We caught up with Sandra Serrant, Chair of MPI’s Black Meeting Professionals Community, who shared some thoughts about people of color in the world of meeting planning.
Here’s a startling statistic from MPI’s Black Meeting Professionals Community site: According to the National Coalition of Black Meeting Professionals, in 1983 there were no Black CEOs of convention and visitor bureaus. Today, Julie Coker is the President and CEO of NYC Tourism + Conventions, following a unanimous vote of approval from the organization’s board of directors in October 2024 (her tenure began Dec. 9).
Another milestone reached since 1983, but as the MPI Black Meeting Professional site notes, there’s still a long way to go.
We asked Sandra Serrant if she was seeing more African Americans choosing the fields of meeting and incentive planning.
“We have not seen a difference in terms of the numbers in MPI,” she noted. “However, the members we do have, have been more active from my perspective. I am the Chair to MPI’s Black Meeting Professionals Community. We are a very active group.”
We also wanted to know what planners can do to make events more culturally relevant and more inclusive of diverse audiences. “This is an ongoing question,” Serrant answered. “It is more about making sure the events are aligned in terms of hiring from a diverse group of vendors.”
Finally, we asked about the current trend of some companies rolling back DEI initiatives and wondered how the industry could continue promoting these principles. Her answer was straightforward.
“Simple. Companies need to stick to their DEI goals from the past few years,” she said. “They need to hire from a diverse group of highly qualified Black vendors and planners.”
Black Meeting Professionals is an international network offering resources, guaranteed connections and growth opportunities. Their aim is to expand their members’ social, professional and academic networks while also providing career pathways and promoting education on diversity and inclusion in the meetings and events profession.
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