Author: Motivation Excellence

Get to Know ME with Judi Froehlich

Judi Froehlich is a few months into her role as Global Strategic Account Director at Motivation Excellence, but she brings a wealth of experience and more than a pinch of pizzazz! Thank you Judi for letting us Get to Know you. Read on and watch her video. You’ll learn that she’s light on her toes and quick to throw a smile your way. 

What’s your title and how long have you been in the incentive industry?

My title is Global Strategic Account Director, and I bring nearly 30 years of experience in the Meeting and Incentive industry to my role at Motivation Excellence. I’m new to the team and look forward to creating amazing programs together!

What’s something special about the people you work with that you’d like to share?

Each team member is truly entrenched in our culture and focused on customer success.  They are also just great people!

What’s an unknown or odd talent you have?

I dance (amateur) Latin dance and tango.  I can also sing all the words to Rappers Delight.😊

What motivates you to accomplish things in your life (work or personal)?

I am motivated differently based on the item I am trying to accomplish.  I aspire to bring great solutions to clients and have an impact on their business and feel such accomplishment when we can measure that or see the reaction from participants at an event.  In my personal life, I am inspired by giving back and bringing a bit of joy to others to whom I am close. 

What do you enjoy doing outside of work?

I enjoy anything outdoors! I love playing and watching sports and watching live music every chance I get.

One thing that always makes you laugh is?

Dry humor and quick wit.😊

What have you done that helped you get through the pandemic?

I tried to stay connected with family, friends and colleagues to ensure everyone was doing okay and had some fun Zoom activities. On the Zoom front, I joined many immersive activities across the globe that I may not have had the chance to enjoy otherwise. I did cooking classes with Nonna in Tuscany, another cooking class with celebrity chef Fabio Viviani, and virtual Latin dance classes with Max and Val Chmerkovskiy from DWTS.

What is the most unusual job you’ve ever had?

Not sure if it was unusual, but during college, I worked as a tour guide at the Queen Mary and Spruce Goose Dome…and can still share a few (probably useless) factoids.

This month, our theme for social media is imposter syndrome. How do you combat feeling “less than” even though you’re a high-achieving woman in the industry?

Most people suffer from self-doubt at times, and the key is acknowledging it. 

One strategy I use is to journal and acknowledge even the smallest of victories/successes each day.  It is also helpful to be authentic and true to your strengths and stop measuring against others. One of my favorite quotes is “in order to be irreplaceable, one must always be different,” by Coco Chanel.

Motivation Excellence Wins Prestigious SITE Crystal Award

For Immediate Release

Motivation Excellence Wins Prestigious SITE Crystal Award

The “Oscars” of the incentive travel industry, the Society for Incentive Travel Excellence’s Crystal Awards, recognize companies that accomplish outstanding creative and memorable experiences. SITE honored six companies at their global conference in Dublin this year. 

“This is an incredibly special group of Crystal Award winners,” said Kevin Edmunds, MS, CITP, Vice President, AIC Hotel Group & SITE President. “They are all leaders in our industry, with the programs we recognized at this year’s Crystal Awards Gala standing out as shining examples of incentive travel programs being run smoothly and safely that still achieve the exacting, incredibly high business aims all of us set out to deliver.”

Motivation Excellence won for Most Creative Solution Deployed at a Time of Crisis for our program “GEM Club 2020: From Kauai to Concierge.” Our longtime healthcare client postponed two years’ worth of incentive travel experiences due to COVID, with the first year slated to be a rewarding adventure on Kauai in Hawaii. 

At our direction, our client converted the travel experience to award points for each winner. Our team then crafted a virtual reward experience allowing the winners’ imaginations to decide how best to exemplify their achievements. Dedicated in-house concierge shoppers helped each participant use their points for highly individualized selections. Winners redeemed for things like a bucket-list electric guitar, diamond jewelry, home solar panels, future personal travel, vacation home rental, and private school tuition. 

In addition, the on-site gift experiences scheduled for Kauai were offered online so winners could still enjoy selecting a pair of Olukai sandals and REVO sunglasses. This entire creative solution was so well-received, our client repeated it in 2021 with new virtual gifting experiences. 

“Being honored within the industry with the SITE Crystal Award means a great deal to our team! We work to Inspire Extraordinary Performance with every client and every participant. But it starts within our own company. We appreciate this recognition as it truly shows the care and passion we value internally and produce externally. Thank you SITE,” said David Jobes, President and CEO of Motivation Excellence. 

