Why does The Iceberg consider the just-released IMEX White Paper, “Place Leadership and the Business Events Sector”, to be so important? In almost four decades of monitoring and supporting this sector, The Iceberg Curator, Martin Sirk, has reviewed hundreds of research reports, policy documents, and thought-leadership papers, yet he notes that “few match this paper’s combination of intellectual depth, case study breadth, and clear-eyed guidance on what action destinations should take at both macro and micro levels”.
Authored by Prof. Greg Clark and Borane Gille of The Business of Cities, the White Paper:
- helps to make our complex and fragmented business sector comprehensible, creating a universally relevant place leadership framework that will facilitate strategic analysis and decision-making;
- demonstrates the value of co-creation – the input from industry and destination leaders attending the IMEX Place Leaders Forum adds immense credibility to the claims made by the authors and worldwide breadth to the examples;
- incorporates proven destination-related megatrends and expert perspectives and insights from beyond our “meetings bubble”;
- spells out the dangerous implications of failing to take action;
- provides clear guidance on what destinations need to do – strategically and tactically – to retain or increase their competitiveness;
- recognises the very different realities faced by destinations, and provides action models for every category of destination;
- offers a rich menu of 27 case studies (with more to be added to the online version of the paper as they become available), examples that demonstrate each of the key claims made by the authors;
- sets out a high-level agenda for the industry to intelligently debate its future relevance and evolution;
- will become an invaluable advocacy resource for destinations at every stage of development, enabling them to eloquently argue the case for business events to policymakers and other non-industry stakeholders;
- positions business events at the heart of tomorrow’s place leadership – but only if we take the action necessary to earn our permanent seat at the top table.
The final word should go to IMEX Director of Impact & Industry Relations Natasha Richards:
“My hope is that this paper gives destinations not only the evidence to think differently, but the confidence to act, and the tools to do so effectively.”
Please download the White Paper, share it with your teams, study it in depth, use the analytical tools, learn from the case studies, and redesign your strategic thinking! For exclusive insights, watch The Iceberg’s interview with co-author Prof. Greg Clark.
Prof. Clark and IMEX have charted the value narrative of business events from tourism to the destination economy
Further Learning:
View The Iceberg's previous interviews with Prof. Greg Clark:
Business Events Shouldn’t Be Kept in a Silo
“Fractured Globalisation” Changes the Rules of the Game
Greg Clark: Five Reasons Why Business Events...
The JMIC Global Manifesto: Speaking with One Voice
Business Events and the Future of the City
IMEX 2017: A View of the City
About IMEX Events:
The IMEX Group organises two global trade shows in the meetings and events sector - IMEX Frankfurt and IMEX America. Both trade shows offer unprecedented business opportunities combined with a great industry gathering. Exhibitors include national and regional tourist offices, convention and visitor bureaux, hotels, conference and exhibition centres, cruise lines, airlines, spa resorts, event management specialists, and more.
By attending an IMEX trade show, it is possible to achieve a year's worth of business and networking in just three days, be inspired by outstanding free educational programmes, develop your career, and learn about the latest innovations and ideas in the industry.
About The Business of Cities:
The Business of Cities is an urban intelligence firm headquartered in London. Their mission is to help organisations to make the most of the changing 21st-century relationships between businesses and cities, working internationally with public and private sector leadership in more than 100 global cities, and advising top global firms and intergovernmental organisations about how to optimise their engagement with cities.
