Vital role of professional venue find procurement, pound’s fall to bring UK influx of US events, and mia to reignite the sector

This Monday’s Insights (17 October) feature brings you the vital role of professional venue find procurement, one impact of the pound’s fall events held in the UK, and mia’s plans to reignite the sector.

Headlines

Jacqui Kavanagh, chief executive officer of EDGE Venues – venue find and procurement platform for corporates, agencies and associations – believes expert input can bolster technology platforms to maximise results.

Writing for Conference News, Jacqui said: “Corporate governance, risk and financial challenges currently combine with the need for live events to support staff retention, brand differentiation and ultimate business growth. This makes partnering with professional procurement teams a must for event teams and for buyers.

“Recent changes in the delivery of events, with virtual and hybrid, have resulted in a shift and increase in expertise required for events teams. But these teams are already overloaded with demands as clients and businesses return to live activity to achieve business goals. 

Additionally, with the daily changing economic climate, I believe professional venue procurement is more vital than ever.”

Read the full feature here.

The fall in value of the pound is set to cause a surge in US event planners heading to London, Green & Fortune has told Meetings and Incentive Travel magazine. 

The boutique hospitality company is ‘gearing up for an upturn in US events as the dollar exchange rate strengthens against the pound.’

Rebecca Harris, business development director at Green & Fortune, said: “London is well and truly back on the map as an event destination: the world marvelled at the recent spectacle of the Queen’s funeral which highlighted London’s ability to stage incredibly high-profile events and the exchange rate is without doubt one of the biggest contributors to why the capital is again the go to destination.

Read the full article here.

The AEO has launched its inaugural AEO People’s Awards

Taking place on the evening of the AEO Forums, on the 27th of January 2023, at the Business Design Centre in London, the event is a spinoff of the AEO Excellence Awards. It is dedicated to recognising the incredible talent on the ground, from junior to middle-management event professionals in marketing, ops, sales and beyond.

The event will share winners’ stories, showcase their achievements and give nominees the chance to inspire and be inspired by their peers.

The 10 categories cover a breadth of industry roles and with a streamlined approach to entering, is an accessible way to shine a light on the hard work and contributions made by nominated individuals. 

Teamwork, collaboration, and inclusivity are front and centre within the industry so nominations are welcomed from across the organiser, venue and supplier communities and are free for AEO, AEV & ESSA members.

Managers and teammates will be able to nominate the shining stars in their company. 

Chris Skeith OBE, chief executive of AEO says: “With talent front and centre of so many industry conversations, recognising the value and highlighting the achievements of those getting the work done on the ground in an ongoing period of uncertainty is so important, as we work not only to attract talent but retain it. 

“In a busy events period, we have created a streamlined entry process, with a 700-word limit on entries. This is a fantastic opportunity and an accessible way for teammates and managers to give special thanks to those company stars.”

For more information please visit https://www.aeoforums.org.uk/aeo-peoples-awards 

The next normal will be the focus of the Meetings Industry Association’s annual conference when it unites, inspires and energises the business meetings and events sector this autumn.

According to Event Industry News, ‘REIGNITE‘ will explore the current and future economic landscape, reveal the meetings of tomorrow and explore growth opportunities for the industry in uncertain times.

The power of strategic relationships, and Net Zero will also be examined at the event on 17 November, alongside how the sector can be a career of choice.

mia’s chief executive, Kerrin MacPhie, commented: “This conference has something for everyone as its relevant to every segment and individual working in the business meetings and events industry,

“In the wake of a global pandemic that shut down our industry, the continued climate crisis, rising levels of inflation, cost increases and the struggle to retain and grow our workforce, many are asking what does the future hold for our sector? So, we’ve carefully curated our line-up of futurologists and industry leaders to deliver what our sector needs to know right now. Delegates will leave with tangible takeaways that they will be implement in their own organisations.”

Read the feature on the REIGNITE conference in full, here.

