How has the war on terrorism affected meetings? Meeting Professionals International asked its members in a business-impact survey on its Web site, www.mpiweb.org, from September 19-26. Here's what people had to say:
About 85 percent of 243 respondents expected business to be affected over the next six months, although all signs indicate that face-to-face meetings will continue to occur. In terms of total existing meeting commitments over the next six months:
Nearly 50 percent expect meeting postponement without relocation.
24 percent made no meeting cancellations.
20 percent indicated some meetings would occur via video or tele-conferencing.
49 percent expected to cancel business worth between $25,000 and $500,000.
39 percent predicted up to a 20 percent decrease in unconfirmed future meeting expenditures (fourth quarter 2001 and beyond), while 24 percent expect no decrease.
