Opinions

  • Category

  • Sector

  • Host Destinations

Found 217 Opinions

Viewing all Opinions

IMEX’s Carina Bauer: New IMEX BuzzHub Bets on Community

As Iceberg partner the IMEX Group launches its latest digital platform IMEX BuzzHub, CEO Carina Bauer explains how the community is key to COVID-19 recovery. Bauer reveals also latest plans for IMEX America in November, and why organising any trade show right now is “an exercise in extreme preparedness”. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…

Read More

Budget Cuts, But Quick Recovery? Pandemic Impact on Euro CVBs

Three quarters of CVBs (convention bureaux) have suffered financial cuts over the pandemic year, according to a new report called “The Impacts of the Coronavirus on Convention Bureaux in Europe”. What does this mean for the meetings industry in general and for associations? Report author Rob Davidson explains. From Association Meetings International…

Read More

Madrid CVB: Making the Case for Congresses to Leave Lasting Legacy

Madrid Convention Bureau’s development of legacy projects includes collaborations with EMS, the European Emergency Medical Services Congress, setting up first aid training stations for the citizens of Spain’s capital. Now comes the European Society for Radiotherapy and Oncology, whose ESTRO 2021 bidding process was focussed all around legacy impact. From Boardroom…

Read More

JMIC’s Kai Hattendorf: Industry Advocacy and Lessons Learnt

The Joint Meetings Industry Council, which presents The Iceberg, has supported industry advocacy through COVID-19 with resources like the JMIC Global Manifesto and JMIC Advocacy Guide. President Kai Hattendorf now looks at the state of advocacy in the sector, examining also some of the lessons that have been learnt. The past year has generated a…

Read More

JMIC’s Rod Cameron: Vaccine v. Variant, so Where to from Here?

With the competing forces of the vaccine rollout and the emergence of variants waging a battle across most of the world, there are few simple scenarios for the future of the events sector. Rod Cameron, Executive Director of the Joint Meetings Industry Council (which presents The Iceberg), asks “where to from here?”. From UFI…

Read More

ESTRO: Saving Lives, Leaving Legacies in Destination Health

Alessandro Cortese leads ESTRO (European Society for Radiotherapy and Oncology) and has put a new notion at the centre of his meeting strategy: local legacy, or how much the hosting city will benefit from the event, measured by improvements in health. Here he discusses what could be the model of the future. From Eventoplus…

Read More

PCMA’s GMID Debate: Vaccine Passports and Industry Recovery

In celebration of Global Meetings Industry Day, PCMA hosted the first ever PCMA APAC and EMEA debate, attracting over 500 registrations from 57 countries. Moderated by Oscar Cerezales, Global Executive Vice President Corporate Division of Iceberg partner MCI Group, the big debate discussed the pros and cons of the potential vaccine passport. From PCMA…

Read More

GMID’s New York City Event: Two Attendees, Two Ways to Attend

Global Meetings Industry Day was celebrated in New York City with a hybrid event. An enterprising sector publication chose to experience the meeting both online and in person, so here are two contrasting views on different ways to experience a single event, including the role of serendipitous encounters, dessert and champagne. From PCMA…

Read More

IBTM World Virtual and IBTM World 2021 by David Thompson

Event Director David Thompson (pictured left), is a familiar figure around the show floor at Iceberg partner IBTM World. In this podcast, he talks through the experience of running IBTM World Virtual in 2020, and why he is certain there will be a live event in Barcelona this year. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…

Read More

Mark Laidlaw: The SEC From Hospital Back to Event Venue

Since the start of the crisis, like many other venues around the world, the Scottish Event Campus has been supporting health services in the battle against COVID-19. The SEC’s Director of Operations Mark Laidlaw describes the collaboration involved in operating as a field hospital as the venue now looks to its future. From Boardroom…

Read More

Recovery of the Sector: The Innate Human “Need to Meet”

Following on from the publication of two very different views on business events recovery, Juliano Lissoni, the Managing Director of MCI Group in Canada, makes a further and more academic argument for face-to-face meetings. The Iceberg partner chief makes his case around an in depth analysis of our innate “need to meet”. From PCMA…

Read More

Picking up the Crumbs: A Rallying Cry for the Embattled DMO

As spring arrives in the northern hemisphere, there is a growing sense of hope. Some destination marketing organisations (DMOs) have been able to continue their association conference business through the pandemic. But others have faced severe budget cuts, as Sarah Fleming, the owner of Sarah Fleming Associates, explains. From Association Meetings International…

Read More

M&IT Talks: The MIA’s Jane Longhurst on Restart Caution

The UK government has announced a timeline for reopening business events, with all sizes of meetings able to run from June 21st. But according to Meetings Industry Association Chief Executive Jane Longhurst, UK event professionals need to manage their expectations around the certainty of the date and the necessary conditions for it. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…

Read More

Pandemic Impact on Australia’s Events and Knowledge Economy

The impact of the pandemic on Australia’s business events is well documented. The Business Council of Australia has reported a loss of AU$35 billion in direct expenditure for Australia’s economy and over 230,000 jobs affected. But what about the country’s knowledge economy, asks ICC Sydney CEO Geoff Donaghy? From Meetings International…

Read More

CTICC’s AGM: A Venue Takes Stock of a Year Unlike Any Other

CTICC (Cape Town International Convention Centre) has been both serving the people of the Western Cape and adapting to the changing business landscape of the pandemic. The venue’s annual general meeting was the occasion to look back on a year that brought a massive share of challenges and opportunities. From Boardroom…

Read More