chaotic onsite running a large group. I have a team of professionals that work with me both as part of my direct team and the vendors I trust. My strong relationship with the events community has really been a valuable resource. 6 | www.corporatemeetingsnetwork.ca