Michael Dominguez, one of the hottest figures in the meetings industry, was sitting on the hot seat on Monday night as he was roasted by colleagues during the President’s Dinner held in conjunction with Meeting Professionals International’s World Education Congress in San Francisco.
Dominguez, senior vice president and chief sales officer for MGM Resorts International, actually was honored, but he also collaborated with others to turn the evening into a fundraising roast that included friendly barbs from Roger Dow, president and CEO of the U.S.Travel Association; David Dubois, president and CEO of the International Association of Exhibitions and Events; and Brian Stevens, president and CEO of Conference Direct. An estimated $200,000 was raised.
He put his awards streak into perspective.
“As I view it, I only have a short period of time to contribute to the industry,” he says. “The awards mean a lot to my staff members. I give them a lot of credit for the awards.”
Dominguez is a very busy man, but took time on Monday to reflect on what he regards as two of the main recent developments in the meetings industry.
“First, face-to-face meetings are a necessity, so they won’t disappear,” he says. “Also, the older millennials, the 28- to 34-year-olds, are starting to look like any other generation. They thought they would change the world, and there has been a huge shift, particularly with technology. But as (the late UCLA basketball coach) John Wooden said, ‘It’s important to move fast, but not hurry.’”
Dominguez emphasized that rather than latch onto all the newest tech, it’s important to use some discrimination and implement tools that help to constructively build upon existing foundations.
For more on Dominguez, check out our April Cover Story.
