Creative Group, Inc.

You can’t keep putting it off. AI is not a future conversation. This week in New York, our team joined industry leaders across a series of gatherings, at micebook's inaugural C-Suite Event Agency Growth Summit, for candid conversations on what is driving agency evolution. Our SVP, Data & Technology, Melissa (Arms) Van Dyke, took the stage to share how agencies can move beyond experimentation with AI and begin intentionally embedding it into the way they work every day. It was a dynamic few days connecting, learning, and contributing to the conversations shaping what comes next. A few moments from the week. With Mark Ledogar.

Janet Traphagen is a brilliant leader and wonderful human. We are honored to work with her and our SLT.

Event horror stories. The ones no one puts in the recap. Power drops mid-show. Talent misses their cue. The “plan” stops working. This is where experience design is actually tested. Not in the perfect moments, but in how you respond when it’s not. What’s one you’ll never forget?

Most agencies are experimenting with AI. Few are operationalizing it in a way that drives real impact. Our SVP, Data & Technology, Melissa (Arms) Van Dyke, will take the stage at micebook's inaugural C-Suite Event Agency Growth Summit in New York, joining senior leaders from across global markets to tackle the shifts redefining agency growth. Her session, Weaving AI Into the Fabric of an Agency: Strategies for Accelerating AI Adoption, focuses on what it takes to move from isolated use cases to enterprise-wide integration. As complexity increases, the differentiator will not be access to AI. It will be how intentionally it is integrated across people, process, and platform to unlock smarter, more adaptive ways of working. May 12, NeueHouse Madison Square. A timely conversation for leaders building what comes next. Learn more and register to attend: https://bit.ly/4f5Zuxz

We don’t just design experiences. We stay inside them. In the coming weeks, our team will be on the ground, attending and speaking at industry events around the world. Not as a checkbox, but as a deliberate practice. Nearly half of today’s core professional skills are expected to shift by 2027. Staying relevant requires proximity to what’s changing, not distance from it. As a data-driven event experience agency, we don’t rely on assumptions. We observe, we listen, and we engage in the conversations shaping what’s next. The most meaningful ideas are rarely created in isolation. They are informed by real rooms, real audiences, and real-time insight. This is how we sharpen our thinking and elevate what we deliver for our clients: experiences that are more responsive, more intentional, and more aligned with where the industry is heading. Will you be at any of these events? If so, let’s connect. Where are you going this season? What conversations are we missing? We’ll be bringing back what we learn and sharing the trends, shifts, and signals we’re seeing across events.

Anticipation doesn’t start at the event. It starts months before, in the way you show up, communicate, and build momentum over time. And if it’s working, it doesn’t end when attendees leave. Too often, engagement communications are treated as a countdown instead of a strategy. Data shows where attention builds, where it holds, and where it fades. Attendee journey mapping is how you design for it, shaping the right messages, at the right moments, to create anticipation that feels earned. Because anticipation isn’t about volume, it’s about rhythm. And what happens after matters just as much as what happens on-site. In our latest piece, we explore how designing for the full lifecycle creates more meaningful, lasting experiences: https://bit.ly/4vKY1mh #DataDrivenDesign #EngagementCommunications #EventStrategy

Work anniversaries are about impact. The ideas pushed further. The standards raised. The moments where good became better because someone chose to go beyond what was expected. To our team members celebrating milestone anniversaries this month--Stuart Patton, Sr. Strategic Sourcing Manager; Manon Dicaire, CMP, SVP, Regional Business Development; and Jamie Schwartz, Director, Marketing & Product--thank you for the way you show up, for the energy you bring to the work, and for the role you play in shaping what we create together. This is what it means to deliver with purpose.

Sabchella vs Bieberchella: What you need to know... Watching Coachella this year, one thing stood out. Two performers can command the same stage in completely different ways and create completely different emotional outcomes. Justin Bieber strips it back. Minimal production. Raw presence. Organic movement. Sabrina Carpenter leans in. Storytelling. Theatrics. Full visual world-building. Neither is “right.” Because great experience design isn’t about choosing the biggest production. It’s about choosing the right production for the story you’re trying to tell. That’s true in entertainment. And it’s true in branded experiences. The most effective events aren’t built around what looks impressive on paper. They’re built around what will resonate with the audience in the room. Because production without purpose is just noise. The best experiences use every design choice — lighting, staging, flow, environment — to evoke a feeling. That’s what turns an event into an experience. Get the full scoop on the headliner sets here: https://bit.ly/4mGzESs

Earth Day is a reminder: values only matter if they show up in the experience. For a leading healthcare client, that meant measurable action, partnering with diverse suppliers, reducing waste, and rethinking food and energy choices across the program. The impact was clear: stronger alignment with their sustainability and DEI commitments, and a more meaningful, memorable experience for every attendee. See the results: https://bit.ly/4mD6bsC #EarthDay #Sustainability #Inclusion #EventStrategy

Not all CEOs play golf. We’ve seen it before: A new leader steps into a company. One of their first internal events on the calendar? The annual incentive trip, complete with a signature golf outing. It’s polished. Proven. A tradition. There’s just one problem. They don’t golf. So instead of connection, there’s distance. Instead of engagement, there’s obligation. And the data backs it up. Only 8% of respondents to the 2025 Incentive Travel Index say golf is key to a successful program. Compare that to 60% who prioritize cultural experiences and 53% who value free time. That gap is telling. This isn’t about removing golf. It’s about expanding choice. Designing experiences that reflect different interests, different energy levels, and different ways people want to connect. Because when you design around real preferences, not assumptions, engagement follows. The most effective programs today are not built on tradition alone. They are built on insight, flexibility, and intention. What are your experiences really designed for?