Author: Toni

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.

Check out the Conference News feature for analysis of the event covered, and comments from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS).

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.’

Read the news here.

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.

Find out more about the changes here, which include :

• Foundations Level
• Improved Ease of Use and Expanded Criteria
• Integrated Property Standard
• New Certification Cadence
• Clearly Defined Roles

Doubletake

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.”

Read the report here.

This Monday’s Insights feature brings you the industry headlines you may have missed from the last week.

Headlines

A collaborative design team will deliver a multi-million-pound renewal of the Barbican Centre. 

According to Conference News, the project’ aims to provide new opportunities for the Barbican’s community of artists, audiences, organisers, delegates and partners, as well as boost the building’s accessibility and environmental performance.’

The winning team includes architects Allies and Morrison; Asif Khan Studio; engineering and sustainability consultancy – Buro Happold; heritage experts from Alan Baxter Ltd; theatre, acoustic, and digital consultancy, Charcoalblue; landscape architects, Hood Design Studio, lighting design agency, les éclaireurs, and artistic advisors Isaac Julien and Nadia Fall.

Read more about the £50m-£150m project, the team’s experience, and thoughts from Jackie Boughton, head of business events, Barbican, here.

ABPCO has welcomed new joint chairs. The Association of British Professional Conference Organisers AGM, which took place digitally on Tuesday, 21 June, and saw Emma Duffy and Sarah Byrne begin their two-year tenure as joint chairs of the association.

The online AGM was attended by over 60 ABPCO members, who joined to hear details of the association’s recent successes and future plans.

The incoming chairs thanked the previous chairs for their achievements before outlining their ambitious plans for the coming years, which focus on five key pillars.

Read more about the five pillars, alongside the AMG’s focus on ABPCO’s core values, here.

Patricia Yates has been appointed as CEO of VisitBritain/VisitEngland, following a competitive external recruitment process.

Previously Director of Strategy and Communications at VisitBritain, Patricia was also Chair of the Tourism Industry Emergency Response Group and deputy CEO.

VisitBritain/VisitEngland CEO Patricia Yates said: “I am honoured to be appointed permanent CEO and will be continuing our focus on building back visitor spend as quickly as possible, supporting the industry and driving the visitor recovery, playing our part to deliver the ambitions of the UK Government’s Tourism Recovery Plan.

“I look forward to continuing to working with all our stakeholders with a strong focus on external engagement, rebuilding our industry to ensure it is one of the most successful and productive sectors of the economy and to making the strongest possible case for one of the UK’s greatest sectors.”

Doubletake

isla, the sustainability body for the events industry, is hosting its first forum to engage UK venues in accelerating the transition to Net-Zero and creating a sustainable destinations for events.

The forum will include senior representatives and sustainability leads from a group of prominent UK venues all working towards the sustainable industry goal.

Participating venues are ExCeL London, ICC Wales, De Vere, Edinburgh International Conference Centre and Manchester Central. The Association of Event Venues, VisitBritain and membership organisation Unique Venues of London will also take part in the forum.

Read more about the event, and comments from Anna Abdelnoor, co-founder, isla, on mitmagazine.co.uk.

This Monday’s Insights feature brings you the industry headlines you may have missed from the last week.

Headlines

ICCA (International Congress and Convention Association) has released its annual analysis of association meetings worldwide. 

The latest ICCA Ranking Report examines 8000 meetings scheduled for 2021 and categorises them based on how the COVID-19 pandemic impacted the meetings. The report also compares last year’s affected meetings with ICCA’s analysis of meetings in 2020. 

After a hiatus in 2020, ICCA Rankings have returned to the 2021 ICCA’s Destination Performance Index (DPI). The DPI ranks destinations’ success in winning the original bid, COVID-19 event policies, adaptability and technological capabilities to convert on-site events into virtual or hybrid events – thereby maintaining business continuation.

“Now that the global meetings industry has had more time to adapt to the challenges of the pandemic, we wanted to acknowledge and reward the effort of destinations to not only keep these crucial meetings going but also to improve their business operations. The investments that destinations have made in new technologies, partnerships, and advocacy initiatives will continue to drive our industry forward,” 

ICCA CEO Senthil Gopinath

He continued, “Although we have yet to return to pre-pandemic numbers, we have gained significant ground on the road to full recovery. Further, we have transformed the meetings industry in the process.”  

The report reveals that the year 2021 brought out a “show must go on” mentality in the industry. For example, the market share of virtual and hybrid meetings doubled in just one year. Business continuation also increased by 30% while business cancellation dropped from 61% to 31%. 

