Author: Neng Nana

From Matchmaking To Content Creation: How AI Is Revolutionizing Event Planning

Neng Nana

You’ve heard this before, but it bears repeating: Gen Z is unlike any generation we’ve ever seen. These young professionals and young adults are digital natives who are full of energy. They grew up in the age of 24/7 social media and COVID-19, which gives this generation a unique perspective on marketing—including live events. For event marketers, it can be tricky to understand this up-and-coming generation entering the workforce. How can you market to Gen Z? What events do they enjoy?  In this guide, we’ll give you a quick primer…

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Highlights From IRF Invitational 2026

Neng Nana

Incentive Research Foundation (IRF) Invitational 2026 brought together more than 500 DMCs and incentive planners for four days at Fairmont Scottsdale Princess hotel in Arizona. Amid the networking among participants, various industry topics were discussed, ranging from incentive industry trends to unavoidable situations in event contracts. Read More: Notes from the Road: Scottsdale, Arizona The Power of Incentives IRF President Stephanie Harris Chris Johnson, director of global events, travel and sports partnerships at Land O’Lakes, saw the impact of incentives during his first year at the company. “Our CEO announced…

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How to measure and communicate the value of social media

Neng Nana

Effective social media management requires investment: building and maintaining a dedicated social team, overseeing their time and using resources to support their work costs a business money. Budgeting for social relies on support from executive teams, so it’s vital that social marketers are able to communicate the value of their work. But communicating social media value goes beyond justifying spend. By linking social wins to wider business metrics, social value can evolve into a strategy-defining framework that powers future successes. Social offers critical audience insights unlike any other channel, but…

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The Pope vs. Silicon Valley

Neng Nana

Last fall, the Notre Dame philosopher, Meghan Sullivan, participated in a closed-door meeting at the Vatican. She was there to discuss AI ethics with a group of religious thinkers, academics, and leading members of the technology industry. As Sullivan recalls in ​a recent newsletter​, she attended an optional Catholic Mass the first morning, held in an ancient church. She was surprised to see one of the tech leaders sitting a few rows away in the pews. “[This was] the kind of guy you typically see in a black t-shirt and…

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How To Handle Conflict: 7 Secrets From History’s Master Strategist

Neng Nana

Work conflict. Relationship conflict. Family conflict. Conflict is everywhere and I’ll be honest with you: I’m kinda tired of it. So what are we gonna do? Well, today we’re gonna get some help from what may seem like an unlikely source: Carl von Clausewitz. Yeah, the dead war guy. The 19th-century Prussian strategist who spent his time thinking about armies and violence, which sounds like it has nothing to do with you, a person whose most frequent combat scenarios involve passive-aggressive emails. But the dead war guy is useful. Not…

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The Craft of Kawai Kanjira: Locating Truth and Beauty in Japanese Folk Pottery

Neng Nana

I walked past Kawai KanjirÅ’s house and studio twice before I found the door I was looking for. Located on a quiet side street in Kyoto, the unassuming museum dedicated to the life and work of the influential folk potter blends in with all the other machiya townhouses typical of the city, with the metallic sheen of its kawara roof tiles, dark wood latticed windows, and curved bamboo inuyarai screens extending from the plastered facade to the sidewalk. I’m sure that if I could read Japanese, the distinctive wood sign—carved…

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