Can you believe it’s December already? While the weather outside is still warm enough to dig some last minute bulbs into the garden, turkey day has already past, and the Holidays are just around the corner.  We blinked and 2011 flew by!

Before we move on to 2012, let’s pause for a moment and review 2011 with gratitude: It has been a very good year! Our New England NACE membership is at an all time high. Our November charity, wine-pairing dinner at The Hampshire House was a fabulous event and raised $3,200 for the Baby Stepz program of The Lionheart Foundation, helping teen parents grow as parents. The Feeding Our Neighbors Initiative organized several major food donations, including rescuing uncooked lobster tails and ribs from Ernie Boch Jr.’s annual party and donating nearly 200 meals to Boston Rescue Mission. In 2012, we look forward to involving many more caterers and hotels in our efforts to expand the Feeding Our Neighbors project.

We want to invite all our members to join one of our committees.  We promise it won’t take much of your time. The appreciation alone is worth the effort, and it’s a great way to deepen your relationships in NENACE.

I want to wish everyone a healthy, happy and successful New Year and look forward to seeing more of everyone in 2012!

Lyndsay Picciano
Fairmont Copley Plaza Boston
138 Saint James Avenue
Boston, MA 02116
Phone: 617/867-8525
Fax: 617/437-0794
e-mail: lyndsay.picciano@fairmont.com

Mary Lynne annouces 156 members!

Let me wish each and everyone a wonderful holiday season and a safe entrance in 2012.  Thank you for being a part of my life this past year.

As I write this, we stand at 156 members!  We have been up to 160 members this year.  A wonderful portion of our membership is Students!!   I am so pleased to be a part of such an incredible organization!  I would like to see who else I could get involved.  Each of the board members carries a great deal of responsibility, and we could use a bit of help!  Would you like to work with one of us?  The involvement has been a benefit to me both professionally and personally.

I would like to challenge each of you start making sure you’ve met two new people at each meeting.  I would also like for all of us to try and think of our fellow NACE members whenever we need a service and to approach them before we go to any other venue, caterer or vendor.  Let's keep our community strong by building relationships that help all of us weather the bad and the good times.  I want us all to be New England NACE champions!

Your New England Membership VP,

Mary Lynne Leach

ml@LinenHero.com   

855.269.4376

855.329.4376

2011 Vice President of Membership and Awards,

 National Association of Catering Executives New England Chapter

Hi NENACE!

I have long loved being a part of the New England NACE chapter for the constant networking and educational opportunities.  Once I became a member of the program committee which led to a position as co-chair program chair and then segued to my current position as VP of Programs and Community Service, my love for NENACE grew exponentially.  By being a part of the NENACE board through committee, chair and board positions I have been able to build long-lasting business relationships and friendships that have directly affected my professional and personal growth and have contributed to the successes I have been fortunate enough to experience within our industry.

It is with my personal experiences in mind that I encourage our membership to take advantage of the committee positions available.  Each board member is enthusiastically seeking a NENACE member to join their committees.   If you are interested in becoming an active member and serving on one of our fabulous committees check out the website board list at http://nacenewengland.net/board.php and contact our board members today!

Michelle Reid

mreid@hampshirehouse.com

It's that time of year again! Danielle and Maria are busy putting together meetings for 2012.  If you are interested in hosting a meeting, please contact dduane@bostonmagazine.com or maria@brianphillipsphoto.com for available dates.  We'd also love to hear from you if you have a fabulous program idea or possible speaker!

Danielle Duane/Boston Magazine dduane@bostonmagazine.com

Maria Panaggio-Phillips/Brian Phillips Photography maria@brianphillipsphoto.com

NACE/NE COMMUNITY SERVICE

 Feeding Our Neightbors Initiative:

We at NACE/NE have begun a mission to minimize food waste in our industry and feed our neighbors in need. We have created a list of food banks in NE for Venues to team up with for food pick-ups after events: http://on.fb.me/tv2SU9

We have had THREE successful food pickups so far:

1. Thank you Season to Taste Catering for donating left over food from an 8/7 wedding to Salesian Boys & Girls Club of East Boston. Props also to Esq.Events and Dana Siles Photographer for making this happen.

2. Ambrosia Catering donated their unused food from an August party hosted by Ernie Boch Jr. Boston Rescue Mission fed over 200 people with this left over event food! Special thanks to Tasha Bracken of SD Events for putting this together and to Naomi Raiselle of Generations CinemaStories for your incredible video & PR work! Check out our video: http://vimeo.com/28366931

3. Thank you East Meets West Catering for donating your unused event food to Boston Rescue Mission. A huge thank you to Tasha Bracken of SD Events who coordinated this pickup from their client's wedding held at Boston Exchange Conference Center. 

In Addition, thank you to All the Trim, Events by Design, for blogging about our Feeding Our Neighbors Initiative.