“This report delivers a more holistic representation of the pandemic’s impact on association meetings globally. Moreover, it reveals strong and definitive signs of progressive recovery for the industry,” Gopinath said. 

The full 2021 ICCA Ranking (Destination Performance Index [DPI]) is available to ICCA members and complements ICCA’s online Destination Comparison Tool (DCT). 

M&IT Magazine has spoken to Kerrin MacPhie about the Meetings Industry Association’s (mia) Connect Day heading to Liverpool.

The mia’s latest Connect Day takes place at Liverpool’s Titanic Hotel on Tuesday 12 July. mia chief executive, Kerrin MacPhie, told M&IT that the destination was chosen to provide “accessible networking opportunities for professionals working across various UK regions.” 

The mia Connect Days aims to create a peer-to-peer space for open discussion, insight, solution sharing and support. Allowing delegates to immerse themselves in an intimate series of discussions to gain crucial insights and ask burning questions, to the benefit of all attendees.

View the day’s agenda or register, here.

EFS Europe’s Managing Director has spoken to Event Industry News about the sustainability of temporary event flooring products for events.

EFS Europe’s temporary event flooring products are widely used across the event industry, and this feature explains what happens to them at their end of life cycle. 

“We are finding that there are increasing pressures to provide sustainable products to reduce the event industry’s carbon footprint. Both our walkway and roadway products can be made from recycled materials and can be recycled. They are manufactured in polypropylene, which means they can be ground down into pellets and repurposed. To further reduce carbon emissions, we also have 7500sqm of event flooring in Scotland to service events with a local crew to install.”

Read more about EFS Europe’s mission to be as environmentally friendly as possible, and how the company works with manufacturers globally to produce, supply & recycle their event carpet. 

In a further Event Industry News sustainability-focused article, PDC puts the spotlight on badges, lanyards & ticketing.

Focusing on the need for eco-friendly and sustainable products, the organisation has introduced many new products. Check out the full feature here.

Doubletake

Camaraderie, optimism and fortitude mark 20 years of IMEX in Frankfurt. The first IMEX in Frankfurt since 2019 proved to be a momentous occasion for the global meetings, events and incentive travel industry this week. It was marked by an outpouring of camaraderie, celebration and, most importantly, business. 

After an enforced break of three years due to the pandemic, this IMEX show was always going to feel special. The question was, how special? Feedback from exhibitors and buyers made that abundantly clear. Day one saw Messe Frankfurt land two unexpected contracts, an endorsement of the team’s decision to exhibit on their own stand for the first time in 20 years and to promote their venue more assertively. 

Throughout the IMEX education programme, many presentations focused on future trends, current behaviours and changes to ‘industry norms’. Shorter sales cycles; an emphasis on sustainability; niche, highly targeted events plus shorter meetings and events are all forecast, and desired by attendees. Wellness is now front and centre, with a change in the story: an end-to-end duty of care to attendees, including consideration for their mental health, rather than a traditional focus on smoothies for breakfast or morning yoga, although both are expected too. 

Check out EDGE Venues’ representative’s view of IMEX Frankfurt on our Instagram reels.

This Monday’s Insights feature brings you the industry headlines you may have missed from the previous week.

Headlines

Bradford has been crowned UK City of Culture 2025, taking on the prestigious title from Coventry UK City of Culture 2021.

Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries approved the winner based on independent advice from a panel of experts led by TV writer-producer Sir Phil Redmond. The experts visited each of the four shortlisted places, including County Durham, Southampton and Wrexham County Borough, to learn more about the bids before making their final recommendation.

Bradford will now receive £275,000 in initial seed funding to ensure the city can hit the ground running and get the wheels in motion early as it develops its plans for 2025. This grant will help pave the way for a year of unforgettable cultural activities and events.

Bradford is a young and vibrant city with a rich heritage. Its impressive bid drew upon its wide range of local cultural assets, including the Bronte Parsonage, Saltaire UNESCO World Heritage Site and the National Science and Media Museum.

The city is also investing in its future cultural assets. It secured £20 million from the Levelling Up fund to invest in the Squire Lane Wellbeing and Enterprise Centre. And it is using a £4 million DCMS grant to redevelop the Bradford Odeon into a 4,000-seat live music and entertainment venue: ‘Bradford Live’.

Find out more here.

Jane Longhurst has been awarded for an OBE for her services to the business events sector in Her Majesty The Queen’s Birthday Honours’ List.

Before her retirement from her role as chief executive of the Meetings Industry Association (mia) in November, Jane was the driving force behind the trade association, committed to championing, collaborating with and uniting the many different parts of the sector while also advocating best practice to raise industry standards.

