Atlanta's Targeted Medical Meeting Push Pays Off

When the recession hit in late 2008, William Pate, president and chief executive officer of the Atlanta Convention and Visitors Bureau, surveyed the meetings landscape for opportunities—and found them in Washington, D.C. “We decided to focus on the areas where the government was investing or paying attention—infrastructure, alternative energy, education, and healthcare,” he says. Now, that focus is beginning to pay off for Atlanta, particularly when it comes to medical meetings.