AS WE MOVE FORWARD into 2003, experts and editorialists in every industry are trying to predict what the future will hold. But let's face it, the future is a big question mark. We're not going to get the answer until events are upon us.
Future used to be my favorite word. It was a word that implied all kinds of possibilities. Back in the 1970s and 1980s, I believed that humanity was on the cusp of a great wave of technology and humanism that would result in things like abundant, cheap solar energy. A member of The World Future Society, I traveled around the country giving a presentation called Design the Future Now. My hero was — and still is — Buckminster Fuller, a remarkable designer/engineer who invented the geodesic dome. Bucky thought “outside the box” decades before the expression was even born, and inspired a generation to do the same.
These days, though, I'm concentrating on the present. It's what we do now, in our day-to-day lives, that can make a difference.
ICP Magazine 2003
Here at ICP, our editorial and art team has been busy making changes that launch the magazine into 2003 with a whole new style — designed by Art Director Sharon Carlson — and a new editorial approach. Check out the clean, graceful graphics. You'll also notice that most of the editorial content is grouped in four sections: Meeting Management, Incentives & Motivation, Reports from the Field, and Sites & Venues. We know how little time you have to read. Now you can turn to the sections that interest you most without wasting a minute — and you'll find brief, newsy items and short features instead of lengthy articles. One exception is the cover story (page 22), an in-depth report on our 2002 reader survey, accompanied by candid interviews with leading insurance and financial services planners about where they're headed for 2003.
You'll find two new columnists in this issue as well. Turn to page 15 to read why Speak Inc.'s Ruth Levine isn't a fan of standardized speaker contracts. And don't miss emcee Dale Irvin's hilarious riff on the Insurance Conference Planners Association Annual Meeting in Last Laugh, page 132.
Meet the Team
I'm excited to be starting the New Year with a talented team of editors. Many of you have chatted with ICP's editorial director, Betsy Bair, at major industry events. Another familiar face is that of Barbara Brewer, who was recently promoted to managing editor. Barbara's keen eye for detail is legendary in our group. Among her responsibilities will be heading up the new Sites & Venues section. We also welcome Executive Editor Sue Pelletier, who has been an editor with our Primedia Business Meetings Group magazines for many years. You'll love getting to know Sue, and we're thrilled to have her lively and compassionate voice in our pages.
