Michael Massari Of Caesars Entertainment To Co-Chair The Meetings Mean Business Coalition
September 24, 2020
The Meetings Mean Business Coalition (MMBC) board of directors has unanimously selected Michael Massari, Chief Sales Officer for Caesars Entertainment, as its next co-chair. Effective January 2021, Massari will join Fred Dixon, President and Chief Executive Officer of NYC & Company, in guiding the coalition through a pivotal moment for the meetings industry. Under their leadership, MMBC will continue to advance its mission of promoting and protecting the enduring value that business meetings, trade shows, incentive travel, exhibitions, conferences and conventions bring to people, businesses and the economy.
MMBC, established by the U.S. Travel Association in 2009, is comprised of organizations from across the meetings and travel community who came together during the last economic crisis to bolster appreciation and public support for the industry.
“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,” Massari said. “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.”
Massari added, “There has never been a more critical need to lean into the people and organizations working to carve a path forward for our industry, and I am proud to step into the role of MMBC co-chair.”
Massari, who has dedicated his career to the meetings and travel industry, 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. A valued industry leader, Massari has helped to steer MMBC’s strategy and is devoted to serving as a board member with the U.S. Travel Association and Meeting Professionals International.
“Michael brings an inspiring vision for the future of the meetings and event industry,” Dixon said. “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.”
According to Dixon, MMBC will further intensify advocacy efforts among business leaders and policymakers to raise awareness of the industry’s value and push for the protection and stimulus measures that the meetings and event industry so greatly needs.
Massari will assume the leadership position currently held by Trina Camacho-London, Vice President of Global Group Sales at Hyatt Hotels Corporation. Camacho-London will remain on MMBC’s Executive Committee and continue to collaborate with Dixon and Massari this fall to ensure a smooth transition and implementation of 2021 strategy.