As a final bonus, throughout this transition from travel experiences to personalized rewards, our travel team worked closely with our hotel and supplier partners to rebook future stays and nearly eliminate all cancelation fees for our client. 

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Get to Know ME with Michael Southerton

Join us this month, in our Get to Know ME segment, learning more about Michael Southerton. He’s been a lifer with VIKTOR, now Motivation Excellence, and has some serious indoor and outdoor abilities to share! Read below, and be sure to watch the linked video to hear more about what makes Michael a great member of our team. Thanks, Michael for letting us get to know you better. 

What’s your title and how long have you been in the incentive industry?

Senior Developer.

I started working with VIKTOR Incentives & Meetings under an internship as a graphic designer in the summer of 2006 before my senior year of college at Northern Michigan University. I continued to work on small projects through my senior year, and I was hired full-time when I graduated in 2007. Almost sixteen years later, I’m proud to still be in this industry and joining Motivation Excellence with the rest of the VIKTOR team.

What does your job entail?

At its core, problem-solving. Sometimes the best code is no code at all. But I specialize in website design and frontend development, and I’ve always been involved in the full stack of web development. That’s led me to build and maintain a lot of websites and applications that help manage the large amount of data required to operate travel and rewards programs and the systems they run on. I also provide technical support to our staff and assist with technical infrastructure, along with the rest of our awesome Tech Team.

What’s something special about the people you work with you’d like to share?

As a technical person, who on occasion, has experienced the frontlines of service on our group travel programs, I’m constantly blown away by the level of detail and coordination that our Client Services team juggles while delivering our large group travel programs. There are a lot of moving parts to get thousands of participants on-site, each with their own custom itinerary and requirements, and the smallest details can change quickly. Even with the best technology, it takes an amazing team of talented people to get your head around it all and successfully operate a large travel program with events that are happening all around you.

What’s an unknown or odd talent you have?

I play table tennis locally in Traverse City at the Northern Michigan Table Tennis Club, and I have competed in Michigan’s state tournaments.

What motivates you to accomplish things in your life (work or personal)?

I’ve always enjoyed improving efficiencies, for both timesaving and convenience. Whether I’m installing home automation systems to automatically turn on my lights and unlock my front door when I arrive, or I’m redesigning a user flow in one of our web applications so that it takes 1 click instead of 5 to accomplish the same task, I really like making things as simple and easy to use as possible.

What do you enjoy doing outside of work?

My fiancé and I like to take our kayaks to as many different small lakes in Northern Michigan as we can find. We like to explore, fish, and sometimes just soak up the sun.

One thing that always makes you laugh is?

The Detroit Lions. Sometimes I laugh. Sometimes I cry. But, I’ll always watch and support them. Next year is our year.

What have you done that helped you get through the pandemic?

I hate to speak so nicely of a time that was so hard on many others, but personally, I thrived. My fiancé and I are homebodies, so that part was no problem; we caught up on a lot of TV shows. But we also became healthier; we cooked at home and ate better, and we got outdoors more often than we’ve ever done before. We were hiking, running, and biking all the trails by my house, and we were kayaking almost every weekend when the weather was good.

What is the most unusual job you’ve ever had?

This one! Before I started here 15 years ago, I had never heard of the incentive travel industry. As someone who was once looking for any available job after college to start my career in web development and user experience design, I never imagined I could be building digital solutions for live events used all over the world, not to mention personally traveling to some of these amazing locations to watch them come alive and support their success. It’s led to some pretty incredible experiences I could not imagine having while working web development in another industry.

This month, our theme for social media is about volunteering. How does this speak to you either personally or professionally?

Our company has offered a lot of different opportunities that made it easy to volunteer over the years: we’ve worked the counter of our local non-profit movie theater, we helped our local City Opera House build their green room, but the most memorable is our stretch of road we clean each Spring and Fall through the Adopt-A-Highway program. It is located on Traverse City’s Old Mission Peninsula, and we get a gorgeous view of the local wineries and Grand Traverse Bay as we walk it and keep it looking great.

