Peak Performance Meetings Releases Event Solution Case Study Cancellation Penalties: Friend or Foe. An Event Solution During Difficult Economic Times

Peak Performance Meetings (PPSmeetings), an incentive travel, tour and meeting management company, has recently released a case study regarding event planning solutions in an unstable economy. The focus of the study examines a specific case which speaks to corporate travel incentive as a whole - during a time when economic instability and pressure by shareholders have put a stop to much non-essential travel.

Newtown, PA (PRWEB) June 29, 2009 -- Peak Performance Meetings (PPSmeetings), an incentive travel, tour and meeting management company, has recently released a case study regarding event planning solutions in an unstable economy. The focus of the study examines a specific case which speaks to corporate travel incentive as a whole - during a time when economic instability and pressure by shareholders have put a stop to much non-essential travel.

Background: Wall Street blunders of huge proportion have stunned the nation, the mortgage lending business is badly crippled, and unemployment numbers are the highest in over 25 years. In the middle of it all, a company has a beach resort sales incentive trip planned for 150 people to the Caribbean happening in less than 35 days. Six months prior, this incentive trip was showing positive effects in motivating its sales people. However, now feeling the impact of the economic pressures, shareholders are concerned about image and organizational restructuring looms. Bad timing for an incentive trip for sure, yet all the payments have been made and program cancellation will result in thousands of lost dollars in attrition, let alone yielding a terrible blow to those sales employees who have worked very hard for an entire year for this trip.

Challenge: Is it better to cancel the entire trip and cut the losses or make an attempt to save some budget dollars so not all is lost? And what savings can be realized on such short notice from a program that includes multiple group activities, meals, evening events, and a formal awards presentation requiring significant audio-visual support?

Solution: By making cancellation policies a friend! Using the attrition, food and beverage, event and tour program cancellation penalties as part of the revised budget process, the program was redesigned. Since the trip itself was an award to top achievers, Peak Performance recommended to eliminate the Awards program (a significant A/V cost) and recognize individual sales achievements regionally. Using the hotel food and beverage minimum to redesign the program. With the goal to maintain a level of program quality concerning meals but understanding cutbacks had to be made, Peak Performance restructured the meal program to include one group dinner event and replaced other group meal activities with a cash disbursement program. Attendees were given more freedom in dining and activity choices. Additionally, the activity program was preserved by shifting from a fully sponsored to partially sponsored spa program rather than eliminate it altogether. Tour penalties were waived and by adding more free time, what started as an all group activity program, evolved into an individual travel program with less emphasis on group activity. In surveying the trip participants post-program, there was an overwhelming appreciation that the group incentive trip (http://www.ppsmeetings.com/Incentives.html) hadn't been cancelled, that incentive travel (http://www.ppsmeetings.com/Incentives.html) was by far the best sales motivator and allowing more free time with a cash allotment was a much more preferred format.

End Result: A budget reduction of over $125,000 for the shareholders. By combining group travel benefits with an individual cash disbursement allocation, attendees were able to enjoy the trip more as a vacation rather than a group function. Additionally, this format provides more flexibility when working with budgets in the event fewer funds are accessible without canceling the program altogether.

Peak Performance Services Inc. is an incentive travel, tour and meeting management company headquartered in Newtown, Pennsylvania with offices in New Jersey and Massachusetts servicing customers worldwide. Founder and CEO Bruce Rickert began PPS in 1997 primarily as a tour and onsite management company, but in 2006 expanded the organization with PPS Meetings. The meeting planning services arm of the company focuses on customized sales travel incentives and meeting and logistical management for corporate groups using travel as a way to build teamwork, increase sales, thank top achievers and reward valued clients.

For more information about general corporate incentive travel (http://www.ppsmeetings.com/Incentives.html) and corporate event planning and management visit www.ppsmeetings.com.

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