The honour particularly recognises Jane’s role during the pandemic, working around the clock leading a simultaneous government, media and member relations strategy, where she provided insight, clarity and guidance alongside a comprehensive suite of business support tools that were signposted by government.

“There were so many incredible people working tirelessly throughout the pandemic pulling out every stop in support of the industry, so to have been singled out with an honour is extremely humbling. This recognition alongside the unanimous supportive feedback from members and high retention rates during my time at the mia would not have been possible without the dedication and commitment of the wider mia team.”  

Jane Longhurst

Read more on M&IT.

How big are the event supply chain’s current challenges? M&IT editor Paul Harvey talks to Andrew Harrison, director of the Event Supplier and Services Association (ESSA) about the current challenges, whether it can be characterised as a crisis, and what the future holds.

Listen here.

The frequency of multilingual meetings and events is increasing, but the use of translation to bridge the language gap remains low.

To better understand how companies are addressing multilingual meeting and event collaboration challenges, Wordly commissioned a comprehensive global study to identify current practices and future industry trends.

The resulting 2022 State of Multilingual Collaboration found that Sales and Marketing professionals responsible for planning and managing multilingual meetings and events want to increase inclusivity and engagement in order to reach more global employees, customers, and partners.

Language barriers are recognized as an obstacle, even when participants speak some English. Human-powered interpretation solutions are still popular, but there is a growing demand for technology powered solutions like AI-powered translation. Some key findings from the research are summarized below:

• 77% of Corporate Meeting and Event Planners Report an Increase in Multilingual Attendees (English is not their primary language)
• Over the Past Year – 72% Expect the Trend to Continue Next Year
• 60% Typically See 6 or More Languages Spoken – 23% See 11 or More Languages
• 95% of Corporate Meeting and Event Planners Have Some Experience Using Interpretation and Translation at Their Events – 76% Report Their Usage Is Increasing But 42% Have Limited or No Experience
• Interpretation Is Used at Both In-Person Events (79%) and Virtual Events (61%)
• Only 33% Report They Regularly Offer Interpretation.

Download the full report, here.

Double Take

TV personality Linda Papadopoulos has been announced for C&IT’s inaugural Festival of Forums. Linda will open the main day of content on Thursday 28 July.

Dr Linda Papadopoulos is one of the best-known and well-respected psychologists in the UK. An author, broadcaster and academic, she combines professional research on human behaviour and trends with the ability to deliver advice and insights in accessible, relevant ways. 

Linda will be talking to event planners about how to apply psychology to the design of event agendas, to maximise engagement and meaningful experiences.

Festival of Forums takes place from 26-29 July at the SEC, Glasgow. For more information, and to secure your place to hear Linda speak, click here.

This Monday’s Insights feature brings you the industry headlines you may have missed from the previous week.

Headlines

Paul Harvey, Editor of M&IT, has written a fantastic feature about the Platinum Jubilee, with which everyone in the team behind EDGE Venues 100% per cent concurs. Writing about the pride that eventprofs involved with should feel, he covers the scale of the celebrations. From Trooping the Colour, the incredible flypast in London, lighting of the beacons, the Platinum Party at the Palace and an outstanding drone display, to a fun pageant, and of course, that clip with Queen Elizabeth showing Paddington Bear what she keeps in her black handbag.

All shone a light on 70 years of the Queen’s reign while simultaneously lighting up the UK events sector.

Read Paul’s feature here.

Rajesh Agrawal, Deputy Mayor of London for Business, together with representatives from ExCeL London and London & Partners, used the opening of IMEX Frankfurt to champion the capital as a world-class event destination.

ExCeL – home to London’s International Convention Centre – also confirmed that construction works for its 25,000sqm expansion programme are well underway and set to enhance its status as the home of world-leading events. 

Developed to exceed industry standards in sustainability, the project will create additional state-of-the-art ICC convention facilities, exhibition halls and conference rooms, together with stunning outdoor spaces – all designed to put London at the forefront of the global events industry.

Speaking during the press conference at IMEX, Deputy Mayor for Business Rajesh Agrawal said: “After two years of insecurity, it’s very clear the events industry in London is roaring back to life. I’m delighted to be here today to showcase the exciting opportunities the city boasts. London is a world-class and sustainably focused destination for events, and there has never been a better time to host your meeting, congress or event here.”

“… it’s very clear the events industry in London is roaring back to life.”