Get to Know ME with Kelli Robb

We’re extra excited to spotlight one of our new colleagues in our brand new Traverse City office! Kelli Robb is part of our leadership team coming from VIKTOR Meetings & Incentives. With our acquisition in January 2022, we welcomed Kelli and 19 other awesome new teammates! Read below and watch the video to get to know Kelli better. She’s all about taking care of other people, whether it’s one of our participants or a perfect stranger!

What’s your title and how long have you been in the incentive industry?

I am the V.P., Client Services, in the Traverse City office. I was fortunate enough to work for an incentive company, my first job out of college, so I’ve been in the business 31 years now. I was at VIKTOR for 21 years and am excited to be part of Motivation Excellence now!

What does your job entail?

I oversee the Client Services operations of the Traverse City office – a lot of pre-sale responsibilities and working closely with our vendor partners. My goal is to make sure our travel programs go off without a hitch and our participants are blown away!

What’s something special about the people you work with you’d like to share?

Their commitment to serving the clients is over the top!  Working with this team is the best part of my job.

What’s an unknown or odd talent you have?

I love to line dance!

What motivates you to accomplish things in your life (work or personal)?

My family and the passion I have for this industry.

What do you enjoy doing outside work?

Spending time with friends and family.  Golfing.  Boating.

One thing that always makes you laugh is?

My husband.  He’s a hoot!

What have you done that helped you get through the pandemic?

Take walks/hikes and get some fresh air.

What is the most unusual job you’ve ever had?

I spent the summer in Nantucket between my sophomore and junior year in college.  I worked for a family, for room and board, doing all kinds of odd jobs around their home and their businesses.  

This month, our theme for social media is Work from Anywhere. What do you do to make sure you’re ready to work no matter your location, or just as importantly, make sure you’re not working too much?

When I’m working from home, the office, or on the road, I like to make sure the desk is set up to ‘plug in and be ready to go’.

Get to Know ME with David Jobes

This month’s Get to Know ME segment is on our very own fearless leader, David Jobes! Read below to find out what drives him to succeed, makes him laugh, and his childhood musical instrument of choice. Oh, and wait until you read about the kittens! Thanks, David for letting us all learn more about you and your passions inside Motivation Excellence and out. 

What’s your title and how long have you been at Motivation Excellence?

CEO & President, “my residency” will be 30 years this February. 

What was the road to ownership of Motivation Excellence like?

For the last 25 years, I had the desire to own Motivation Excellence and I always shared my plans with Greg Lewis, who was the founder and prior owner. There were times I did not think it would occur, but when the time was right it happened. Having such a great team on the journey and believing in the vision is so fulfilling.

What do you consider your biggest responsibility is running the company?

By far, it is providing employment opportunities in the community and in offering as much security with our team members as possible. Every decision we make has a direct influence on our people and I take that extremely seriously.

What’s something special about Motivation Excellence you’d like to share?

Everyone is focused on delivering high-level service to our clients and participants. It is a “can-do” environment without accepting a hurdle as an unattainable obstacle. 

What’s an unknown or odd talent you have?

I played the accordion as a child! Not the most popular instrument to play when you are growing up, but it made my mother happy.

What motivates you to accomplish things in your life (work or personal)?

I have always been competitive, in essence, I want to do the very best that I can all of the time without taking shortcuts. Another is, learning and understanding other people’s perspectives and not prejudging a situation, each one is unique. 

What do you enjoy doing outside work?

Being with family and friends, fishing, the daily crossword puzzle, and fostering kittens.

One thing that always makes you laugh is?

I love romcoms and sitcoms!  They help me relieve stress and refocus.

What have you done that helped you get through the pandemic?

Focus on what is important and not worry about things you can’t control. During this time, I was able to achieve a significant part of our current three-year strategic plan.   This plan is helping grow our company by acquiring another incentive company, which we just completed.

What is the most unusual job you’ve ever had?

I’ve been a newspaper boy, a stock boy at a grocery store, a pizza maker (really got to learn how to cook Italian food), a tool and die apprentice, computer programmer….no strange ones, but each has its own story that helped prepare me for where I am today.

This month, our theme for social media is Growth Mindset. Why is it important to you as a business owner?

There is personal growth and professional growth, being a 14-year member of Vistage International (an executive development organization) has taught me that you have to focus on both and not ignore either one. Without a well-balanced commitment, I am not doing what is my responsibility in making sound decisions, knowing everyone you touch is affected by your actions.

