Well done to all involved in what was truly an incredible opening ceremony last night for the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games. The Alexander Stadium came to life and has put the UK, specifically Birmingham, on the map for delivering world-class events.
It’s been ten years since the London 2012 Summer Olympics, which was a spectacular performance for its time. Last night demonstrated the desire to equally captivate an audience, with a perfect combination of mechanics, technology, and emotionally human performance.
From the giant bull, and centre stage screens, to the dancers – all wonderfully inclusive, and choreographed to tell a story of the region’s history, development, and hope.
Over the next 10 days, we’ll see more of Birmingham’s amazing venues come to life as the games take place. Some of our favourite venues that we know and love, such as The NEC, Birmingham, Edgbaston Stadium, Coventry Building Society Arena, and many more, will be hosting a range of sports. And I’m also excited to see the Sandwell Aquatics Centre – the only brand-new venue built for the Games. I understand this venue will be re-configured post games, so it will be interesting to see if it’s one we can use for meetings and event spaces in the future.
Finally, with the excitement of the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games, let’s not forget that the Lionesses will be taking to the stage again on Sunday as they face Germany in the Women’s Euros Final. Good luck, ladies; you have already made the nation proud!
This Monday’s Insights (July 25th) feature brings you the industry headlines you may have missed from the last week.
Headlines
Tourism boards in England are to undergo a £4m radical restructuring as the Government aims to make it easier for planners to discover the country’s destinations.
According to a feature on M&IT, the Government wants a “simpler structure where tourism boards, otherwise known as destination management organisations (DMOs), are a one-stop shop for visitors to find all they need to know about a local area.”
The £4 million will fund a pilot – in one region – of a new accreditation scheme to highlight the best DMOs, which will be renamed Local Visitor Economy Partnerships (LVEPs).
The funding will also be used to create a pilot in one region of the country, giving one top-tier DMO or a group of local DMOs the opportunity and investment to restructure under a new model, to show the best their region has to offer.
The changes follow last year’s independent review into DMOs, carried out by the chair of VisitEngland’s advisory board Nick de Bois. The review found the DMO landscape to be overly complex, making it confusing for tourists planning breaks and businesses looking to invest.
De Bois recommended a tiering model for DMOs, including multi-year core funding. Tourism minister Nigel Huddleston said:
“Whilst I realise it will be disappointing that we aren’t rolling out the de Bois funding proposals nationwide at this point, we also need to be as confident as we can be that public sector investment will be value for money.
“De Bois highlights that there are gaps in information on existing DMO performance and the evidence that has been collected suggests the DMO structures in some parts of England are not currently mature enough to take on significant public funds. Furthermore, we need more robust evidence that state funding of Destination Development Partnerships drives up private sector investment and growth.
“My hope is that our pilot will serve as a proof of concept which, when combined with the rollout of the accreditation system, will give us the information we need to proceed with confidence at a national level.”
As enquiries for hybrid events decrease, venues across Coventry and Warwickshire have seen a return to in-person meetings, conferences and exhibitions.
Conference Coventry and Warwickshire, the region’s convention bureau, surveyed venues from across the region, including Coventry Building Society Arena, Coventry Conferences, Warwick Conferences, British Motor Museum, Telegraph Hotel, Eliot Park Innovation Centre and IXL Events Centre.
One venue, in particular, reported that 75% of enquiries favour face-to-face over hybrid events.
Toby Batchelor, head of commerce, British Motor Museum, said: “Hybrid is still an element of conference and exhibition delivery, but I think it is now being used more as an extension for organisers rather than the focus.”
Paul Jones, managing director, Conference Coventry and Warwickshire, commented: “There has been a huge desire from people to get back to face-to-face events and the inevitable impact of that has been a reduction in enquiries for hybrid events.
“The return to face-to-face events is fantastic for our visitor economy and we have a varied portfolio of venues for event organisers to choose from in Coventry and Warwickshire.”
The Independent Print Industries Association (IPIA) will tackle sustainability at its Autumn Conference on September 1 at the Manufacturing Technology Centre (MTC).
The event’s theme is ‘Print in Balance – Supporting People and our Planet’ and will tackle wellbeing at work alongside environmental sustainability.
