As we begin our eighth month of this year, it is necessary to re-energize our NACE spirit and ramp up production, on all levels, to ensure the fourth quarter finishes swimmingly. 

First, let's check our commitment; commitment to ourselves, our careers and our goals.  In just a few quick seconds you will know if your New Year's resolutions were well thought out, included action steps and have had a significant impact on your year.  Will you make that mistake again?  Can you afford to?  Have you invested in your career?  Are you taking full advantage of your professional memberships and will the return on investment afford you to maintain them again?  Additionally, have you chosen a mentee or someone else to invest yourself into to ensure the future of your career or company?  Many personal investments yield professional rewards and visa versa.  When is the last time you looked at your goal sheet?  Is it overwhelming?  Does it have more than three items listed on it?  Are your goals realistic, attainable and do you have an easily managed scorecard for them?  Reaffirm your commitment to yourself and put some energy behind making a difference - in yourself, your career and your goals.

Having just returned from Experience!  2010 in Austin, Texas, I have realized the significant impact networking with like minded individuals has on my outlook.  With over 660 attendees this year, I was amazed at the common bond we all shared and the power of collaboration.  I am sure you will hear more about the conference, it's content and impact from Kellie Bryson, Main Event Productions and Amanda Robinson, Graceful Tables - Nashville's two scholarship winners.  I will be providing some additional updates, under separate headings of this newsletter, outlining the initiatives of the National Board and Chapter President's Council.

Lastly, to help one of my goals for this chapter, if you do not feel that you are receiving all of the benefits from your membership and/or your investment in this professional membership has not provided a significant return on investment, I would like to hear from you.  I can be reached at vdreffs@gaylordhotels.com or 615/405-2087.

All the best,

Vince

As good stewards of our community we choose to participate in and give back to Nashville and the surrounding area through two, extensive community service projects each year.  In April 2010, Amanda Robinson, Community Service Chair for Nashville NACE solicited ideas from the general membership to complete this commitment.  In addition to fulfilling our obligation, Amanda's quest easily tied into all aspects of our profession and will be a valiant attempt at some national notoriety for the concept and idea. 

We have all seen those illustrious tabletop competitions that are crafted so perfectly that you wouldn't dare sit at them, much less think of using the utensils or glassware provided and furthermore, you call upon every etiquette class you ever endured to make sure that not even a morsel fell of your plate and DESTROYED the table design.  Take that very concept and build the table, from the floor up, make it a feature in the next issue of Better Homes and Gardens and then deconstruct it to use every last element to decorate a Christmas Tree.  Better yet, throw in a well-known event designer and yield the most proceeds from the sale of the tree.  Sound like a good concept?  Good!  You have just taken the next Nashville NACE community service journey.  For an example of what other organizations have done in the past visit www.halloftrees.com.

With many of the details not yet confirmed, be on the look out for further communication from Amanda if you would like to participate.

After almost two years, the Certified Professional Catering Executive designation is back in full force.  With just over 200 CPCE's in the country, you can be a part of the next big thing.  August's membership meeting is going to showcase the necessary reasons you need to be "Smarter Than A NACE Member" when dealing with your clients, vendors and guests.

Education is one of the key components you should be taking advantage of through NACE.  The opportunity to learn comes in many forms and fashions and the organization is committed to providing exposure to all of them.  Many times we can attribute the lack of success to the lack of education.  Don't you want to be successful.  I was once told that consumers who don't drink wine, when asked, make that distinction because they are not educated about it and fear making an embarassing mistake.  (It really didn't take a genius to figure out that putting wine recommendations beneath menu selections would increase sales). 

Growing up, I am sure we all had parents that exclaimed, "get your education!"  Correct?  That theory doesn't stop in our professions.  We must stay on the edge, we must have that designation to set ourselves apart from our competitors and most importantly, we must yield the best results for ourselves, our companies and our customers.

Are you smarter than a NACE member?  Don't leave it to chance; find out at this month's membership meeting.

For more information about obtaining your CPCE designation, please visit www.nace.net/cs/education/cpce

Gina Manlove

512.695.4108 / gina.manlove@gmail.com

2015-B Beech Avenue / Nashville, TN 37204

I am a professional event planner with three years' experience in coordination and sales of corporate, fundraising and special

events. With the help of technology and my strong problem solving skills, I enjoy organizing chaos to create a more

productive workplace. I seek a full-time position in the hospitality field with a strong interest in hotels.

Experience

• Tackled the daily challenges of client relations by initiating catering sales, preparing

customized proposals, facilitating the booking of 2 Dine 4's services and then

overseeing events as the party manager on site

• Promoted to lead wedding coordinator in third year based on top sales volume and

proven ability and enthusiasm in the special events field

Austin, TX

• Interviewed, hired and scheduled 2 Dine 4's on-call event staff from a diverse list of

100 wait staff, bartenders and chefs

• Created a more streamline system for sharing calendars and client information online

using Googledocs and trained four-person team to use it on a daily basis

Marketing Projects

• Managed the marketing for the public opening of the Wild Onion Ranch, a partner

special events venue, by planning a preview luncheon for key industry professionals,

creating printed marketing materials, and co-producing the Wild Onion Ranch website

• Created and managed 2 Dine 4's first email marketing campaign, resulting in over

1,000 subscribers in the first six months

Non-Profit

Assisted the Communications Director of a large non-profit mental health organization with

donor relations, logistics and marketing for annual fundraiser of 500+ guests

Austin, TX

Wrote press releases, pitches, media alerts and feature stories for midsize Texas PR firm

Austin, TX

Placed print ads and provided administrative support to a six-person account team

New York, NY

Major coursework in advertising, journalism, marketing and management

May 2007

Studied Italian culture, cooking and studio art, with a concentration in creative writing

Spring 2006

The Association for Women in Communications, Austin Professional Chapter 2007 - 2010

Social Media Chair for "Getsmart " Professional Development Conference January 2010

Alpha Epsilon Phi Sorority, Vice President of Events 2003 - 2007

Meals on Wheels and More, Grocery Shopping Volunteer 2008 - 2010