Solutions
FIRST @ Bank of America
The team delivered nearly 40 experiences in June.
In conjunction with top tier business schools, Merrill Lynch is hosting a series of exclusive Women’s Financial Boot Camps across university campuses. By the end of this year, Merrill will have hosted 5 Boot Camps, with the most recent at Georgetown University in Washington D.C. for 44 women from the US, Colombia, Costa Rica, and Jamaica. The sessions are facilitated by speakers from the host university and Merrill, and feature at least one social activity for networking and bonding. The small group setting allows participants to take full advantage of the opportunities to learn and grow.
FIRST @ BP
FIRST delivered 4 BP events in June including the 4-day North Sea Future 2 in NSHQ, Aberdeen. The team executed BP’s strategy in Scotland; North Sea Future 2 was open to all employees and consisted of a series of speaker sessions each morning and an exhibition. It provided an opportunity to learn more about BP's oil and gas business. The event concluded with an Alpine Formula 1 car allowing teams to compete for the fastest lap time.
FIRST @ Carlyle
The FIRST @ Carlyle team completed more than 10 events and the team is currently gearing up for a busy fall with the largest events being the Global Investor Conference in Washington, DC and the Europe Investor Conference in London.
FIRST @ Citadel
Citadel hosted a section of a hospitality suite at the Roland-Garros French Open, adjoined by their seats at center court. The Paris office and their guest were invited to join a thrilling day of 4 matches. Guests received branded gifts, meals throughout the day, and experienced an exciting day at the courts.
Citadel hosted a global Miami Summer Soiree series to kick off summer. Citadel bought out the private members club, "ZZ's," where the chef created a custom menu, a gelato cart greeted guests at entry, and a DJ played into the night. There were several branded touches such as beach balls, ice cream cups, and a custom-made photo activation.
FIRST @ Goldman Sachs
The Global Investment Research division of Goldman Sachs hosted its 27th Annual European Financials Conference at the Westin Hotel in Paris. Those attending were offered an agenda of keynote sessions, panel presentations and fireside chats by executives at Europe's largest insurance, real estate, fintech companies, banks, and policy makers. Attendees were also offered one-on-one and small group meetings with investors and management.
The second Disruptive Tech Symposium took place in Berlin with 300 guests. This 2-day, multi-track event featured tech start-up founders and "unicorns." The event was hosted at the historic Olderberger, a bath house in its former life which still has many of its old features. The main session took place in the hotel spa, with a stage and set built over the covered swimming pool. FIRST hosted a cocktail reception with drinks displayed in Victorian baths of ice, and an exciting Dragons Den style pitch from 7 firms – including a showcase of a robotic dog.
FIRST @ KKR
KKR hosted its largest client event of the year, the 2023 Americas Investors' Meeting, covering their credit and private markets funds. The event took place at Terranea Resort in Rancho Palos Verdes, CA and brought together over 300 clients and 200 staff, over 3 days. The events team received positive feedback with another successful Investors’ Meeting in the books.
FIRST @ McKinsey
McKinsey has contracted 170+ programs globally in 2023 (113 of which have already taken place). They also have 10 programs already contracted for 2024! The Team is busy with new RFPs and has 54 active programs open for this year and next.
In June, nearly 200 of the world’s most influential female leaders from across the globe gathered in Paris for the Leaders Shaping The World event. The 2-day program was the first in the series, which had female Board Members, CEO’s and Executive Committee Members of large well-known organizations across all sectors, come together to network, share successes, and celebrate women in leadership. The program started with a private breakfast at the top of the Arc de Triomphe and ended with a Parisian dinner at Hotel de la Marine, with lots of other components and venues in between.
FIRST @ Morgan Stanley
The team completed 40+ events globally, 75+ US roadshows and 105 EMEA roadshows.
Morgan Stanley hosted the annual US Financials, Payments & CRE Conference in New York City. The 3-day conference welcomed over 1,000 attendees, including over 500 investor clients. The 7 month planning period was smooth, however, one week before the conference, the team faced some challenges. The client identified a need to increase security due to outside sensitive content and presentations. The team quickly banded together with Morgan Stanley Marketing to find solutions, which included daily registration and colored wristbands to ensure all attendees were valid registrants. The new security measures were well received by the client and attendees, and the process will likely be adopted into future events. Overall, the event was a success and great reflection of the team's ability to be agile and problem solve for our clients.
The team traveled to Paris to deliver a client dinner during the Paris Airshow. Attended by more than 110 clients and senior MS employees, it was the first time the Marketing team was involved in planning this event. Guest feedback praised the venue, food, service, and the organization of the event. The feedback from the hosts was extremely positive; they spoke about the added-value the FIRST team brought, with creative ideas such as table names in the theme of the airshow and décor in line with Morgan Stanley’s branding. Planning for the 2024 dinner during Farnborough Airshow has already started.
The European Real Estate Capital Markets Conference served as a ‘2 for 1’ event combining the Real Estate Equity and Fixed Income conferences. It brought equity and debt investors together to meet with high-profile corporates and issuers as well as lunchtime speakers. The event took place in London over two days. We hit excellent numbers this year with a +156% increase in attendance and an +112% increase in meetings attended. There was exceptional feedback from corporates highlighting the “great, smooth and professional organization of the event” and they were pleased with their meeting schedules. The hosts are eager to get a date on the books for next year!
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