Round-up of our 13th Annual Network Meeting

Our 13th Annual Network Meeting took place from 13-15 April 2014 at the Crowne Plaza St Peter's Hotel in Rome with 96 CEOs and Senior Managers from 69 countries. Click to view photos from our Gala Dinner and the Meeting Room.

On Sunday morning, over 60 of us met for a mini tour of Rome, where we saw Tiber Island, Colosseum, Fora and Venice Square in groups of 20. The weather forecast predicted rain but we were lucky that the sun shone for the entire trip. The view from Capitol Hill did not fail to impress and we went back to the hotel feeling that we knew Rome a little bit better. It was also a great opportunity to spend time with our overseas partners in an informal setting before the start of our official meeting.

Our first evening together started with some welcome drinks as delegates collected name badges and networked. Then guests found their tables and were served with a 4 course dinner and were entertained with a gladiator fight, roman dances, pole dancers, performances from Moulin Rouge and Chicago, salsa, hip hop dancers, tango and a burlesque show. The evening ended, as always with a private DJ and lots of dancing, including our annual ‘conga’.

The official meeting started with an update from the UFO Head Office and then delegates took part in over 1000 individual meetings, aided by our UFO Countdown Clock which allows delegates to manage their time during these vital sessions. On Monday evening, after a busy day in the meeting room, we enjoyed another tour of Rome, where we saw St. Peter's Dome, St. Mary's Basilica, Diocletian's Baths and Exedra Square, the Pantheon and Torre Argentina Square. The highlight of the tour for most being the Trevi Fountain – we even witnessed a wedding proposal which resulted in huge cheers from the crowds! We then went to the Futurarte for a private 4 course dinner and were entertained by some incredible singers, who performed many numbers including Mambo Italiano and a medley of show hits.