Andy McNeill, CEO of American Meetings, Inc. was interviewed by a journalist of GovExec Magazine in regard to the scandal that has recently made national headlines about overspending by Federal Departments, specifically, the GSA Conference. McNeill pointed out that the program seemed “out of scope” for a meeting or event of this size and in the government sector. McNeill also commented that if an internal or third-party conference planner was engaged for the project, “they certainly did not have the best interest at heart, of the GSA.” McNeill also provides a brief comparison… “we recently concluded a program in March where we did a bike team building event, similar to the one detailed in the allegations for over half the cost charged to the GSA.”
Read the full article here: https://www.govexec.com/oversight/2012/04/gsa-turmoil-will-live-congressional-hearings/41667/?oref=top-story
McNeill after seeing all of the national coverage of the GSA incident predicts more whistler blowers will come out on other Government Conferences. McNeill, who advises multi-national corporations on strategic meeting strategy commented that a third party corporate meeting planner, who is under contract to manage expenses can be a great assett to an agency, especially on corporate meetings such as these.