Andrew Harrison, director of the Event Services and Suppliers Association (ESSA), asks, what does ‘industry standard’ really mean, why do we need standards, and how can we uphold them, especially when the going gets tough?
In an opinion piece for M&IT, Harrison examines why standards matter, especially when under pressure. And with the events industry being so busy, the current shorter lead times and staffing issues, there has never been a more appropriate time to discuss the topic.
ICC Wales has hosted a Protect Duty Roundtable to highlight the role venues and event organisers play in ensuring they are as safe and secure as possible for attendees.
Following ICC Wales’ Protect Duty Report, the roundtable aimed to strengthen the events sector’s response to forthcoming legislation.
The new legislation, also known as Martyn’s Law, will formalize the responsibilities and actions that publicly accessible places must take to mitigate the risk of a terrorist attack.
Heather Lishman, executive director of the Association of British Professional Conference Organizers (ABPCO), said the discussions helped ease some of the uncertainty and anxiety surrounding the new legislation. She continued:
“Protect Duty can sound quite formal and scary, but ultimately protecting someone should be seen as a very positive message – it’s a caring cause, keeping people safe from harm. If we as all stakeholders work together and work out the potential harms together, hopefully we can mitigate the risk as a team effort. ”
I am pleased to see a confirmed date for when we will have a new Prime Minister to lead our country, and I hope there will be a focus on making Britain a place for people to do business, visit, work, and live.
I firmly believe that there should be a focus on rebuilding. The new Government must have an outward-looking approach rather than the existing inward-looking we have endured these past few years.
Hopefully, the new Government will get this right under whomever it may be. They must rebuild the trust of the country through their achievements.
They could look to our industry for an example. Brought to its knees during Covid, meetings and events were rejuvenated through virtual and hybrid events when needed. And we’re now thriving with live events being so busy again. One example is the fantastic summer of sports events ahead.
The Commonwealth Games is kicking off in Birmingham next week, and how proud the Lionesses are making us by reaching the Semi-finals of the Women’s Euros – another fantastic tournament held on home turf. Both worldwide watched events are putting Britain on the map and showcasing some amazing stadiums across the country and how well we can deliver world-class events.
The future should look at building the economy however needed. This will provide solutions to most of the country’s challenges. Whether that will happen is a different question. The two potential leaders of the current party with power have incredibly different views on rebuilding.
Liz Truss is all for significant and immediate tax cuts, claiming they’re needed to avoid recession and jumpstart our economy – and that ‘economic orthodoxy’ of all governments over the past 20 years was wrong. Meanwhile, Rishi Sunak staunchly believes that tax cuts would be inflationary and that we must wait for them.
No matter who wins, it will be a tough job. The industry will have little choice but to work with what we end up with to succeed. And let’s face it, that’s pretty much this industry’s story of the last few years!
This Monday’s Insights feature brings you the industry headlines you may have missed from the last week.
Headlines
Europe’s Events Market is set to be valued at USD $123.9 Billion by 2030, according to a report published by Allied Market Research. The report offers an extensive analysis of key growth strategies, drivers, opportunities, key segment, Porter’s Five Forces analysis, and competitive landscape.
According to coverage of the report in Digital Journal, the corporate sector offers various opportunities for event management companies to contribute to huge revenue generation, which, in turn, augments the growth of the Europe events market.
Digital Journal claims ‘The growth of the events industry is majorly driven by upsurge in frequency of corporate meetings, conferences, tradeshows/exhibitions, and other events. Furthermore, the presence of developed infrastructure and increased adoption of advanced technology in Europe has fueled the growth of the Europe events industry.’
NewcastleGateshead Convention Bureau has reported signs of recovery for the meetings and events industry in the North East.
From April 2019 to April 2022, the convention bureau has facilitated a 73% increase in confirmed enquiries for meetings, events and conferences, with figures from May this year almost at full recovery from 2019. This is the highest performing month for value of confirmed business in six years.
May figures reflect a steady path to full recovery, coming in at 87% pre-covid levels despite the industry being disproportionately affected by the pandemic.
NewcastleGateshead Convention Bureau, part of NewcastleGateshead Initiative (NGI), work with established partnerships and local academia to help bring meetings, events and conferences to the region.
