Within the committee itself, there are many subcommittees, or what we call breakout groups, to get everything completed effectively andy


efficiently.


The breakout groups are as follows: Food/Networking Reception, Signage, Scavenger Hunt (whatever fun interactive thing that is being done), Furniture, Giveaway, Attire, Liaison with Digital Communications, Liaison withEducation Committee, Load in and Load out of Exhibitors, Hotel, Volunteer Coordination, and End of Expo. Each of the breakout groups listed has very specificand important tasks to complete.


The Food/Networking Reception starts with the survey results from the prior year to see what the comments were about the food overall. This helps when reviewing the menus from the venue. With over 1,600 people in attendance, food and beverage are very important. The full price ticket comes with a buffet lunch, appetizers and 2 drinks at the networking event. The breakout group tries to select new items when available to keep it fresh and different each year, although some years the survey results warrant a second year of menuf


or appetizer choices. Some might think thatk need to be its own breakout group, but theywouldy


signage is not that important or doesn’t be incorrect.


Signage isoneof theeasiest things tooverlook but can have one of the largest impacts on


the event if not done correctly. The conference venue is a very large convention center with parking across the street. The signage starts at the parking garage across the street and stretches from there to the front entrance of the convention space and through the exhibitor floor. The signage also denoteswhat classes will be where and at what time, where key things are (lunch, bathroom, registration, etc.).The group also makes sure the signage is put up in the right spot and removed at the end of the event.


The Scavenger Hunt is a fun, interactive game developed to get attendees to visit the exhibitor booths. The exhibitors are able to sign up to be part of thef have to get a certain number of stampsf


hunt, then the attendees to be eligible to win


a gift card. The group creates the cards for the attendees and gives out the stamps to the exhibitors. Most attendees do not realize that the seating areas that are set up around the expo floor need to be designed and ordered by the committee, as the venue is a raw empty space that we customize. It is important to give people a place to rest since a lot of thef


day is spent on your feet.


When entering the expo, there are bags that are available for people to use to hold the materials from the booths. Each bag is preloaded with specific items, one of whichf CAI giveaway item.y


The giveaway itemy is the


choose because the goal is to get something that is useful to people and not just another thingr


is always difficult to that will never be used.


The Attire subgroup is self-explanatory with them ordering logo shirts for committee members to wear on the expo floor. Sometimes they will change the logo, the color, or add something to shirts as well. The committee likes to have matching shirts to help identify members on the exhibition floor to ask questionsk


when walking around. 52 | COMMON INTEREST® • Winter 2024 • A Publication of CAI-Illinois Chapter


The Liaison with Digital Communications and Liaison with Education Committee are very important. The two liaisons work withk


the Conference & Expo Committee so everyone is


on the same page with what is going on, what has been sent out, and what education sessions there will be.


Another very important breakout group is the Load in and Load out for the exhibitors. This group controls the flow of exhibitors in and out of the venue the day before to set up booths as well as pack andk


exit at the close of the event. If


this is not done effectively, the load in/out process takes exponentially longer than it should.


The Hotel breakout group sets up a room block atk one of the hotels across the street for the committee members since they have to be at the venue the day before for setup and then have to return at about 7:00 AM the following day.


One of the most important breakout groups is Volunteer Coordination. This group deals with scheduling volunteers to assist with tasks during the expo such as scanning attendees at the education sessions or at lunch, filling the bags that are at the front entrance, walking around with Cooper (the CAI mascot), and more.


The final breakout group is End of Expof is walking around to the booths at the end of thef


which mostly event,


collecting CAI things that are saved to reuse and making sure everything that needs to be done is addressed.


There is also a lot of behind-the-scenes work thatk place with the CAI IL officeL that work includesk


takes staff for this event. Some of setting up the contract with the venue


each year and making sure it is signed on time; contracting with the tech people that provide the computers/printers at the check-in desk as well as the scanners for the education sessions/exhibitors; all audio-visual needs for the education sessions; and exhibitor registration (which includes booth selection, exhibitor requests like electric or carpet, etc.). Attendee sign up works with the CAI Board to approve a conference budgetary number and ensures that we stay within the budget along with a few other things.


Overall, there are a lot of moving parts and people on committees that help CAI make the Annual Conference & Expo what it has become, our very owny Greatest Show!”


version of “The


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