2023 ROMBA Conference - Corporate Partner FAQs

ROMBA Conference registration opened on June 1. Please use this link to register. Each registrant in your company must register individually, as each person must select dietary restrictions, access needs, and agree to the code of conduct, waiver, and more. Please use your company discount code which is YOURCOMPANYNAME23. This code is only good for the number of full registrations included in your partnership level.

If you wish to purchase additional conference registrations with your discount, please use the code as follows – ROMBA102023 for 10% off (Expo), ROMBA202023 for 20% off (Garnet, Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald), ROMBA302023 for 30% off (Diamond), or ROMBA502023 for 50% off (Underwriter). Registration prices are as follows: $750 (Early Bird); $850 (After Labor Day); or, $1,000 (Within One Week of Event). A Career Expo Only Pass is $100. 

Please use this link to register for a Career Expo Only registration. Once there, use the discount code ROMBAEXPO2023 to sign up for only the number of these passes allocated to your partnership (Garnet, Ruby, Sapphire – 1; Emerald – 2; Diamond, Underwriter –  3). Please note that “Career Expo Only” means that this person has no access to any meals, workshops, or any other parts of the conference.

All discount codes are case-sensitive. If you have an issue with conference registration, please email Sadiyah Rashied at srashied@reachingoutmba.org. 

Yes, we have a calendar for our partners, complete with all of our events, milestones, and deadlines. Our calendar is maintained as a Google sheet here. While we recognize some of you may not have access due to your company’s firewalls, we encourage you to contact your IT team for access. 

The ROMBA 2023 Career Expo will be held in Salon D on the Lower Level of the Hilton Chicago. Please view your booth assignments here and the Expo Hall map here.

The map and booth assignments will be available to all conference attendees in our conference program and mobile app.

If you still have not heard from GES, please reach out to them via email.

We have selected GES as our third-party drayage company and exhibitor decorator. They will handle logistics, booth build, and material handling/shipping and receiving. GES is the exclusive vendor for material handling if you plan to ship anything to the expo that you cannot hand carry into the hall.  GES has automatically created accounts for all of our exhibitors, so if you are ready to manage your show freight, or if you require booth set-up, extra tables, or any other services, please click here. The GES portal will give you all of the show logistics information, material handling rates, and is the main hub to confirm your details, generate shipping and receiving labels and find out more about their offerings.

Please note that shipping booth elements directly to the show site is NOT an option for this event. You will need to coordinate advance shipping with GES through the above site.

If you are hiring a third-party vendor (Exhibitor Appointed Contractor or EAC) to manage your expo booth, you will need to complete a form in the GES portal here. EACs will need to provide Certificate of Insurance in order to enter the hall. 

If you would like to add AV, power, or any electric / lighting elements, they will be managed through the hotel’s in-house team. GES will be able to connect you to the right contact to confirm your needs.

Please check the exhibitor move-in and move-out dates and time here.

If you or anyone from your company’s Talent Acquisition team would like to sign up for the GradLeaders platform, please use this link to establish a new company contact as part of your company. If it’s your first time using the platform, please click the link “1st time user? Create Account.” Additionally, Reaching Out MBA and GradLeaders hosted a training session for our Corporate Partners in July. Click here to view the recorded training session. 

The designated meal table covers either our Friday breakfast, Friday lunch, or Saturday dinner. Each table seats ten (10) people. When you arrive at the meal(s) you designated as your choice, you will see your company’s name on the table. Please feel free to use our student interest report, GradLeaders, or other tools you are using to extend invitations to students or alumni to join you at your table. This is a good way to get to know our registrants better. Reaching Out MBA reserves the right to seat additional registrants at your table, if there are any unfilled seats at the start of the meal. Table assignments can be found here and a map of the banquet hall will be available during the week of the conference.

If an Interview Booth is a part of your selected benefits, you may use your booth(s) during the following time frames: Friday, October 6th from 8:00am – 6:00pm, and on Saturday, October 7th from 8:00am – 2:00pm. The booth(s) will be located in a pre-designated area. Each semi-private booth space is an 8’x8’ draped area with three (3) chairs, a small table, and signage on the exterior to designate that space as yours. Interview booth assignments can be found here and the map can be found here.

As a Corporate Partner, we would also like to share the 2023 ROMBA Fellows resume book with you. The CVs of our 2023 ROMBA Fellows can be found here.

The Networking Lounge, presented by 3M, is appropriate for professional networking, small group meet-ups, affinity groups, a coffee chat, and/or work space for individuals and small groups (up to six folks). Reaching Out MBA will offer featured coffee breaks in this space as follows: Friday from 10:15am – 11:15am (presented by PwC) and Saturday from 10:00am – 11:00am (presented by LEK). This engaging and flexible space is located in the Waldorf Room on the third floor of the hotel. Come take a picture with new friends in front of our step-and-repeat and celebrate our Queer Renaissance conference theme.