Motivation Excellence Acquires VIKTOR Incentives & Meetings

SCHAUMBURG, Ill. – January 10, 2022 – David Jobes, owner and CEO of Motivation Excellence, headquartered in Schaumburg, Illinois, is excited to announce the acquisition of VIKTOR Incentives & Meetings, located in Traverse City, Michigan. This merging of two premier and long-standing incentive industry companies under the Motivation Excellence name will create incredible opportunities for current and future clients, as well as the employees of both firms. 

“I’ve always been excited about our industry-leading Motivation Excellence team, and since taking ownership in 2018 I’ve looked forward to expanding and bringing our exceptional incentive solutions to more companies looking to Inspire Extraordinary Performance,” Jobes says. In 2022, he celebrates 30 years with Motivation Excellence. 

Mark Bondy, owner and President of VIKTOR, is equally excited about blending his company into the Motivation Excellence team. “I worked with David and Motivation Excellence before joining Viktor Weyand Travel Services in 1996. We kept in touch over the years, and he was the first person I thought of when I began the process of deciding what was next,” Bondy reports.

Bondy became an owner of the rebranded VIKTOR in 2009. He’s been an active member of the incentive industry for more than 35 years, including being named the SITE International Foundation Research Chair in 2013. He plans to stay active with Motivation Excellence for a period of time to help create the best transition for future success. He looks forward to his next adventures after that.  

“Having Mark on board during this time is especially appreciated, as I know he’ll offer his incredible experience in a collaborative way. The cohesive blending of our incredible cultures will need special attention. His involvement will help us make a successful transition. We have nowhere to go but up as a team,” exclaims Jobes.

“It’s almost like it was meant to be,” adds Bondy. “Two great companies with reputations of integrity, outstanding service to our clients and caring about our employees and our communities. The sum is truly greater than the parts in this case for our clients and employees. This is very exciting and unique in the industry.”

Combined, Motivation Excellence and VIKTOR have 85 years’ experience delivering bar-raising incentive capabilities, including travel, meetings, events, and points-based reward and recognition programs. Bondy has back-to-back honors on the BizBash’s Top 1,000 People list. Since becoming owner, Jobes led Motivation Excellence to three consecutive years being honored as one of the Best and Brightest Companies to Work for in the Nation. 

The two companies share vast experience helping clients in verticals such as health care, building supply, automotive, insurance, veterinary, electrical and fire safety. Jobes will keep the Traverse City location and its employees but will rebrand VIKTOR as Motivation Excellence in 2022. Motivation Excellence also has office locations in Wisconsin, Missouri, New Jersey, South Carolina and Florida.

“Our entire team is very excited to welcome a whole new crew of team members! With that comes great new ideas, open conversations and a melding of best practices that have made each of our companies shine in the industry. Going forward, the enhanced Motivation Excellence will continue to be an industry leader our clients can count on to deliver exceptional experiences to meet their needs,” Jobes says.

On the Road with Motivation Excellence: December 2021

Things are changing quickly when it comes to travel. At Motivation Excellence, our goal is to keep our followers and clients informed on the latest protocols, trends, and tips. In our On the Road series, we’ll highlight our own travels for leisure and business, as well as report on current client trends in the incentive industry. Look for the latest On the Road post at the end of each month. If you ever have travel questions during this uncertain time please reach out to us at ME@MotivationExcellence.com. 

In December, we had a mix of international and US-based travel, by plane and by car. Read below for the highlights and takeaways from our travelers. 

Hotel Advisory Board Meeting in the Dominican Republic

Traveler: Joe Reise, Manager, Supplier Relations & Sourcing

I recently attended the Teneo Hospitality Group Leadership Forum as an advisory board member. The Forum was hosted at the luxurious Casa De Campo Resort in the tropical splendor of the Dominican Republic. The Dominican Republic is a Caribbean nation that shares the island of Hispaniola with Haiti to the west. It’s known for its beaches, resorts, and golfing. Its terrain is comprised of rainforest, savannah, and highlands, including Pico Duarte, the Caribbean’s tallest mountain.  

The activities at the resort are world-class — 7 outstanding restaurants including the stunning new Minitas Beach Club, a marina, 3 Pete Dye golf courses, an equestrian center featuring polo, a shooting course, great shopping, and 3 private pristine white sand beaches. This was the perfect setting for our Leadership Forum and the resort showcased some of its unique outdoor venues with special ambience for hosting dinners and lunches.  

