The Society for Incentive Travel Excellence (SITE) brought a panel of industry experts to campus in March to introduce students to this exciting side of the hospitality and events industry. As one insider said, “It’s like event planning on steroids!” SITE members represent all aspects of the industry including airlines, cruise lines, destination management companies, ground transportation, travel agencies, hotels, restaurants, visitor bureaus, and more. They work together to connect motivational experiences with business results. Corporations plan extravagant trips and events for their top performers, and these are the people who put that all together.

On March 21st, five panelists shared their career journeys and shared how incentive travel works for their segment of the industry. Panelists included Jeff Pritts, General Manager of the Embassy Suites Denton Convention Center, Ruben Perez, most recently from Discover Denton, Erica Merrill, from Air Partner, Michael Butler, VP of Sales at Brightspot, and Brandon Bovre, National Director of Sales at RMC (Resorts Mountains Cities). Moderating was Hospitality Management major and SITE Intern, Erin Gish. Students came away with a new perspective on how they can fit into the hospitality and events industry after graduation. Those that stayed to network with our speakers during lunch, gained great connections for future opportunities.