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Measuring the Value of Incentive Travel: Don’t Forget Soft Power

Profit and productivity rank high when buyers of incentive travel experiences list the objectives of their programmes. Except that isn’t the whole story. There’s a powerful narrative emerging around other objectives incentive travel sets out to achieve which has little to do with tangible metrics. From SoolNua’s Pádraic Gilligan at Padraicino…

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Coronavirus: Contracts, Insurance and Careful Communication

As organisations consider how to address the impact of coronavirus on upcoming meetings and events, what about the legal and insurance issues that arise? Barbara Dunn is a Partner with the Associations and Foundations Practice Group within Barnes and Thornburg, practicing in association, meetings, travel and hospitality, law. From PCMA…

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Coronavirus: Exhibition Sector Facing Difficult Crisis Decisions

Cancel, delay or go ahead? Planners of industry events are facing tough choices as significant gatherings of thousands or tens of thousands pose a major risk of spreading the COVID-19 virus. The cancellation of Mobile World Congress due to have been held in Barcelona shows how organisers are now under intense pressure. From Tech Xplore…

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Coronavirus: 2020’s AIME Continues with Care and Confidence

Just in advance of Iceberg partner AIME, the Asia Pacific Incentives and Meetings Event, opening its doors in Melbourne, its Event Director Jay Martens discussed the way both the meeting itself and the wider industry sector have been coping with the twin crises of Australia’s bushfires and the subsequent coronavirus outbreak. From PCMA…

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Tackling Homelessness: Protesting at the UN Climate Conference

Homeless hackathons, like those being held this year in Edinburgh, Montreal, Barcelona, Dundee and London, are one way for meetings to tackle this pressing social issue. The MD of organiser Gallus Events recently had a personal experience of homelessness outside COP25, the UN Climate Change Conference, in Madrid. From Association Meetings International…

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Coronavirus: Cultural Perspectives from a Chinese DMC and PCO

As coronavirus isolates China from outside countries, Ping Liu, CEO of destination management company and professional congress organiser China Star, offers cultural views on how her business is approaching cancellations and postponements. Links to Professional Convention Management Association resources on coronavirus. Photo: Painjet. From PCMA…

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Fleshing Out Strategies for Meatless Menus at Meetings and Events

Both the Golden Globes and Screen Actors Guild served meatless meals during their award ceremonies this January. Meatless meals were also served up at Convening Leaders in San Francisco, sponsored by Iceberg partner IMEX. There are many good reasons to go meatless, but it’s not always easy getting attendees to stomach the idea. From PCMA…

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Coronavirus: Four Event Owner Approaches to Crisis Management

As global leaders form strategies to contain the spread of coronavirus, so also must event managers and owners. Four distinct requirements are critical to meet. That’s according to Sylvia André, the Vice President for Marketing and Communications at Iceberg partner MCI. The article links to Professional Convention Management Association resources on coronavirus. From PCMA…

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Sustainability’s Four Pillars: The Meetings Industry Perspective

2020 began with disturbing images of burnt koalas and fears of their “imminent extinction”. Climate change has played a role in the catastrophic and unprecedented early fire season, and the meeting industry can take a lead in tackling this universal issue. Paula Blomster of MPI’s European Advisory Council explains. From Association Meetings International…

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Venue Accessibility: A Guide to Meeting Every Delegate’s Needs

Conference Aston Head Samantha Brown explains how the industry can meet the needs of all delegates through a new approach to venue accessibility. Delegates with sight, hearing and some lesser-known impairments need just as much consideration as attendees with restricted mobility. The value of proper training should never be underestimated. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…

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Sustainable Agency: Legacy by Nature, Legacy by Name

The Iceberg doesn’t usually focus on the activities of individual agencies working across the meetings and events sector. But it is hard not to notice one founded at the same time as our very own little platform celebrating business event legacy, particularly when that agency is actually called “Legacy”. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…

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Event Sustainability: Has the Emergency Already Been Sounded?

With a scientific consensus that we are already in a full-blown climate crisis, events are under widespread scrutiny for environmental impact. So are meetings now in a state of emergency? German Convention Bureau Director Matthias Schultze, UFI CEO Kai Hattendorf and Iceberg Founder James Latham are among the sector voices canvassed. From EventMB…

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Media Blackouts: To Speak But Demand Silence Outside the Hall

Would you accept a media blackout required by your keynote speaker? PCMA, the Professional Convention Management Association, has just done so for former US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. Media outlets registered for Convening Leaders were strictly forbidden from reporting her main keynote. From editor’s blog at Association Meetings International…

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Getting Personal with AI, Sustainability, and Evolving Q and A

In comes another year, and with it yet another list of trends to watch on the horizon. Events will deliver personalised experiences with the aid of artificial intelligence. Plus, sustainability, the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals and flygskam (flight shaming) are also on the map, as is Q and A 2.0, Conversation and input. From PCMA…

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