The Society of Incentive & Travel Executives (SITE) and its research arm, the SITE Foundation, plan to meet in July to discuss the future of their joint relationship. The meeting was called after the foundation planned a re-launch without the board’s approval.
SITE acknowledged that the two have “different goals,” and need to come together to plan for the future, SITE CEO Brenda Anderson said.
Last month, the SITE Foundation said it planned to re-launch a new research foundation that would serve the entire incentive industry (P&I, May 31, 2006). The foundation’s announcement came before it earned approval from the SITE board of directors for the change,
“As the incentive industry has grown and changed over our more than 20 years as a foundation, we too need to change with the times,” SITE President Ira Almeas said in a statement last month. “Our independent foundation will better serve all members of the incentive industry in the years ahead.”
Anderson said SITE had been working closely over the last several years to align its missions to expand the foundation’s role to include fund-raising and educational initiatives focused on the travel industry. However, the foundation wanted to broaden its role beyond the travel industry.
“We are looking at a lot of different options,” Anderson said. “We will see if we still want to work and partner for the travel and incentive industry. We’ve got a lot to talk about. Ultimately, what we do is to make sure we are serving the members. That is what we have always been about.”
In an e-mail to PROMO this week, Almeas confirmed the foundation would meet with SITE in July “to further discuss the re-launch of the new Incentive Research Foundation.”
The foundation, the research arm of SITE, was founded in 1986. The non-profit organization funds and conducts research for the incentive industry. SITE, founded in 1973, provides educational seminars and information services to people who design, develop, promote, sell, administer and operate motivational programs as an incentive to increase business productivity.
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