Key Takeaways:

• Even though the Casa De Campo Resort opened almost 50 years ago, it’s still a favorite luxury destination for discerning travelers who appreciate a gated community and safe setting. 
• The DR is the second largest and most diverse Caribbean country and it’s only two hours south of Miami making it a convenient destination for a good portion of the US.
• Needless to say, the weather was much nicer than Chicago’s weather in December. 
• Be sure to check out the latest travel protocols and requirements for airlines, cities and re-entry into the United States. This can change quickly.

End of Year Vacation on Turks & Caicos

Traveler: Rhonda Brewer, VP Sales

Turks and Caicos, like many destinations, is requiring proof of Covid vaccination and a negative PCR test prior to arrival. Also, depending on the airline you fly, you will need to submit this data along with a series of questions in order to board the flight. Be sure to follow these rules to save yourself a LOT of time at the airport either from your home city or upon departure from the Turks. 

Once on the island, we stayed at the new Ritz-Carlton located in Grace Bay. The hotel is absolutely gorgeous and the service will not disappoint. The beaches are white and expansive and the snorkeling on the nearby reef is stunning. We did have the opportunity to sail on Lady Grace, which is a brand new sailboat that leaves directly from the beach in front of the Ritz. It is a gorgeous boat with superb staff! We went for a snorkel sail, but you can also do a sunset cruise.  

Key Takeaways:

• The arrival and departure from the island was incredible with the assistance of Sky Pass! This is a hired service that expedites you through the process and really helps make your arrival and departure stress free.
• The island currency is USD and the language is English as well, so a great international getaway with easy communication and no currency exchange.

A Family Drive from Chicago to Detroit

Traveler: Sky Capriolo, Strategic Marketing Manager

Our son is a cheerleader for Western Michigan University and he was invited to take part in the Quick Lane Bowl game between WMU and University of Nevada. The game took place inside Ford Field, home of the Detroit Lions. We can’t resist an opportunity to see our son do something he loves, so we drove to Detroit from Chicago the day after Christmas. 

Did you know Windsor, Canada is right across the river from Detroit and is actually SOUTH of the city? We thought that was pretty cool! We stayed at the Marriott Rennaissance right on the Detroit River. It’s huge and has several nice restaurants in the same building. All staff wore masks. 

The game was fun! WMU won 52 to 24. We stayed an extra night, but the sleety weather kept us inside. On our way out of town the next day we had to swing by the birthplace of Motown – Berry Gordy’s home. It’s closed currently, but a thrill to see it in person nonetheless. 

Key Takeaways:

• Have a stash of disposable masks in the car. Each state, and city/county, has different mandates. 
• Detroit’s sporting venues are within walking distance of many hotels near the Detroit River. 

Our Company Gathering

Our team felt fortunate to gather for a holiday lunch at Shaw’s Crab House near our corporate headquarters. The team at Shaw’s did a nice job spacing our group out among 4 tables and being attentive to our needs. We had plenty of space to feel like we could be socially distanced if desired and the staff all wore masks for our entire stay. 

We welcomed team members from Florida, South Carolina, Missouri, and New Jersey, who all flew in the day before and got a personal sitting with Santa at another nearby restaurant. As you can imagine, there was a lot of merriment!

We all wish our readers a Happy New Year and lots of time with loved ones over these special days. 

Coming Up Ahead (as of now):

• A women’s leadership conference in Mexico
• Client programs to Thailand and Palm Springs
• An industry conference in the Bahamas

Buckle up and enjoy the ride with Motivation Excellence as your guide!

Get to Know ME with Sky Capriolo

Our Get to Know ME spotlight this month is on our Strategic Marketing Manager, Sky Capriolo. Since she’s the one who interviews our employees for this segment, she recruited her friend in the travel department, Joe Reise, to sit in on her behalf and play host.  Read below and watch the somewhat short video (Joe’s a talker) on Sky’s path to Motivation Excellence and some of her varied interests. Thanks!

What’s your title and how long have you been at Motivation Excellence?

I’m the Strategic Marketing Manager and I’ve officially been a member of the Motivation Excellence team for more than 10 years. 

What does your job entail?

I split my time between marketing for our client’s programs and handling the marketing of our company. I do a lot of writing, project management, social media content management and creation, research of our fabulous travel destinations, and proposals for prospective and existing accounts.

