Smart Start Radio: Fuel for the Purpose Generation of Meeting Planners

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What happens when every attendee walks into a meeting and finds a drum on their chair?

For Natalie Spiro of Drum Cafe North America, it’s an invitation to connect. In this episode, Smart Meetings Multimedia Editor Eming Piansay explores how interactive drumming can shift the energy in a room, break down barriers and turn attendees into active participants.

Spiro shares her unexpected journey into corporate events, explains how she weaves organizational messages into shared rhythms and recalls a reluctant participant who found her voice through the experience. They also discuss how planners can make space for play, welcome different voices and build connection before the first presentation begins.

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AI is already changing how events are planned, marketed and experienced, but using more tools does not automatically lead to greater productivity. In this episode of Smart Start Radio, Smart Meetings Multimedia Editor Eming Piansay speaks with Tracy Judge, founder and CEO of Soundings, and Allyson Keenan, senior manager of event technology and operations at Cvent, about how planners can move beyond experimentation and apply AI strategically.

They discuss responsible data use, event-specific applications including attendee matchmaking and room assignments, why AI is not always the right solution and the skills emerging professionals will need to guide change. The conversation also explores how organizations can protect proprietary information, build useful workflows and keep people at the center of AI adoption.

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Keynote. Breakout. Lunch. Another session. Reception. If attendees can already predict the rhythm of an event before it begins, is it time to change the formula?

Inspired by Sharon Reus’ Smart Meetings article, The Modern Audience Has Moved On. Your Corporate Events Haven’t., Smart Meetings Multimedia Editor Eming Piansay looks at how familiar event structures can slip from comfortable into predictable and what planners can do to bring attendees back into the room.

From rethinking forced networking to creating small moments of surprise, Eming explores why engaging a modern audience doesn’t necessarily mean adding more technology, activations or spectacle. Sometimes, changing the rhythm is enough.

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Wellness at meetings is moving beyond the fitness center and becoming part of the attendee experience.

In this episode of Smart Start Radio, Smart Meetings Multimedia Editor Eming Piansay speaks with Dan Shaughnessy, director of sales and marketing at Marriott Marquis San Diego Marina, about how planners can support the whole attendee. They explore floating sound baths, sleep kits, resilience rooms, puppy play breaks, coloring stations, outdoor activities and zero-proof cocktails.

Shaughnessy also discusses how quiet spaces, thoughtful communication, sustainable practices and neuroinclusive programming can help attendees rest, recharge and return ready to participate. Plus, he shares how the hotel’s 60,000 rooftop honeybees could become part of a future guest experience.

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A 7 a.m. yoga class may look restorative on an agenda, but what happens when attendees feel pressured to participate? In this Coffee Chat, Smart Meetings Multimedia Editor Eming Piansay examines the line between offering wellness and requiring it. Inspired by Avery Matteo’s reporting on the Wellness Tourism Association’s Six Principles for Responsible Retreats, the episode explores attendee choice, workplace boundaries and facilitator qualifications. Eming also considers why true well-being should be built into the entire event rather than added as one more activity.

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Small meetings are not simply large events with fewer chairs. In this Coffee Chat, Smart Meetings Multimedia Editor Eming Piansay explores how intimate venues shape participation, comfort and connection.

Inspired by Kate Zaliznock’s “Small by Design,” the conversation examines why seating arrangements, residential-style spaces, natural surroundings and emotional safety can influence how attendees interact. Eming also reflects on moments when thoughtful environments helped people feel seen, speak openly and build meaningful connections.

The venue may help set the tone, but a beautiful space cannot create intimacy on its own. Planners must begin with the purpose of the gathering and intentionally use the room, setting and agenda to bring that strategy to life.

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Booking a celebrity speaker can generate excitement, registrations and plenty of social media attention. But securing the big name is only the beginning.

In this Coffee Chat, Smart Meetings multimedia editor Eming Piansay explores the contractual and production considerations behind celebrity appearances, from recording and promotional rights to cancellation clauses and backup plans. Based on JT Long’s Smart Meetings story, “Contracting Celebrity Talent for the Win,” the episode examines why planners should never build an entire event around one person’s availability and what to do if the golden egg suddenly goes poof.

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In this Coffee Chat, Smart Meetings multimedia editor Eming Piansay explores how meeting planners can help an event’s impact last long after attendees return to their desks. Inspired by the Smart Meetings article “The Monday Morning Test: How Meeting Planners Can Make Inspiration Last” by Lisa Ryan, this episode looks at the challenge of turning event inspiration into meaningful action.

From future-self letters and accountability partnerships to repeatable rituals, post-event app engagement and 48-hour challenges, Eming breaks down simple ways planners can help attendees reconnect with what they learned and apply those takeaways in real life.

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What makes an event stay with attendees long after they return home?

Smart Start Radio host Eming Piansay speaks with EJ Corporan, director of growth and marketing at Ansera, about the science behind unforgettable event experiences. Corporan explains why predictable events are easily forgotten and how planners can use cognitive load, engagement and moments of awe to compete with distraction and create stronger connections.

They also explore how planners can measure whether an experience truly worked, where AI and technology fit into the planning process and why creating memorable events may require more intention rather than more money. Corporan closes with the “box rule,” a practical framework for improving the beginning, peak, valley and ending of the attendee journey.

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Music is more than background noise. It can shape the way attendees enter a room, connect with one another and remember an experience.

Inspired by David T. Stevens’ Smart Meetings story, “Wellness That Works: Sonic Power,” this Coffee Chat explores the role music can play in intentional event design.

Smart Meetings Multimedia Editor Eming Piansay shares four ways planners can use music more thoughtfully, including mapping an event’s emotional journey, designing stronger transitions, collaborating with AV and production partners and considering the needs of the people in the room.

From volume and lyrics to sensory needs and even silence, the episode examines how sound can influence participation, connection and the lasting impression an event leaves behind.