The ASCO Annual Meeting is one of the largest and most innovative conventions held in Chicago each year. Hosted by the American Society of Clinical Oncology, the event brings together more than 44,000 attendees from over 160 countries to help shape the next generation of cancer care.
Dustin Arnheim, Chief Sales Officer at Choose Chicago, spoke with Mandy Davis, Vice President of Meetings at ASCO, about her advice for planners, her sources of inspiration, and what excites her about the future of meeting planning.
Q: The Annual Meeting returns to Chicago in just a few months. ASCO is widely recognized as one of the most innovative large-scale events in our industry. What’s one new element or initiative you’re bringing to this year’s meeting that you’re particularly excited about?
A: ASCO is known for its world-class science, but this year we are equally focused on the human connection aspect of meetings. With that, we’re really reimagining all the lobbies and public spaces at McCormick Place to be more than just hallways you walk through, but making them into warm, functioning spaces designed for our attendees to interact with each other.
“Meetings and conventions provide a way to bring human connection back to a world that needs it right now.”
Q: For those who sometimes struggle taking that idea to reality, can you talk about that journey, or share one of the learnings you’ve had along the way that’s made you so successful in the implementation piece?
A: I really encourage the team to start big. We shouldn’t just be looking at medical meetings — we should look at Coachella, or what just happened at The Inspired Home Show.
Then you choose what your big value for the year is, and you sit down and say, “Okay, we need to start planning this now.” The later it waits in the planning cycle, the more likely you end up shelving it for next year because seven other things popped up in between. Making sure it’s one of the first things you do in your debrief process — putting it in the budget and carrying it through — is really important. The longer you wait, the less likely it happens, in my experience.
Q: The meetings and events industry has many moving parts right now. As a leader, how do you stay focused and grounded through it all?
A: I find the more solution-focused I am, the more solution-focused the team is. I tell my team a lot: panicked people cause panic. When people come to you with a problem and you panic, they reflect the panic back, and your problems only get worse. So the more you can reflect calm, that is what I’ve found to be the least painful way to get through some of these problems.
Q: Looking ahead, what excites you most about the future of meetings and large global gatherings like ASCO?
A: I think there was a world before COVID, when everybody saw technology and was scared it was going to replace meetings. But I’m starting to find the opposite — in a world driven by screens, phones, and algorithms, people want that chance for genuine human connection more than ever. And what better way to do that, from a work or personal perspective, than to be in a room with people who all care about the same thing?
One of my favorite bands said it at a concert recently: “Everyone in this room is here because you all like the same thing.” It’s the positive force of the environment. Meetings and conventions provide a way to bring human connection back to a world that needs it right now.
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The ASCO Annual Meeting is one of the many innovative events held in Chicago each year. See other meetings and events coming to Chicago and start planning your next event today.
