Early in the morning on a Wednesday in October, while more than 17,000 meetings industry professionals swarmed the IMEX America tradeshow floor at Mandalay Bay, 106 college students in their final year of events, tourism and hospitality courses filled a ballroom breakout space down a quiet hallway on the convention center’s lower level.
They were selected by their universities to attend the annual IMEX-MPI-MCI Future Leaders Forum, a free educational event for students considering a career in the meetings industry that started at IMEX Frankfurt in 2003 and made its IMEX America debut in 2010.
Unbeknownst to many attendees wandering the IMEX show floor, who work in an industry that’s struggled for years with entry-level talent acquisition and retention, the Forum taking place just below them is a full-day program designed to solve that very problem.
“Most students [at the Forum] are in their final year. They’re just about to go out and get a job, and the main aim [of the Forum] is really just to inspire them to want a job in our industry when they graduate, and then help them make new connections, whether that’s with other future leaders or industry professionals,” said Hannah Lee, operations manager at IMEX Group and program manager of the IMEX-MPI-MCI Future Leaders Forum. “We want to inspire them to carry on their journey into the industry and make them see how fabulous it is to be a part of.”
Research shows that in most cases, the Forum succeeds. In IMEX’s feedback survey from the latest Future Leaders Forum at IMEX America, over 80% of students said they're more likely to seek a position within the industry after attending the Forum.
What I find exciting about that number is that it shows the industry’s future leaders have ambition and an undeniable interest in this industry. Maybe, then, our industry’s talent acquisition struggle isn’t because of a shortage of qualified candidates; perhaps it’s because we’re assuming, sometimes subconsciously, that the majority of young people are underqualified to begin with.
[Related: The Z: How Sports, Music and Traditional Shared Experiences Bring Us All Together]
A Problematic Paradox
According to Criteria’s 2025-2026 Hiring Benchmark Report, which gathered insights from 350-plus hiring professionals around the world, only 8% of respondents think Gen Z is prepared for the workplace. And the day before those 106 hopeful Gen Z students convened at IMEX America, a new ResumeTemplates.com survey revealed that six in 10 hiring managers are hesitant to bring Gen Zers onto their teams, and one in eight believe the average Gen Zer is unemployable.
Could these beliefs and assumptions—which are unfortunately often rooted in bias versus facts and firsthand experiences—be partially to blame for the current unemployment rate for recent college graduates in the U.S.? That rate has now surpassed the unemployment rate of all workers, according to an analysis conducted by the Bank of America Institute in late August. (Remind me again why employers are saying entry-level talent is so hard to find?)
Not only are stereotypes affecting Gen Z’s success in the hunt for employment, but Gen Z is also entering a job market in which entry-level job postings are getting harder and harder to find. New research from global HR consulting firm Randstad shows a steady decline in entry-level roles globally, despite rising levels of reported “talent scarcity” across all sectors.
“This complex work environment fosters a core paradox," wrote Sander van't Noordende, CEO of Randstad, in an article published by World Economic Forum. “Gen Z are ambitious and capable—but struggling to find a foothold.”
[Related: The Z: Gen Z Is Feeling ‘Future Anxiety,’ and So Is the Meetings Industry]
Did You Try Looking Here?
For the past three years, I’ve had the opportunity to attend the Forum as an industry professional in the roundtables session, giving students 90-plus minutes to get firsthand insights, hear personal stories, network and discover career opportunities from 10 industry experts.
I spoke with dozens of ambitious and energetic students who asked me nothing but thoughtful questions about the industry and my career journey.
We like to market the meetings and events industry as a safe place for young people to land after graduation, where they can take off in their careers and find opportunities that fit their varying backgrounds and interests. But even in an industry where everyone belongs, that doesn’t mean finding your way in is an easy task.
“There are so many doors [in the industry] that students can find their way into,” said Anthony Vade, chief innovation officer and co-founder of Strategy Table. “The problem is those doors aren’t being opened.”
In some cases, it feels like the door might have even been intentionally locked.
Today’s recent and soon-to-be college graduates are facing several obstacles in their job searches: stereotypes and assumptions about their generation’s work ethic, an overcrowded job market, “entry-level” roles that require years of experience, AI taking over many of the entry-level roles that do still exist and the discouraging silence that follows submitting most online job applications.
They’re all causing the door to close in Gen Z’s face, making it difficult for recent grads to find a foothold in any industry. Some of these obstacles are also making it difficult for hiring managers to sift through the thousands of applications they do receive to find one that’s the right fit.
