| Who? | Why? |
| Bonnie Boyd, BBC, New Orleans | Who doesn't want to visit New Orleans after 5 minutes with Bonnie? Her infectious southern drawl and larger than life personality make her a serious huggability candidate in our books. |
| Fernanda Nielson, SEI Incentives, Dallas | Our second American-based nominee, Fernanda's work at SEI Meetings & Incentives has been described as "beyond the call of duty" by her nominator. |
| Renato Grieco, Ovation Switzerland | Renato is well known and much loved within the Ovation group. Predictions as to the make up of his Christmas party costume usually start in early October. |
| Michael Burke, The Hanover Group | Michael was a pleasure to deal with when he brought the Hanover Group to Ireland. He was both a true professional and a gentleman. Behind the scenes he does a huge amount for charity particularly through his golf classic. |
| Samme Allen, The Barbican Centre | Samme was nominated for being "dynamic, kind and very supportive of everyone in the meetings industry. Samme Allen is a pleasure to work with and an inspiration to the industry." |
| Daniéle Ariège, Olympic Museum in Lausanne | Hailed as a "true magician" when it comes to performing miracles to ensure the success of an event. |
| Mady Keup, SKEMA Business School, France | Very simply, Mady’s “passion in promoting our profession to the young, aspiring students she teaches is an example to us all”. Anybody who nurtures the talent of tomorrow deserves, at the very least, a hug from Ovation Bear. |
| Jukka-Paco Halonen, Viada Oy Ltd, Finland | A great person and an even better musician, Jukka is always there for his friends. He is well renowned for sharing his knowledge and experience which he has picked up during his well-spent years in the DMC industry. |
| Moira Hearn, Select Group Marketing, Toronto | Regarded as somewhat of a tipster, the “great recommendations Moira provides to colleagues and clients alike” have earned her this nomination. When it comes to having fun Moira’s talent for “finding the fun” is second to none. |
| Donna Brogan, Dublin Convention Bureau | This “true Irish cailin” hails from the hills of Donegal. She never fails to make her colleagues laugh with her tales of life in Killybegs and epic stories surrounding the trials and tribulations facing a Donegal girl living and working in ‘the big smoke’. The ultimate professional, Donna has done some “stellar work in winning conferences and meetings for Dublin”. |
| Beverly Read, Egencia, Canada | Beverly’s upbeat personality, respect for suppliers and professional approach make her a pleasure to work with. Her nominator cites her practice of “always taking time to say thank you for a job well done”. Ovation Bear need to do some research before he can promise to clone Beverly! |
| Phil Cross, CCIB, Barcelona | This nomination is essentially an apology to Phil. During his investigations into the IMEX Frankfurt kidnapping this year, Poirot Bear accused Phil of being implicated! Jose Luis and the team at Ovation Spain have since “hugged and made up”. |
| Richard Elliott, Ignite Magazine, Canada | Richard, who publishes Canada's MICE magazine, is being recognised for his education-focused contribution to the Site board of directors. A key part of the Canadian MICE scene, this true Canadian is quietly effective, honourable, hard-working and always looking for ways to communicate the value of our industry. |
| Kelly Porter, Manulife Financial, Canada | A proud guardian of an Ovation Bear cub, Kelly is described as “wonderful to work with, professional and always fun. Her ability to manage a heavy workload is an example to us all.” |
| Susanne Thun, Ovation Copenhagen | She is huggable because she is clever, a fabulous project manager, she never cries when she has done a great job and doesn’t get the bid, she never complains and she is a loveable colleague. |
| Mark Ragan, CEO of Lawrence Ragan Communications | Mark is huggable because the tips, analysis and stories from Ragan's PR Daily are not only of immense value and relevance to corporate communications executives but presented in such an engaging, easy to read style I often find myself laughing out loud as the faux pas ring dangerously close to the bone! |
| Joern Lucht, conworld.net | He is huggable for consistently delivering a hugely informative and relevant daily compilation of the latest global industry developments to meeting industry professionals via the conworld.net online news tracker. |
| Martin Lewis, CAT Publications | Martin is huggable because he has big balls, big brains and a huge heart |