Mark Your Calendar for September 30 — A Full Recap of Skift Meetings Forum

Hi there,   After the Skift Meetings Forum wraps up next week, we’re going to have a lot to think about — and that’s exactly why we’re hosting a webinar on September 30. We want to give you a chance to unpack all the insights from the day, including the hot takes from the stage and the sidebar conversations.   Whether you’ll be joining us in New York for the live program or you’ll be at home, we want you to join us for a one-hour deep dive into what we learned about the state of the industry and where it’s heading next.   Bring your questions for a lively chat with the entire Skift Meetings editorial team.   See you then! REGISTER NOW — The Skift Meetings Team Thank you to our sponsors Want to participate in future events? Subscribe to our newsletter to stay up-to-date on the latest event trends. Subscribe now. Skift, 35 W 31st St., Frnt 1, New York, NY 10001, USA Manage preferences

We spoke to each of them about their career paths, biggest risks, and hopes for the industry.  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌

Read online The Most Powerful Women in Meetings We spoke to each of them about their career paths, biggest risks, and hopes for the industry.   David McMillin, Skift Meetings Head of Content September 17th, 2026 When I first started in the meetings industry, I noticed three similarities across nearly every stage: old, white, male. Many programs have come a long way from those days and successfully diversified the voices in the room. However, many of the companies hosting those meetings still have catching up to do. The gap is why we took a new approach for this year’s Skift Meetings Power Rankings: The Most Powerful Women in the Meetings Industry. It launched this week, and we spoke with each of the 15 trailblazers, connectors, and founders on this list about their proudest achievements, their biggest risks, and their ambitions for the next chapter of meetings. This industry still has a long way to go, but these women offer the stories that will inspire the next generation of leaders to keep pushing it forward. — David McMillin PS. Do not miss the story on the boycott plans for the upcoming ADA meeting. It’s as a reminder that association planners must be prepared for the impact of member activism.       Next week: Skift Meetings Forum Costs up, budgets flat, attendees changing, AI everywhere. Every planner at the Javits Center on September 22 is managing all four at once. We broke the Forum into five decisions each planner is making right now, from where you commit budget when access is political to whether you're running events or running the business. The leaders in the room won't all answer them the same way. Read the five decisions             FEATURED STORIES How Geopolitical Uncertainty Is Reshaping Where U.S. Organizations Meet By Andrea Doyle Geopolitical uncertainty is changing where some U.S. organizations hold meetings — and decisions being made now could reshape their event portfolios well into the 2030s. GET THE STORY 8 Tips for Making a Strong First Impression By Barbara Scofidio Science says you don't get seven seconds at a trade show booth — you get one-tenth of one. The eight habits below are what to have locked in before that clock starts. GET THE STORY Boycott Puts American Diabetes Association Meeting Under Pressure By Andrea Doyle Member activism is becoming a new risk for meetings, and the American Diabetes Association is one of the industry’s first test cases. GET THE STORY The Most Powerful Women in Meetings By Andrea Doyle, Barbara Scofidio, and and David McMillin The meetings industry's senior ranks still look like a page from decades ago. These 15 women are rewriting what power looks like in their own corners of the business. GET THE STORY             FREE REPORT Our new research offers a look at how at corporate meeting planners are navigating the current landscape. Download it today to learn how 111 in-house corporate planners are dealing with geopolitical pressures, ROI expectations, AI, contracts, and more. This report was produced in partnership with MPI and is sponsored by Caesars Entertainment and Convene. GET THE REPORT             WORTH YOUR TIME Five things worth your time today. When and where the biggest events in the industry are happening in 2027. What the latest version of the Apple Watch can do — and what it means for meetings. What the new vision of a successful meeting looks like in one of the top destinations in the world..** Why half of corporate planners are making adjustments to their contracts. Why the pharmaceutical industry struggles to track its meeting spend. ** A sponsored message from Meeting Destination Vienna.             SKIFT PICK: TRANSLATING TRAVEL TRENDS FOR MEETINGS What the A321XLR Has to Do With Choosing Your Next Host City Earlier this month, Skift reported that airlines have over 500 Airbus A321XLRs on order. If you’ve never flown on one, these are narrowbody (as in single-aisle) jets. That size is an advantage that is helping airlines launch nonstop routes to secondary cities. Starting next summer, American is adding new service from the U.S. to Amsterdam, Nice, Porto, Reykjavik, and Vienna. United is adding five new international destinations, including Ljubljana and Valencia. This is genuinely good news for your site-selection list. Cities you've never been able to pitch without a connection are about to have nonstop service from the U.S. That's a real reason to freshen up next year’s destination shortlist instead of defaulting to the usual European suspects. But budget for the tradeoff. With only 20 business seats on the whole plane, your executive group or your incentive-trip winners are competing with every other high-value flier on that route for a tiny cabin. And if anyone on your team is booking Philadelphia to Vienna and needs to adhere to an economy-only policy, good luck: that’s nearly nine hours with around 30 inches of pitch.             Skift Meetings Toolkit Great events are built on strategy, innovation, and the right resources. The Skift Meetings Toolkit is your go-to hub for best practices in managing meetings and events. EXPLORE THE TOOLKIT             Thanks for being a regular reader. We are switching to a new email platform. Why? This change will allow for better delivery, and more engaging newsletters. Please take a moment to add this new email address to your contacts to ensure you continue receiving your newsletters without interruption. During this transition, these emails might land in your promotions or spam folder. To ensure you don’t miss out, please move this newsletter to your primary inbox.       1    DEFINING THE FUTURE OF TRAVEL. Update your email preferences or unsubscribe here © 2026 Skift 35 W 31st St. New York, New York 10001, United States