“They treated us like kings.”

This is how Steve McDaniel, Eastern Regional Operations Manager for Allied Van Lines, described the treatment his 400 operation agents received from the staff at the Wyndham Lisle Hotel while attending the 2nd Annual Operations Conference. The agents came in from all over the country and Steve was confident that the commute from O'Hare airport to Lisle would be convenient. And it was. Steve reaffirmed that the Wyndham was ideal for this size group.

During the pre conference planning stage, Steve met with the various hotel staff personnel. He felt that the close working relationship with the catering and technical staffs contributed to a problem free conference. This conference utilized 4 breakout meeting rooms, the ballroom, the symposium theatre and even the parking lot. The parking lot was used to exhibit 26 pieces of moving equipment.

“The symposium theatre was fantastic.” This was Steve McDaniel's description of this 190 people capacity theatre. It was a perfect facility for PowerPoint presentations and use of overhead projection while everyone sits comfortably. The use of the main ballroom for large group presentations made Steve a little skeptical at first. He was concerned about the amplification, but the technical staff reassured him that it would be fine and it was.

Allied received a corporate rate for the 150 rooms at the Wyndham, while the remainder of the attendees stayed in rooms at the Hilton Lisle directly across from the Wyndham and that was very convenient. All of the food and beverage was done at the Wyndham and the banquet for all of the attendees was held in the main ballroom of the Wyndham and enjoyed by all. Steve was very complimentary to the catering department.

Three activities were planned for the group which included: a golf outing at Seven Bridges Golf Course, an excursion to Harrah’s Gaming Boat and an evening at the Funny Bone Comedy Club in the Wyndham, including dinner.

I asked Steve if he had considered a downtown location. His answer, “I have been to meetings in Chicago in the past and the biggest problem is that it's too hard to get to.” He said that this conference was well organized, well run and everyone enjoyed the facilities.