Paul Szomoru, Director of Business Events, NGI said: “The figures we have received are very encouraging for the steady recovery of the meetings and event sector, and are also testament to the resilience, collaboration and innovation of our team and each and every venue, ambassador and supplier across the region.
“Having a healthy pipeline of events is crucial to the sustainability of the sector and the recovery and growth of the local visitor economy, by filling our hotels, venues, restaurants and attractions, increasing visitor numbers and spend and supporting jobs across the industry.
“It’s a very exciting time for meetings and events in Newcastle, with the opening of the brand-new Sage ICC in 2024. The development is already proving to be a game-changer in the industry, by enabling us to target and attract bigger international events, more national and international delegates and ultimately working towards positioning NewcastleGateshead as the world’s meeting place.”
Meeting Professionals International, the meetings and events industry association is unveiling an corporate docuseries on the resurgence of professional meetings and events and the professionals behind the scenes that make it a success.
Experience Professionals: Inside the Industry that Brings People Together explores the relationship between in-person gatherings and events and the many benefits to business acceleration. The irreplaceable human connections that define us are reliant on the coming together of people—live and in-person—to shape and enhance us and our communities. Whether you attend or facilitate, live event experiences provide immeasurable human value and opportunity to everyone involved.
Presented and narrated by former GMA and CBS Today Show Correspondent Taryn Winter Brill, “Experience Professionals: Inside the Industry that Brings People Together” will explore these issues, capturing stories from the people and organizations who work across the meetings and events industry. The program will show how through effective collaboration and education and with the right people, technology, locations, and facilities, industry professionals can deliver meetings that matter.
The program is presented by Meeting Professionals International (MPI) and produced by dBase Media (DBM). Based in Dallas, TX, MPI is the largest meeting and event industry association worldwide and provides innovative and relevant education, networking opportunities and business exchanges.
“MPI believes that ‘when we meet, we change the world,’” said Paul Van Deventer, president and CEO of MPI. “And the evidence of this industry’s impact on driving innovation, technology, learning and advancement is clear — meetings and events have long been among the top contributors for worldwide economic impact, directly responsible for over $1 trillion in spending and 10.3 million jobs.”
MEETINGS 2023 is set to be held in New Zealand’s Tākina Wellington Conference and Exhibition Centre for the first time, Business Events Industry Aotearoa (BEIA) has told Conference and Meetings World.
BEIA chief executive Lisa Hopkins said: “Tākina’s opening in June 2023 is perfect timing for New Zealand business events to showcase in a new destination.”
With delays and cancelled flights wreaking havoc on travel, what can event planners do to ensure keynote speakers, VIPs, and others make it to their events on time?
This article in Skift Meetings discusses how pent-up demand, staff shortages, strikes, and Covid have led to delays, cancellations, and disruptions. And it cover the implications if a speaker misses a gig due to travel delays and what can be done to mitigate losses?
Business travel will be crucial to the travel industry’s recovery from the pandemic. Yet, when it comes to sustainability, business travel is a big part of the problem, according to a Reuters report.
The report claims that with so few sustainable alternatives to traditional jet fuel, and none expected until after 2030, just 1% of people cause half of all aviation emissions (European non-governmental organisation (NGO) Transport & Environment).
Sustainability and travel are important overlapping factors with meetings and event strategies; read the feature in full here.
This Monday’s Insights feature brings you the industry headlines you may have missed from the last week.
Headlines
The Meetings Industry Association has reacted to UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s resignation.
Kerrin MacPhie, chief executive of the mia, said: “We feel that Boris Johnson’s resignation potentially provides an opportunity for the business meetings and events sector as it really feels like wholesale change is in the air.
“Despite the distractions of the inevitable leadership challenge and subsequent ministerial appointments, we may potentially witness positive change such as visa conditions and immigration rules being relaxed. This will assist us to attract the much-needed workforce that left the UK post-Brexit and help business meetings and events thrive, providing much confidence to all – both domestically and internationally.”
She added: “We will have to see how things unfold but what is clear is that collaboration and staying connected as a sector has never been more important.”
Butlin’s is tackling the hospitality skills shortage with a new Chef Academy designed to train, coach and validate current team and new starters to the standard required to operate in all catering venues at its three resorts.
