The RISE Award for Young Professional Achievement will be presented to Jillian Schroeder for her leadership and encouragement of student involvement in industry‐related programs. Jillian led the way in gaining student participation, helping develop the “MENTOR Me” program and creating the “Student Involvement” webpage for the MPI Wisconsin Chapter. She actively speaks at her alma mater on student‐life topics and serves on the Madison College Alumni Advisory Board, providing input on the direction of the college.

 The RISE Award for Meeting Industry Leadership will be presented to Ray Bloom, CMM, for his lasting impact in changing the way the meetings and events industry conducts business at tradeshows. In the late 1980’s, Ray pioneered the hosted buyer program, a concept of inviting the right buyers to attend a tradeshow and matched to meet the business needs of exhibitors. With the development and launch of three successful shows, EIBTM, IMEX in Frankfurt, and IMEX America, Ray has changed the way in which tradeshows generate and engage business. Ray also focuses on the future of the industry through the Future Leaders Forum which has engaged 5,000 student participants since its launch in 2003.

The RISE Award for Community Achievement in Knowledge and Ideas will be presented to the Tennessee Chapter for the Let MPI Rock Your World Road Trip. Taking place over three days and touring 440 miles of the state's three regions, chapter leaders collaborated with supplier members to host duplicate events for the purpose of advocating its “One State, One Chapter” philosophy. The events incorporated live entertainment with progressive education and business networking opportunities. The impact of these events includes ongoing recruitment, increased attendance at regional events and growing engagement in social media. The program is now considered a MPI Chapter Best Practice and has been translated into five languages.

The RISE Award for Community Achievement in Marketplace Excellence will recognize the Tampa Bay Area Chapter for its Connections Campaign implemented in 2010‐11 as an avenue for members to share and quantify member‐to‐member business connections proving the value of MPI. This ongoing campaign created over 260 connections in its first year with a value of more than $6 million of member‐to‐member business within the chapter. The program exceeded goals and is attributed to increasing member satisfaction within the chapter.

The RISE Award for Organizational Achievement will be presented to Royal DSM for its strategic and successful use of meetings and events to launch its new brand identity, Bright Science. Brighter Living™. in February 2011. To engage stakeholders, specifically internal, the company created the “Bright Launch” event. This took place across the globe and comprised a total of 149 events in two days. Success metrics were validated following the event, as employees were able to explain the vision and direction of the company and its new brand. Based on survey results of the past 4 years, Royal DSM employees are more engaged and proud to work for the company. The leadership within Royal DSM has grown its corporate meetings and events capability to advance strategy, drive engagement, and enable change.