Donald Duszynski

Meeting & Event Planner / Hotel Contract Negotiator / Venue Sourcing Specialist

Donald Duszynski

Meeting & Event Planner / Hotel Contract Negotiator / Venue Sourcing Specialist

Donald Duszynski, Ph.D. has 30+ years’ experience working with international academic organizations, museum groups, veterans’ organizations, and families helping plan their annual meetings or private events (e.g., funerals), locate the appropriate hotel venues that best suit each one’s needs, and write contracts that protect their group from the vagaries of “big box” hotel boiler plate contracts. If you work with Don, here’s what you can expect:

Free, upfront services. Other 3rd party planners have fees charging by the hour (hundreds) or by the event (thousands).
Works closely with the Convention and Visitor’s Bureau to gain insight into the best hotels available for your specific needs.

Writes your RFP, sends it to the appropriate venues, and receives competitive hotel proposals to offer you better room rates, free meeting space etc.
Dedicated to your group, he visits 5-6 venues in the city you choose, to assure the property has the meeting space, the “right feel,” location, and the amenities you need.
Speaks with sales managers to establish a personal working relationship with each; then gets them “on board” to compete with each other for your business.
When most concessions are secure, he outlines for you the property(s) most suitable for your event.
Never accepts boiler-plate hotel contracts; he collaborates with sales managers to write your best contract by adding up-to-date legal clauses to protect against any egregious actions by the hotel (i.e. cancelling room reservations, walking guests, etc.).

Personal Details, Other “Particulars”

Answer emails, pays attention to DETAILS, attends your meeting to meet your group—at your discretion.

Encourages you to hold a pre-con meeting with your contracted hotel about 6 months from the start of your meeting.
Pays for his own meals and in-city transportation; the only up-front expense requested is round-trip airfare (tourist-class) to the venue city, and my airport parking, when I negotiate on your behalf.
Creates your meeting, space needs, and room pickup history containing the data sales managers expect to see in your RFP.

Provides spread sheets of the data needed to help select the hotel that meets the exact specifications of your meeting (i.e., size, location, function space, condition, room rate, services, amenities, etc.); even when minimal meeting space is required, finding and negotiating sleeping rooms at competitive rates can be challenging and time-consuming.