Mark Murphy, Butlin’s, said: “The Chef Academy has been years in the making and we have already welcomed two cohorts of chefs who have worked on several different conferences and events ranging from small events to large corporate gala dinners.”
EDGE Venues’ CEO, Jacqui Kavanagh, joined the panel at Beam’s instant book summit last week.
The instant book summit, which took place DoubleTree by Hilton Oxford Belfry, brought together every type of organisation from across the industry interested in digitalising meetings and event bookings.
The event explored the future of venue finding and booking and saw Jacqui participate in thought-provoking content, opening minds as our industry is navigating a new world.
Senior professionals from agencies and travel management companies will came together with hotel and venue groups, independent hotels and venues, many specialist venues and a wide range of specialist technology providers to shine a light on the issues and the way forward.
Event industry recruiter, Robert Kenward, has shared a guide on recruiting and retaining Millennials with Conference News.
Those born between 1981 and 1996 were apparently the second-largest age group to leave the workforce during the pandemic. So how do we attract and retain need next-generation employees?
Robert covers everything you need to know, including, why people should stop using the term ‘Millennials, or Gen Y, or whichever name clumsily pigeonholes nearly two decades of wildly different people into one handy, but lazy and misleading, description.’
Double Take
Tom Bairstow ofNorthHouse has shared how the 2022 Platinum Party at the Palace projection mapping, video design and direction, screen visuals and broadcast graphics came together.
The Creative Director and Founder told Event Industry News how the company ‘delivered unique and dazzling results which transformed Buckingham Palace into the largest projector screen in the world in a show broadcasted to millions globally.’
This Monday’s Insights feature brings you the industry headlines you may have missed from the last week.
Headlines
Conference & Incentive Travel (C&IT)’s State Of The Industry Corporate report 2022 has looked at why retaining staff is a rising challenge.
Almost half of those surveyed (47%) for the report said it would be difficult to retain talent in the next year.
And one respondent believes it could be down to people moving on from that weren’t right for them, but were taken out of necessity. “After the pandemic lots of eventprofs were forced to move roles and did not necessarily get one that’s the best fit so people are still reshuffling looking for a longer-term role.”
The annual report was discussed in detail at a roundtable event. Here, it was noted that one planner felt there was a growing trend of in-house event organisers being replaced by agencies. ‘Many companies relied on agencies and other external suppliers during the pandemic to help them deliver virtual events, and this could well be an ongoing post-pandemic approach.’
From market saturation to self-improvement and beyond, take a look at what survey respondents say about why staff shortages are impacting the sector in the 2022 report here.
Conference News has shared that £117m worth of events were covered under the Government insurance scheme
The scheme, aimed at helping ‘plan events with confidence’ was said to be worth over £750 million during it’s launch by Chancellor Rishi Sunak on August 5 2021.
Center Parcs reopening conference and event spaces at two of its UK locations from September following their closure due to the pandemic.
According to a report in BTN Europe, the Venue meetings space at Woburn Forest in Bedfordshire, which has undergone a £2.5 million upgrade in the past two years, and Sherwood Forest in Nottinghamshire will reopen for corporate groups in the autumn.’
It’s ‘nature-rich escapes’ are already in high demand, as Center Parcs told BNT that ‘bookings for conferences and events had already exceeded pre-Covid levels and enquiries from booking agents were now up by 10 per cent compared with 2019.’
EIC has launched an enhanced framework for sustainable events.
Exhibition News told readers the Events Industry Council’s (EIC) Sustainable Event Standards is comprised of eight standards ‘designed to assess events and industry suppliers in support of environmental and social responsibility.’
Originally created in 2019 to replace the APEX/ASTM Environmentally Sustainable Meeting Standards, the Sustainable Event Standards provide guidance and metrics for event professionals at all stages of their sustainability journey.
Malaysia’s Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre has seen a significant increase in demand for in-person events, with up to 127 global meetings (51 conventions and 76 exhibitions) booked at the venue from 2022 to 2024.
Alan Pryor, the Centre’s General Manager, told Kongres Magazine:
“We definitely are seeing an improvement in Malaysia’s business events landscape after two years, which were heavily impacted by the pandemic. Malaysia as a destination has demonstrated its capability to create a safe environment for business events moving forward and the strength and resilience of its supply chain and logistics, showcasing flexibility and agility in the face of a global crisis.”