What’s something special about working at Motivation Excellence that you’d like to share?

We have assembled a great team of experts in this industry. Many of my coworkers have been here much longer than I have and that says something about the culture we’ve built. 

What’s an unknown or odd talent you have?

I don’t know that there’s anything unknown about me, I’m an open book! I do pride myself on being able to juggle a little, so I’d count that as an odd talent. I learned at the Renaissance Fair as a child in Minnesota and practiced quite a bit after coming home.  

What motivates you to accomplish things in your life (work or personal)?

I like checking things off my to-do list. The first line of any good list is “create a to-do list.” Boom! I’ve already accomplished something and the momentum picks up from there. 

What do you enjoy doing outside work?

My husband and I enjoy doing things together like playing Texas Hold’em poker with friends or playing co-ed soccer in a local league. I love being with our two rescue Airedales Apollo and Airess. We’re empty-nesters now, but most of my free time the last decade + was devoted to our two kids and their activities (karate, soccer, theater, scouts, cheerleading, gymnastics, singing…we were very busy!). Now, with both kids in college, it’s fun to go visit them at least once a semester that their respective schools. 

One thing that always makes you laugh is?

Reading auto-corrected texts in articles on the internet – I will literally cry laughing at some of them!

What have you done that helped you get through the pandemic?

I loved being with my family practically 24-7, believe it or not. We all get along and enjoyed that brief time when no one had extracurricular plans and we could just be together and cook, laugh, enjoy our backyard, watch TV and play with the dogs. 

What is the most unusual job you’ve ever had?

For one night only in college, I was a Captain Morgan girl with a friend. We filled in last minute and got to ride around in a limo and visit all the bars that had previously not allowed us in because we were not quite 21 yet. The guy who played the Captain ended up passing out and my friend and I finished the shift giving out swag to drunk college kids. Fun times!

This month, our theme for social media is Resolutions. What’s your take on this tradition?

Resolution is really a synonym for goal and I’m ALL FOR THOSE! I suggest making small goals that can build up to something bigger. I love tracking my progress and celebrating my little victories. I wrote about our monthly theme in our blog, Making Resolutions and Keeping Them. I don’t believe you should wait for a special day of the year or month to start on the path to fulfilling your goals – start today!

Get to Know ME with Bob Graham

It’s time to Get to Know ME with our Co-CEO and Co-President, Bob Graham. Read below to learn about Bob’s work motivation and philosophy on integrity. Thanks Bob for participating in our monthly segment!

What’s your title and how long have you been at Motivation Excellence?

As of January 2025, I became the CEO & President. I was the VP, Client and Technology Solutions before that, and I’ve been with the company for more than 22 years.  

What does your job entail?

Understanding all the great talents and resources Motivation Excellence has to apply toward clients’ business needs and using those to develop solutions to accomplish them. The other aspect is helping our team members to grow in their positions, overcome the unexpected and enjoy their work life. Having fun sprinkled in helps.

What’s something special about working at Motivation Excellence that you’d like to share?

Being part of a group of people who enjoy what they do, are good at it and are dedicated to giving Motivation Excellence’s best to each client. Creativity, flexibility and developing solutions that address each clients’ needs keeps the day to day fresh and stimulating. I also feel fortunate the company is focused on community, charity and the wellbeing of its employees.

What motivates you to accomplish things in your life?

I am competitive and I want us to be the best at whatever we are doing. At Motivation Excellence, that means giving each opportunity our best every day. Away from work, it is enjoying our family and friends. 

What do you enjoy doing outside work?

Anything outside. 

What is the most unusual job you’ve ever had?

This is a weird answer. Working in this industry is a thousand jobs within a job. We get the honor to work with every industry, many, many companies and create many, many solutions that can better a lot of people’s lives. It is fascinating to see how each company operates, their issues and working with them to improve their business.

This month, our theme for social media is Integrity. What does integrity mean to you?

For me, it is a high goal to focus on. We have choices hundreds of times a day and each action accumulates to create a level of integrity. It is doing the right things in the right way, through caring, personal attention, empathy, and a moral compass.

