Mark Theis has been named vice president of the convention division of the San Francisco Convention and Visitors Bureau. Theis joined the SFCVB in 1990. He held management positions with the Los Angeles Convention and Visitors Bureau and the San Francisco Marriott before his return to the San Francisco bureau.

The Austin Convention & Visitors Bureau has opened a sales office in Chicago, with Wendy Michielson at the helm as Midwest regional sales manager. She had been a conference planner for the American Planning Association.

Cyril Duplessis has been named director of technology services at the Morial Convention Center in New Orleans. He'll oversee Internet, telecommunications, and management information systems as the center plans the infrastructure of its Phase IV expansion. He was previously project manager for emerging technologies for the Navy Information Technology Center.

SeminarSource, an online meeting ASP, has hired Dave Baker as vice president of sales and Barbara Hare and Erik Stevens as national sales managers. Hare will focus on the Southwest while Stevens is responsible for the Northwest.

The Sheraton Chicago Hotel & Towers has appointed Mark D. Tunney director of sales and marketing. Before joining the Sheraton Chicago, Tunney was vice president of sales for SeminarSource.com, a start-up company headquartered in San Diego.

At Concepts Worldwide, an international event planning company headquartered in San Diego, Michael Schultz has been hired as director of operations. Schultz had been director of event services at the Wyndham Anatole Hotel in Dallas. Also at Concepts, Elaine Kady has been appointed national account executive. Kady will specialize in the meeting and incentive business within the pharmaceutical and high-tech markets.

Mike Mason has been promoted to vice president of sales and marketing for Opryland Hotel Florida, scheduled to open in February 2002. Mason was previously director of sales for El Conquistador Resort and Country Club in Puerto Rico. Also at Opryland Hotel Florida, John P. Caparella Jr. has been named senior vice president and general manager. Caparella has served as executive vice president, planning, development, and administration, and president of PlanetHollywood.com for Planet Hollywood International Inc.

Atlanta-based ExpoExchange, a trade show management company specializing in Internet-based solutions, has signed on Michael Holt, former director of regional accounts for the Hawaii Visitors and Convention Bureau and, before that, the Georgia World Congress Center. Holt has been named director of sales and will serve accounts nationwide.

Tom Bennett has joined the Sacramento (Calif.) Convention and Visitors Bureau as vice president, sales and marketing. Most recently, he was convention sales director at the Anaheim/ Orange County (California) Visitor and Convention Bureau.

Not satisfied with your meeting room diagramming software? Here's a deal: MeetingMatrix International, of Shrewsbury, Pa., will credit the price paid for competitive software toward the purchase of one of its products, either MeetingMatrix Platinum, Platinum+, or the multiproperty edition. The offer stands until June 30.

Contact the company at (717) 227-2011, sales@meetingmatrix.com, or visit www.meetingmatrix.com.