FUNraisers:

NACE/NE proudly hosts “FUNraisers” at each meeting in order to support local non-profit organizations.

To kick off the New Year, we will support Prison Book Program: providing books to individual prisoners for personal development during incarceration. The PBC encourages education – a powerful tool that reduces the likelihood that a prisoner will return to the prison system. www.prisonbookprogram.org

Thank you to everyone who has graciously supported our FUNraisers over the last three months, since our last Newsletter:

• September 2011: Cradles to Crayons, Brighton, MA. Special thanks to our Sponsor, Jo-Ann Ross Wine and our Drawing winner, Gretchen Schultz-Ellison of Enchanted Wedding Cakes.
• October 2011: TEAM NACE raised $3,221 for our annual Light The Night Walk, benefiting The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Congrats to Michelle Reid of Hampshire House for solely raising $1,061.98 of our total! Michelle won our friendly competition and will enjoy a three-course dinner for two at Aragosta Bar & Bistro, thanks to Ashley Coffeen Lamy of Fairmont Battery Wharf. Also, very special thanks to Jacki Norrie and her crew at Wedding Tresses, for throwing TEAM NACE a totally rad 80’s hair & makeup pre-party!
• November 2011: Wine dinner benefit for Lionheart Foundation raised $2,395 for their Baby Stepz program. Special thanks to Mara Weiner, owner of Allure Invitations, for donating complimentary Holiday cards to the Drawing winner, Joe Fallon.

We are looking for FUNraiser Sponsors to donate your services to the drawing winners!

Pass it on:

NACE/NE Supports WISH UPON A WEDDING BOSTON & NEW ENGLAND: https://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=241296659231525#!/WishUponaWeddingBoston

Check our NACE/NE FACEBOOK PAGE for regular updates. Thank you for your continued enthusiasm and support! I am proud to be a part of NENACE!!!

Dana Siles, NENACE Community Service Chair                                             

Email: dana@danasiles.com

Phone: 800.372.4494

         New Year, New Resolutions!

It is the festive time of the year for the event industry when companies hold their annual holiday parties and winter weddings are becoming more fashionable.  We are also seeing a trend in the industry for companies to forego their usual December parties and move them into January.  Good news for event professionals who would typically sit around for 3 months after the first of the year waiting for April and the start of wedding season.  

New Year’s Eve is another special event day that has changed drastically during the early part of this decade.  We no longer have the ability to charge massive amounts of money for our services and are thankful to be able to get our regular price.  And let’s not forget the constant negotiating we must endure with clients in this cash strapped economy all year long.  It can be very frustrating.

With another new year approaching it is time to make some new resolutions.  How do I get a piece of the pie and how do I make sure there is some pie left for me after I have discounted my services to my client.   Everyone wants a discount nowadays.  Sure there are those wonderful clients to whom money is no object, but they are not the norm.

If you attended our NACE General Managers forum 2 years ago you would have heard the term “perceived value”.   We all value our own services very highly, but most clients are looking at the bottom line.  Maybe that means less flowers in the centerpiece, no DJ assistant or less ornate chair covers to name a few.  That may be so, but the end product that you are providing to the client must still have an impact.  It might also mean, if you feel that you are compromising your integrity at a certain price point, referring that client to someone else that offers a lesser service, but will still do a nice job.  At that point you will have built trust and a relationship from both the client and the event professional you referred.

And speaking of referrals, there is only one sure way to really build up your referrals from hotels and venues.  Ask them what it takes to be on their referral list??  Eventually you can do this, but if a catering professional has no idea who you are or has personally seen your services why would they refer you? The most important New Year’s resolution you can make is to regularly attend NACE monthly meetings, get to know both catering and event professionals on a personal level (we are all human beings), learn from the educational content and become a working part of an organization that can provide the stepping stones to success! 

Have a wonderful holiday season and all the best for the coming year.

Warm Regards,

John Zucco

jzucco@entertainmentspecialists.com

NACE NE Event Professional Chair

BizBash Readers' Choice Awards!

The First BizBash Boston Readers' Choice Awards were presented on November 10th at Fenway Park. Among the winners were four NACE members:

Caterer of the Year: Lyndsay Picciano, Fairmont Copley Plaza

Social Event Planner of the Year: Edna Dratch-Parker, EFD Creative—Event Planning and Design

Venue Manager of the Year: Lizbeth Tate Brown, Fairmont Battery Wharf

DJ of the Year: Mike Amado, Entertainment Specialists

Other News

Caroline Dakin & family welcomes Katerina Grace. She entered the world at 6lbs 14.5 oz and  20.5" long.

Below are Maddy & Kat together. Congrats Caroline!

Wishing Everyone a Happy & Healthy Holiday Season!

