APEX Contracts Panel Leadership Transition

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – March 1, 2005

CONTACT: Mary E. Power, CAE, President & CEO
Convention Industry Council
(703) 610-9030

APEX CONTRACTS PANEL LEADERSHIP TRANSITION
Jonathan T. Howe, Esq. passes the baton to Tyra W. Hilliard, Esq., CMP

McLean, Virginia – March 1, 2005 – Tyra W. Hilliard, Esq., CMP, attorney and assistant professor at the George Washington University in Washington, DC will chair the APEX (Accepted Practices Exchange) Contracts Panel effective immediately. Hilliard succeeds Jonathan T. Howe, Esq., senior partner and president of Howe & Hutton, Ltd., who has led the panel since its inception in 2003.

The APEX Contracts Panel is one of seven volunteer panels working to create and enhance efficiencies throughout the meetings, conventions and exhibitions industry through the development and implementation of industry wide accepted practices. Charged with reviewing all aspects of industry contracts, developing contract guidelines and acceptable contract language, the panel will also develop an outline to format industry contracts.

The panel began its work in 2003 under Howe’s leadership and is expected to release a preliminary report outlining its recommendations in 2005. Howe, the catalyst for starting the panel’s work, has been an essential part of APEX’s efforts, recently resigned as chair due to the increasing demands of his firm, Howe & Hutton.

“I am grateful to have had the opportunity to contribute to such an important industry initiative,” said Howe. “Unfortunately I am unable to give APEX my full attention and therefore must withdraw as chair to allow for a chair who can give APEX the time and attention it deserves. I am engaged in a very complicated trial on behalf of a client that will last at least two months; it is important that the work of the panel continue. I am still most dedicated to helping move the work of the important initiative forward.”

“We are very fortunate to have had Jon work with us through the conceptual phase of the APEX initiative,” said Mary E. Power, president and CEO of the Convention Industry Council. “We are also very honored that Tyra Hilliard is ready and willing to step up to the challenge.”

In addition to teaching event and meeting management courses at The George Washington University (GWU), Tyra Hilliard, Esq., CMP also serves as the Executive Director of the International Institute of Tourism Studies at GWU. Ms. Hilliard is a frequent contributor to industry publications, does customized training in the area of legal and risk management for meeting and event managers, and facilitates educational programs at industry meetings. She was named “One of the 25 Most Influential People in the Meetings Industry” by MeetingNews magazine in 2004. Prior to becoming an attorney, Tyra worked in the meetings industry as an association meeting planner, a catering manager, and a convention and visitors bureau sales manager. Her broad industry experience allows her to address the legal and business aspects of events from the hotel, planner, and legal perspectives. She received her Certified Meeting Professional (CMP) designation in 2002.

“Tyra will be a wonderful addition to the Contracts Panel,” says Mickey Schaefer, CAE, Chair of the APEX Commission and vice president of the American Academy of Family Physicians. “I am confident that under her leadership, the panel will produce recommended accepted practices that meet the needs of the industry and create and enhance efficiencies in the contracting process.”

APEX (Accepted Practices Exchange), an initiative of the Convention Industry Council, is developing and implementing industry-wide accepted practices which will create and enhance efficiencies throughout the meetings, conventions and exhibitions industry.

The Convention Industry Council's 30 member organizations represent more than 98,000 individuals and 15,000 firms and properties involved in the meetings, conventions and exhibitions industry. Formed in 1949 to provide a forum for member organizations seeking to enhance the industry, the CIC facilitates the exchange of information, develops programs to promote professionalism within the industry, and educates the public on its profound economic impact. In addition to the APEX initiative, the CIC is also responsible for the Certified Meeting Professional (CMP) Program. Other programs include Project Attrition, the Hall of Leaders, and the CIC Economic Impact Study.

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Contact the CIC

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – March 1, 2005

CONTACT: Mary E. Power, CAE, President & CEO
Convention Industry Council
(703) 610-9030

APEX CONTRACTS PANEL LEADERSHIP TRANSITION
Jonathan T. Howe, Esq. passes the baton to Tyra W. Hilliard, Esq., CMP

McLean, Virginia – March 1, 2005 – Tyra W. Hilliard, Esq., CMP, attorney and assistant professor at the George Washington University in Washington, DC will chair the APEX (Accepted Practices Exchange) Contracts Panel effective immediately. Hilliard succeeds Jonathan T. Howe, Esq., senior partner and president of Howe & Hutton, Ltd., who has led the panel since its inception in 2003.

The APEX Contracts Panel is one of seven volunteer panels working to create and enhance efficiencies throughout the meetings, conventions and exhibitions industry through the development and implementation of industry wide accepted practices. Charged with reviewing all aspects of industry contracts, developing contract guidelines and acceptable contract language, the panel will also develop an outline to format industry contracts.

The panel began its work in 2003 under Howe’s leadership and is expected to release a preliminary report outlining its recommendations in 2005. Howe, the catalyst for starting the panel’s work, has been an essential part of APEX’s efforts, recently resigned as chair due to the increasing demands of his firm, Howe & Hutton.

“I am grateful to have had the opportunity to contribute to such an important industry initiative,” said Howe. “Unfortunately I am unable to give APEX my full attention and therefore must withdraw as chair to allow for a chair who can give APEX the time and attention it deserves. I am engaged in a very complicated trial on behalf of a client that will last at least two months; it is important that the work of the panel continue. I am still most dedicated to helping move the work of the important initiative forward.”

“We are very fortunate to have had Jon work with us through the conceptual phase of the APEX initiative,” said Mary E. Power, president and CEO of the Convention Industry Council. “We are also very honored that Tyra Hilliard is ready and willing to step up to the challenge.”

In addition to teaching event and meeting management courses at The George Washington University (GWU), Tyra Hilliard, Esq., CMP also serves as the Executive Director of the International Institute of Tourism Studies at GWU. Ms. Hilliard is a frequent contributor to industry publications, does customized training in the area of legal and risk management for meeting and event managers, and facilitates educational programs at industry meetings. She was named “One of the 25 Most Influential People in the Meetings Industry” by MeetingNews magazine in 2004. Prior to becoming an attorney, Tyra worked in the meetings industry as an association meeting planner, a catering manager, and a convention and visitors bureau sales manager. Her broad industry experience allows her to address the legal and business aspects of events from the hotel, planner, and legal perspectives. She received her Certified Meeting Professional (CMP) designation in 2002.

“Tyra will be a wonderful addition to the Contracts Panel,” says Mickey Schaefer, CAE, Chair of the APEX Commission and vice president of the American Academy of Family Physicians. “I am confident that under her leadership, the panel will produce recommended accepted practices that meet the needs of the industry and create and enhance efficiencies in the contracting process.”

APEX (Accepted Practices Exchange), an initiative of the Convention Industry Council, is developing and implementing industry-wide accepted practices which will create and enhance efficiencies throughout the meetings, conventions and exhibitions industry.

The Convention Industry Council's 30 member organizations represent more than 98,000 individuals and 15,000 firms and properties involved in the meetings, conventions and exhibitions industry. Formed in 1949 to provide a forum for member organizations seeking to enhance the industry, the CIC facilitates the exchange of information, develops programs to promote professionalism within the industry, and educates the public on its profound economic impact. In addition to the APEX initiative, the CIC is also responsible for the Certified Meeting Professional (CMP) Program. Other programs include Project Attrition, the Hall of Leaders, and the CIC Economic Impact Study.

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