The Night Time Industries Association (NTIA) board has unanimously appointed Sacha Lord, Night Time Economy Advisor for Greater Manchester and Co-Founder of Parklife and The Warehouse Project, as Chair of its Board of Directors.

Sacha has worked hand-in-hand with the NTIA and stakeholders across the UK over the last two years, and has established himself as one of the stand out voices within the sector. 

He says: “The Night Time Industries Association is a critical player in the sector, and has been a key voice in representing operators, not just in London but nationally across the UK.”

“I am honoured to be joining as Chair at this pivotal time in the sector’s recovery. There is still so much work to be done to help operators through these difficult times, and I wholly support the NTIA in their efforts to create better working practices for those in the industry, achieve greater funding for businesses nationwide, and develop vital initiatives to ensure everyone working within, or using the night time economy, gets home safely.”

Sacha Lord

Double Take

The Fast Forward 15 (FF15) Class of 2022 had their graduation at Tobacco Dock on May 20. The 2023 cohort was also revealed for the first time during a day packed full of shared experiences courtesy of the outgoing cohort.

Read more about the event on Conference News, with thoughts of some of the new cohort on what it means to be a FF15 mentee.

This Monday’s Insights feature brings you the industry headlines you may have missed from the previous week.

Headlines

The winners of the 15th annual Stadium Events and Hospitality Awards 2022 were announced on Friday 26 May, at Anfield Stadium.

The Stadium Events and Hospitality Awards celebrate the best UK football and rugby stadia venues and raise the profile of fantastic matchday hospitality and specialist events teams. The 2022 awards took place in the 20th Anniversary year of the organisers, Stadium Experience – a not-for-profit marketing collaboration of around 40 football, rugby and cricket club venues across the UK.

You can view the full list of deserving winners and runners-up in each category on Conference News.

The team behind EDGE Venues would like to congratulate all of the winners.

The Scottish Event Campus (SEC) has pledged to plant a tree for every meeting the company hosts at IMEX this week. The venue, which recently announced its ambition to achieve net-zero by 2030, hosted the COP26 conference last year.

The OVO Hydro, one of the three main venues on the SEC campus, is the world’s first arena to achieve the ‘A Greener Arena Certification. Additionally, the company has introduced sustainable ‘stack cups’ for live events, which will reduce the venue’s carbon emissions by 1,500 tonnes over ten years.

The SEC has made further significant moves to reduce its carbon footprint in recent years. 100% of the venue’s electricity comes from renewable sources. And the business continues to work towards activities that encourage sustainable behaviour across every facet of its operations.

As part of this, the SEC will plant a tree in the Caledonian Forest on behalf of everyone the team meets at IMEX. The business already has an existing relationship with the local charity, Trees for Life, which it has worked with for the last 15 years, contributing to the growth of 170,000. Through the meetings next week, the venue is looking to continue to build on that figure.

“We’ve set our ambition for net zero by 2030 and its something both ourselves and our clients want to talk about,” commented Kathleen Warden, Director of Conference Sales, Scottish Event Campus.

“The Trees for Life initiative at IMEX underlines that we’re threading sustainability into everything we do, from our operations to our sales and marketing. It’s also a way to do something positive for the people we meet at the event.”

Kathleen Warden, Director of Conference Sales, Scottish Event Campus.

The SEC is exhibiting at IMEX on stand F420 alongside Glasgow Convention Bureau & VisitScotland.

Check out M&IT editor Paul Harvey’s report from the opening day of the Elizabeth line – and find out why it’s going to be a game-changer for the event industry.

The need to recognise the economic impact of business events is as strong as ever, Chief executive officer of the Association of Events Organisers (AEO) Chris Skeith OBE has told Exhibition News.

Chris says that while the impact of Covid-19 and the restrictions it carried was a bitter pill to swallow for the events industry, it accelerated action on important areas that had historically been slow to progress.

Read more on how AEO positioned public affairs, diversity, inclusion, and sustainability at the top of the agenda together with AEV and ESSA.

European hotel prices are exceeding pre-pandemic levels. According to a feature on BTN Europe, industry specialist STR says average daily rates (ADR) are six per cent higher than pre-Covid. 

Ireland is reportedly leading the recovery, with rates 21 per cent higher than comparable 2019 levels in May. Portugal follows Ireland (18 per cent higher) and Spain (14 per cent higher). 

STR’s managing director expects Europe to follow a similar recovery trajectory to that seen in the US. The US has seen ADR surpass 2019 rates and group demand has reached 90 per cent of pre-pandemic levels. 

Read more about the rate changes, destinations, and occupancy rates that are trending towards a full recovery, on BTN Europe.