James E. Jones was a meeting planner and trainer. He wrote articles and regular columns about professional meeting management, he was a co-founder of several meeting planners’ organizations in the United States, and he was named one of 20 people to have made a “major difference” in the meeting industry. He wrote two books, *Meeting Management: A Professional Approach,* and *Incentive Travel: The Professional Way.* His work focused on the role of the meeting planner as that of a financial manager with responsibility for both the investment of the company and the expense of people’s time. Ensuring a worthwhile return on investment in both categories is tantamount to conducting a successful meeting.