If you partner with Reaching Out MBA at the Garnet level or higher, you may receive one or more of the aforementioned benefits. Please use this link to access our online Corporate Partner Social Media form. The form allows you to share your text and visual assets, add a link, and choose which platforms you would like to target – e.g., Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, and IG. This benefit may be used at any time during the year, not just during the conference season. Additionally, our form allows you to schedule a post in advance for your convenience. Please use this link to submit a job posting that will be included in our next digital distribution. Please use this link to upload your newsletter ad. And, finally, you may use this link to send us the information for your event or company spotlight (for Emerald, Diamond, and Underwriter partners only).

We have been notified that, at this time, all the rooms reserved for our Corporate Partners at the Hilton Chicago are sold out. The demand for accommodations is high due to the Chicago marathon occurring the same weekend as the ROMBA Conference. If you are planning on attending the conference and have not secured a hotel reservation, search for hotel availability via our trusted partner aRes Travel.

Alternatively, you may also book your rooms through travel sites such as Expedia and Trivago. We apologize for any inconvenience, and we appreciate your partnership in managing your accommodations.

You can find the full aRes link here: https://reservations.arestravel.com/hotel/list/18374?Search%5BhotelRegion%5D=i4630&Search%5BcheckInDate%5D=10%2F05%2F2023&Search%5BcheckOutDate%5D=10%2F08%2F2023&Search%5BroomOccupancies%5D%5B0%5D%5BnumberOfAdults%5D=1&Search%5BroomOccupancies%5D%5B0%5D%5BnumberOfChildren%5D=0&Search%5BkeywordSearch%5D=&Search%5Bsort%5D=&Search%5BstarRating%5D=&Search%5BlowPrice%5D=&Search%5BhighPrice%5D=&Search%5Bsearch%5D=&customNavLink=0&Search%5Bnear%5D=&Search%5Blatitude%5D=&Search%5Blongitude%5D=&Search%5BlocationSearch%5D=&Search%5BpoiDistance%5D=2

Book online or call 1-800-559-3186 for assistance | International callers 1-619-546-5773

aRes Travel is a third-party travel planner. Rates, deposits, and cancellation policies may vary and are the responsibility of the guest. Questions on hotel policies or payments made on aRes website should be directed to the aRes Reservation Center or to the hotel directly.

If you are a partner with Reaching Out MBA at the Ruby level or above, you are eligible to include a partner gift in the conference gift bag. This bag will be distributed to all attendees at the 2023 ROMBA conference; we estimate 1,400 bags to be given out.

Please email Sadiyah Rashied at srashied@reachingoutmba.org and Julie Miller at jmiller@reachingoutmba.org if you are interested in sending a partner gift and what you would like to include. The deadline to receive items for the conference gift bag is Friday, September 29. If you do not meet this deadline you may no longer be eligible for this benefit.

The shipping address is:

GES c/o Tradeshow Transportation                                                                                                                                                                                       ROMBA 2023 Mgmt Freight – Registration
2300 S. Throop St.
Chicago, IL  60608

*It is important that it says MGMT freight on the package

Once you have sent the items to the address above, please email Sadiyah and Julie the carrier and tracking info (i.e. FedEx/UPS tracking numbers), if you have them. We especially need to know if something is being sent by private freight on pallets.

If your company receives one or more speaking opportunities, please use this link to nominate potential speakers. The list of available speaking opportunities is a part of the form and our agenda is available here. Please note that speaking opportunities are no longer guaranteed. You can maximize your chances of acquiring a speaking placement by helping us achieve our DEI goals. For more information, go here. The final deadline was Friday, September 15. After that date, we may accept submissions and make placements, only if Reaching Out MBA has a need for particular speaker placement. Separately, as they are confirmed, we will include a unique link and discount code for speakers to register. Your speaker registration(s) is/are separate from your full conference registrations. Selected speakers can be viewed here.

Please refer to your corporate partnership package (and invoice) to see if you’re eligible for – and selected – an ad in our conference program as part of your benefits. Please note that the following specs are specific to ROMBA; please do not use an existing ad without checking the specs. The final deadline was Wednesday, September 6. Please send all ads to Sadiyah Rashied at srashied@reachingoutmba.org. Once the deadline has passed, you will not be eligible to receive this benefit.

Specs for a full-page ad are:

– CMYK

– 300 DPI

– no crop marks

– Final size is 8.5”W x 11”H

– Full bleed is 8.75”W x 11.25”H

– Fonts outlined

– Linked image included (if not flattened file)

Specs for a half-page ad are:

– CMYK

– 300 DPI

– no crop marks

– Final size is 8.5”W x 5.5”H

– Full bleed is 8.75”W x 5.75”H

– Fonts outlined

– Linked image included (if not flattened file)

As students register for our conference, they may select your company as one of particular interest to them. A specially generated link will enable you to access your Student Interest Report. Each time you download the report, it will be updated dynamically as new students register and pick your company. You should have received your company’s link from Sadiyah Rashied, but if you have not, you may email her at srashied@reachingoutmba.org.

If you missed the meeting you can view it on YouTube here. The recording is approximately 45 minutes and covers partner benefits such as GradLeaders and student interest reports, public and private company receptions, and logistics including how to book a sub-block of rooms.