“I think there’s a generation that has been lied to by Indeed and ZipRecruiter and LinkedIn that the best way to get a job is to post and hope,” said Tahira Endean, head of programming at IMEX, co-founder of Strategy Table and instructor at the British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT) and San Diego State University (SDSU). “And then on the other side, I’ve been involved in countless human resources conferences over the years and different events, and they’re complaining that they can’t find candidates for jobs. And it’s like, OK, something is failing us here, and I’m almost positive it’s the digital interface in between.”
For the meetings and events industry, where the internet creates that disconnection between today’s hiring managers and tomorrow’s talent is where things like the IMEX-MPI-MCI Future Leaders Forum come in and make a positive change.
“People have their eyes down in their work. They’re not looking up to find [the Future Leaders Forum] as a solution,” Vade said. “And I think there’s a big story to tell about that, and how it can break some of these myths [about Gen Z].”
Had 106 hiring managers walked into the Forum in that Mandalay Bay breakout room in early October, they would’ve found 106 more than qualified solutions to their talent acquisition problems—and any doubts they had about the next generation’s work ethic would’ve been seriously challenged, too.
“For the last decade, I've been watching audiences extensively at events of all levels, of all sizes, and in that room that day [at the Forum], I saw some of the most engaged individuals I've seen in a long time,” Vade said. “And further to that, not only were they engaged in meaningful, deep conversation with good questions—which I think is the key. You can be engaged and ask shitty questions and not know anything and not really be engaged in a conversation; they were engaged in real conversation with real directed focus and intelligence, a high level of intelligence.
“What also inspired me in that was, not only were they engaged at the table, in that moment they had permission to do it,” Vade continued. “But after the event was over, people beelined to come and have a conversation with me. And I said one sentence [to them during the Forum] when I was passing a mic, and a group of students beelined to me because they wanted to know more about the thing that I said.”
In-person events like the Future Leaders Forum put more than 100 passionate professionals right at our fingertips and prove that the eager, young meetings industry professional who is willing to put in the work is out there. We just need to take off our biased blinders and look beyond LinkedIn’s search bar to find them.
Let the search begin!
Taylor
[Related: The Z: 4 Tips for Intentional Conversations That Lead to Real Connections]
A Future Planner's Perspective
Payton Geake / Student, Enterprise Leadership Major and Event Management Certificate Program / University of Iowa
Meetings Today: Tell us about your IMEX America experience.
Payton Geake: This past October, I had the incredible opportunity to be selected as one of six senior students to attend IMEX America in Las Vegas with the University of Iowa’s Event Management Certificate Program!
This experience allowed me to explore the nation’s largest tradeshow for the meetings, events and the incentive travel industry, attend the [IMEX-MPI-MCI] Future Leaders Forum and connect with professionals from around the world. Along with expanding my network, this trip helped me build confidence and left me excited for what’s to come after graduation in May.
What was your biggest takeaway?
My biggest takeaway from IMEX was the importance of recognizing my personal and professional value. As a soon-to-be graduate and young professional entering the events industry, it can feel intimidating at times, and I’ve definitely experienced moments of imposter syndrome. During the Future Leaders Forum, I had the opportunity to hear from and speak with many experienced industry professionals who reminded us that we are all capable and skilled. They encouraged us to embrace our strengths, trust our abilities and remember that we bring fresh perspectives and creativity to the industry—qualities that make us valuable assets to any team.
What is your advice for upcoming Future Leaders Forum students?
My advice for future leaders who will attend the Forum is to ask all the questions! You’ll have the chance to speak with professionals in all types of event roles, with varying levels of experience and from all over the country. Use this opportunity to connect with these amazing individuals and gain insights that will help prepare you for your career after graduation.
Overall, the Future Leaders Forum was an amazing experience that strengthened my confidence, and I’m so grateful to have had the opportunity to attend.
[Related: The Z: 3 Ways to Mentally Reset and Shift to a Positive Mindset]
Have a question about Gen Z or a topic you’d like to learn more about? Share your thoughts with Taylor at taylor.smith@meetingstoday.com or on Instagram at @tay__writes.
Mission Statement: "The Z: Planning for the Industry’s Next Generation" is a Meetings Today column discussing the meetings and events industry’s newest and youngest members—the incoming Generation Z. Written by Meetings Today’s Taylor Smith, a member of Gen Z herself, The Z explores how to welcome, work with, understand and plan for the industry’s next wave of professionals while serving as a guide for members of Gen Z themselves, planners and attendees alike.
Read more from "The Z: Planning for the Industry’s Next Generation."
