Washington, D.C. – The Knowland Group, the largest data company in the global meeting and event industry, announced today the launch of its new complementary online webinar series “Understanding Third Party Planners,” further expanding its training dedicated to the art and science of meeting and event sales.

The training will be offered as part of the core training available exclusively to customers through The Knowland Group's online training platform, Knowland University. The goal of the training is to provide a better understanding of how third parties operate, the differences among the major third parties, why their customers utilize their services, and how to establish and capitalize on relationships with third party planners.

The trainer hosting the classes is Jim Vandevender, a hotel industry veteran with over twenty years of experience working for Hilton, Hyatt, and le Meridien Hotels in a variety of sales capacities including on-property as well as national sales positions. Jim was also Vice President of Training and Development for seven years at Conference Direct, one of the largest third parties, making him uniquely qualified to share his inside knowledge of third parties.

For the month of February, Knowland will also be making this training class available to the general public. Please click here to sign up and view the date and time offerings and get a sneak peak of Knowland’s extensive knowledge base.

Space is limited, so it is highly encouraged that participants register online to reserve a spot.

About The Knowland Group
The Knowland Group is a proven innovator, developing intuitive data products and services that streamline and support event and group sales in the hospitality industry. Headquartered in Washington, D.C. in historic Chinatown, the Knowland Group serves more than 3,000 hotel clients and 25,000 users globally. Knowland is ranked as the 76th fastest growing software company in North America by Deloitte and the second fastest growing private company in the travel industry for both 2009 and 2010 by Inc. Magazine.

For more information, please visit Knowland’s website or call (410) 860-2270.

Laura Witherspoon
(202) 312-5880