Two meetings industry associations are set to merge.
PCMA, formerly known as the Professional Convention Management Association, has announced plans to acquire the Corporate Event Marketing Association (CEMA).
The deal would make CEMA a wholly owned division of PCMA, with distinct memberships.
“This is a win-win for both organizations, their respective members and business partners as we together focus on the recovery of business events through the pandemic and beyond,” said PCMA president and CEO, Sherrif Karamat, and PCMA board chair, Stuart Ruff-Lyon, in a joint statement.
PCMA and CEMA originally forged a strategic alliance in January, to introduce each organization to new audiences. So far, they have collaborated on educational sessions at one another’s annual events.
The merge is expected to enhance professional and networking programs, lead to the creation of a broader range of educational content and research, expand connections and offer opportunities for collaboration across a more diverse global community, and provide long-term stability and growth as “organizations adjust to the evolving role of business events in an omnichannel world.”
What was formerly the CEMA board of directors will become an advisory board, which will preserve the association’s current management leadership, events and content. The organizations don’t anticipate any job losses as a result of the deal.
The acquisition is slated to be complete in January 2021.