Molly Lanigan, Co-Chair Newsletter

mlanigan@weddingwire.com

Catering Director with ARAMARK (Hartford, CT area)

Description
About ARAMARK

ARAMARK is a leader in professional services, providing award-winning food services, facilities management, and uniform and career apparel to health care institutions, universities and school districts, stadiums and arenas, and businesses around the world. In FORTUNE magazine's 2009 list of "World's Most Admired Companies," ARAMARK was ranked number one in its industry, consistently ranking since 1998 as one of the top three most admired companies in its industry as evaluated by peers and analysts. ARAMARK seeks to responsibly address issues that matter to its clients, customers, employees and communities by focusing on employee advocacy, environmental stewardship, health and wellness, and community involvement. Headquartered in Philadelphia, ARAMARK has approximately 255,000 employees serving clients in 22 countries. Learn more at the company's Web site, www.aramark.com, or www.twitter.com/aramarknews.


About Higher Education

When it comes to on-campus dining, facilities services, sport arenas and conference center services, ARAMARK is the real head of the class. Partnering with close to 600 colleges and universities throughout the United States, we strive to provide the best residential, retail, and catering options, service and facilities for students, faculty and administrator. Our programs are second to none in their innovation, excellence and results. As part of our commitment, we are determined to build and develop the best team of professionals in the industry - people who aren't afraid of spearheading change and who know how to lead.

ARAMARK Higher Education is searching for a Catering Director with sales experience in the Hartford area. This role is responsible for planning and managing all aspects of a catering operation. Individual is tasked with establishing, maintaining, and driving short and long term strategic and operational plans, while ensuring that all Higher Education catering brand standards and initiatives are consistently achieved.


• Develop and be accountable for a safety culture that creates a work environment where no one gets hurt.
• Supervise total catering operations to include such duties as booking events, supervising sales / support staff, developing, selecting and costing menus, pricing, staff selection / development, and departmental administration.
• Supervise all aspects of preparation, service, and cleanup for catering operations.
• Directly supervise catering staff with responsibility for hiring, training, discipline, communication, performance management, retention, and administration.
• Ensure establishment, communication, and compliance of appropriate sanitation and safety standards.
• Assist with components catering forecasts and develops strategies / plans for achieving, including but not limited to development and implementation of a comprehensive marketing plan with associated collateral.
• Responsible for timely and accurate reporting and communication of all catering related revenue, expenses, and receivables.
• Maintain records to comply with ARAMARK, government, and accrediting agency standards.
• Interact with Client Management and maintains effective client and customer relations at all levels with client organization.
• Will participate in sales process and negotiation of contracts.
• Look for opportunities to implement new products and services to support base business growth and client retention.
• Keep abreast of and advise client, customers, and staff on current catering trends and products.
• Ensure implementation of and adherence to all ARAMARK OpX catering initiatives and guidelines.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree (and/or requisite industry and management experience).
• Minimum of five years operational experience in hotel/banquet setting required.
• Experience in full life-cycle catering from planning to execution
• Proven ability and experience selling catering services
• Current ServSafe and TIPS/TABS certification required.

To apply please send a word doc resume to:
Ripp Kardon
Kardon-ripp@aramark.com
215-409-7299
Talent Acquisition Manager- ARAMARK Higher Education

Send Resumes to : Michelle Minasian - Michelle@minasianevents.com or call 617-347-0250

Catering Manager

 The Catering Sales Manager is responsible for the solicitation of new business and handling of incoming inquiries to meet booking goals.  The manager will conduct the site inspections of venue as part of the sales process. This individual will detail events and ensure guest satisfaction.

Candidates should be extremely detailed oriented and organized. They should have the ability to quickly evaluate alternatives and decide on a plan of action. The candidate must create customer loyalty through excellent customer service throughout the sales process.

Candidate must be proficient in general computer knowledge.  Candidate must be a self-motivator and motivator of others.  Candidate must have outstanding communication skills.

Manager will work closely with venue vendors as partners to create successful events.

Position will require working a varied schedule that may include evenings and weekend.

The Candidate should have 2-5 Years of Progressive Catering or Event Planning Experience.

 The Catering Sales Manager is responsible for the solicitation of new business and handling of incoming inquiries to meet booking goals.  The manager will conduct the site inspections of venue as part of the sales process. This individual will detail events and ensure guest satisfaction.

Candidates should be extremely detailed oriented and organized. They should have the ability to quickly evaluate alternatives and decide on a plan of action. The candidate must create customer loyalty through excellent customer service throughout the sales process.

Candidate must be proficient in general computer knowledge.  Candidate must be a self-motivator and motivator of others.  Candidate must have outstanding communication skills.

Manager will work closely with venue vendors as partners to create successful events.

Position will require working a varied schedule that may include evenings and weekend.

The Candidate should have 2-5 Years of Progressive Catering or Event Planning Experience.