On the Road with Motivation Excellence: October 2021

Things are changing quickly when it comes to travel. At Motivation Excellence, our goal is to keep our followers and clients informed on the latest protocols, trends and tips. In our On the Road series, we’ll highlight our own travels for leisure and business, as well as report on current client trends in the incentive industry. Look for the latest On the Road post at the end of each month. If you ever have travel questions during this uncertain time please reach out to us at ME@MotivationExcellence.com. We’re happy to be your virtual shotgun or plus one!

In October we had two intrepid international travelers and a quick turnaround client program stateside. Read more below! 

NYC in the Fall – Brilliant for a Client Gathering

Traveler: Rhonda Brewer, VP Sales

As you read about in September, when I went for the site visit, this client gathering was a quick turnaround! It turned out amazing! More than 150 people came together for three days and two nights of celebration! We utilized Bobby Van’s near the New York Stock Exchange and the fantastic outdoor space at the Central Park Zoo; I’d use both again in the future. We had room blocks at both the Central Park Hilton and JW Marriott properties. Both hotels were exactly as we expected. The trickiest part about this was the planning for all outdoor meeting and dining space, since NYC requires proof of vaccination to enter indoor event space and we knew we had some guests that were not vaccinated. A big thanks to one of our favorite partners Hello! DMC and their new office in New York for helping produce meaningful events that will be remembered for a lifetime!

Key Takeaway:

• New York City is vibrant and still a great destination for events and meetings, you just need to know the vaccination status of everyone attending so you can guide them on the COVID restrictions.

Off to Paris and Scotland – What a Tour!

Traveler: Rhonda Brewer, VP Sales

It was great to have the opportunity to go to Europe again! Once you understand the new COVID protocols, that vary by country, things go very smoothly. It was great to see people out and moving which is fantastic to see!

In Paris, for the SITE Foundation meeting, we talked about the resurgence of incentive travel on a global basis and how everyone is seeing this around the globe. That said, we do hear those who are running programs are staying within region and while some are venturing outside their continent, likely most will start traveling outside of their region in 2023. As for Paris, it was great seeing so much activity. Masks were worn indoors and it was easy entering any indoor restaurant or museum as long as you show your completed vaccination card.

Next stop for the week was Edinburgh, Scotland, Gleneagles, Royal Scotsman and the Kimpton Charlotte Square. What an absolute treat to be able to be in Scotland again for the Belmond Advisory Board and see the Scottish Highlands via the Royal Scotsman! The train is so well appointed and the entire staff is so gracious and accommodating. It is truly an experience of a lifetime and would be a great addition to any incentive program! Starting in Edinburgh either at the beautiful Gleneagles, traveling on the Royal Scotsman for 2 nights and then finishing your program for a night or two in Edinburgh at either the historical Balmoral or at the Kimpton Charlotte Square. So many options but just a beautiful experience that will be talked about forever!

Key Takeaways:

• Being in Europe again is fabulous!
• Traveling for business in NYC, then heading to Paris and Scotland for industry events is a lot! Hopefully you can visit all three at a more leisurely pace. 

Cruising on the Danube

Traveler: David Jobes, President/CEO

I just returned to Chicago after spending 10 days traveling on a Danube river cruise visiting cities in Germany, Austria, Slovakia and Hungary. And, wow, did it reengage my desire to start traveling again! After international travel being virtually unattainable for over a year, it was great to see its return. Even if you are not a “cruiser,” a European river cruise is intimate (smaller ships) and reaches both large and small towns in various countries where you can enjoy welcoming people and fabulous foods. This was a great way to start traveling abroad again. We were aboard the AmaWaterways AmaMagna and found the accommodations and hospitality excellent!

Once you get off the ship, I would encourage you to explore as much of the cities as possible. Traveling in October to Europe is perfect with temperatures in the mid-50’s and generally sunny. All locations were easy to get around with English spoken by most people and a lot of the signage was also in multiple languages. In the larger cities, such as Vienna and Budapest, finding taxis was easy and inexpensive, just be aware not all taxis take credit cards for payments. 

Key Takeaways

• Euro-Countries require you to have proof of COVID vaccination in order to enter the countries.
• It is wonderful to get reengaged with different cultures again.
• The airlines and the ship all took extreme measures to make sure everything was sanitized and kept to high safety and health standards.

Coming Up Ahead

• Portugal with travel planner Joe Reise
• Back in Vegas for an industry event

Buckle up and enjoy the ride with Motivation Excellence as your guide!