Chairman's Award

Colin Reed, with Kati Quigley, left, and Deborah Sexton.

When I attended the Gaylord Opryland Resort’s grand reopening in November, I happened to catch Gaylord Chairman and CEO Colin Reed standing in one of the property’s hallways, talking on his cellphone. I went up to him, but waited off to the side until he had finished his call. When he saw me, he immediately cut his call short to shake my hand. He instantly remembered from my name badge that I had interviewed him for a Convene article.

From that experience and our interview, I knew how human — and humane — Reed is. So I was delighted to see him accept PCMA’s 2010 Chairman’s Award at this morning’s Opening General Session. 

When I spoke to Reed about the hotel's response during the Nashville flood and its aftermathlast May, he had told me: "We have this very strong, people-centric culture, where we say that the people who come to work every day in our company come first." 

In accepting the award, he had the same message: "These buildings that we hold meetings in are just buildings. It's the people who work there who bring them alive."

Well-deserved, indeed.