Meetings Mean Business Coalition announces new co-chair

The Meetings Mean Business Coalition (MMBC) board of directors has announced the appointment of Michael Massari (pictured), chief sales officer for Caesars Entertainment, as its next co-chair. Established by the US Travel Association in 2009, the MMBC is comprised of organisations across the meetings and travel community who came together during the last economic crisis to “bolster appreciation and public support for the industry”. Massari will assume the leadership position currently held by Trina Camacho-London, vice-president of global group sales at Hyatt Hotels Corporation. From January 2021, he will join Fred Dixon, president and CEO of NYC & Company, in chairing the coalition. Massari said: “Although none of us could have predicted the Covid-19 pandemic or the losses our industry would endure this year, there is no doubt that the infrastructure and industry-wide coordination built by MMBC over the course of a decade have enabled fast action on federal stimulus, fact-based resources and direct corporate engagement. We still have a long way to go to reach recovery, but I believe in this coalition’s capacity to guide the industry’s vision and shared commitment to act, just as it did in 2009. “There has never been a more critical need to lean into the people and organisations working to carve a path forward for our industry, and I am proud to step into the role of MMBC co-chair.” Massari has served nearly 20 years as a senior leader at Caesars Entertainment, where he directed the company’s meetings industry expansion and the development of the 550,000-square-foot CAESARS FORUM Conference Center. Dixon said: “Massari brings an inspiring vision for the future of the meetings and event industry. His expertise and connections with key players inside our industry, the broader business community and in various levels of government will be crucial for ensuring the meetings economy comes back stronger in the wake of Covid-19. I greatly look forward to leading the coalition together.”