A new trend is beginning to emerge in the event planning industry - event planners are beginning to become more specialized. As the event planning industry evolves and grows, a new sub-culture within the industry has started to grow with it, as some of the specialized event planners have broken away from tradition and started new companies to help meet these new needs! According to surveys done by MPI International, 45% of event planners are increasing the amount of contractors they hire!

Times are changing. As we all strive to move our industry forward, MPI and Jessie States, CMM, Manager of Professional Development, Meeting Professionals International, agree that "[s]pecialists will drive our industry forward. They will help guide the events marketplace as key identifiers of trends and next practices."