The director of ESSA (Event Suppliers and Services Association) is calling on the industry to ‘work together to make healthier working environments for all. 

As an association the Event Suppliers and Services Association has been working on a set of benchmarks so suppliers can demonstrate their health and safety credentials. ESSA Accredited is company level accreditation, with a focus on health and safety. 

Andrew Harrison says it is a great starting point for businesses to prove their credentials – but that the suppliers side of the industry is under mounting pressure and standards will inevitably fall if they are stretched further. 

One of the biggest causes of lapses in good practice comes down to missed opportunities in communication. He says: “Delays in pertinent information within our industry can be a real inhibitor to what I would call ‘the best we can be’. 

“Lost opportunities for communication between all stakeholder groups. At the end game we’re basically a building site and, with every missed opportunity or delay in communication in the lead up to this, leads to greater pressure and delays when we can least afford it. If we think this isn’t felt by our shared client, we’re not listening. 

“It can lead to issues with regards to build-up and break down and designing projects. It can impact upon costs, which ultimately get filtered through the system.

“Contractors can be put under huge amounts of pressure in order to deliver on behalf of their clients within the constraints which have been allowed within the tenancy times. The knock-on effect of that is, we’re then having to work even harder to maintain safe environments for people to work in. 

“The contraction of postponed events into even tighter timeslots plus inflation, price rises and supply chain issues has “put everything under the magnifying glass.”

The last 12 months has been “unprecedented” for “events on top of each other like never before” he says. 

Suppliers are now regularly building-up and breaking-down shows simultaneously, often with reduced teams already stretched across multiple venues across the country. 

“We are working to absolute capacity within those areas. I think, reading between the lines, everybody understands what that could lead to, if one element of this whole process goes wrong,” Andrew warns. 

He says the recovery of organisers and the supply chain has been largely equal so far but as organisers start to see their recovery speed up there is no slack in the supply chain to cope. 

Read the opinion feature in full, here.

DOUBLE TAKE

The 11th edition of IMEX America has closed following four days of business and networking that heralded a welcome return to form for the global meetings, events and incentive travel industry.

Speaking in the show’s closing press conference at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, IMEX Chairman, Ray Bloom, announced an overall participation of 12,000 people, of whom over 4,000 were buyers, 3,300 of these attended on the show’s hallmark hosted buyer program.

Bloom explained that the 2022 edition was 45% bigger than last year due to an easing of travel restrictions plus 40% of returning exhibitors taking more booth space. 

Across the board, international exhibitors returned in strong numbers. Of those who doubled the size of their booths, 24% were from North America, 23% were hotel groups, 15% were European and 12% from Asia. Latin America and tech exhibitors also showed significant increases.

Some of the big themes percolating through from corridor conversations and speakers this week included: service levels, contracts, wellbeing and mental health; the pros and cons of distributed workforces; Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging (DEI+B) and sustainability, both personal and environmental.

Carina Bauer, IMEX Group CEO, said: “The juddering, global halt of the pandemic may be behind us, but its lessons live on. And, having talked about disruption as a tool for business transformation for so long, we’re now seeing what that really means. Many of these lessons are positive, innovative and long overdue. From our A Voice for All program on Smart Monday, to Google Experience Institute’s NEU Project, we’re all invited to understand that events, and event designs, have excluded too many people for too long.

“Two concepts I take from this week are belonging and freedom of choice. The first is about making sure everyone feels welcomed – that they genuinely belong at our events and that our designs include them. 

“The second is a call for planners to let go. To break free of over-scheduling and a ‘more is more’ approach. We need to put people first, give them more choice and pay more attention to what makes us all human. At its most basic, this means prioritizing healthy nutritious food, clean water, time for rest, space for unscheduled connection and plenty of daylight.

“Google’s Megan Henshall put it best: ‘Not only does the data show that belonging is good for business, but as designers we also need to do a better job of not asking people to leave their lived experience at the doors when they come to our events.” Carina concluded.