Singapore - Continued MICE growth in 2012?

A recent report, published in The Business Times (1 November 2011), noted that Singapore's MICE sector can expect to see continued growth in 2012, based on the number of events that major venues have already secured. Here's a summary of some of the points highlighted in the article:

1. Since commencing operations in April 2010, close to 2,400 events have been booked at Marina Bay Sands and participant numbers have exceeded the 1 million mark. The convention centre is running at close to full capacity where trade show space is concerned.
2. Some of the events held (or to be held) at Marina Bay Sands include Cruise Shipping Asia 2011; WasteMET Asia 2012; Singapore International Water Week 2012; and CommunicAsia 2011.
3. More than 1,200 events have been held at Resorts World Sentosa between January 2011 and June 2011.  These events included the World Chinese Entrepreneur Convention and the 13th Asia Pacific Life Insurance Congress.
4. Resorts World Sentosa expects the number of events held in 2012 to be twice the number for 2011.
5. Singapore Expo plays host to some 600 events each year, with participant numbers exceeding 6 million people.  The convention centre is to launch a new wing in 2012 (March).  This will increase its capacity by more than 8,000 sq metres
6. Suntec Singapore International Convention & Exhibition Centre expects to host a total of 1,500 events in 2011, and have 7.1 million participants walk through its doors.
7. Suntec City has also announced a S$410 mn asset enhancement initiative which will lead to an increase in retail space and value adding to its exhibition venues.  Of this amount, S$180 mn will be spent on the convention centre with a view to increasing the levels of flexibility, functionality and convertability of the convention space, and integrating advanced technology into its systems and operations.

As much as Singapore's MICE sector growth for 2012 appears to be pushing ahead, I do have concerns given the current developments in Europe and the unexpected collapse of MF Global in the United States.  It is already becoming apparent that global economic growth over the next 6-12 months will be dampened. What remains uncertain is the speed of deterioration and level of impact some of these recent developments will have on the health of the global economy.  It could lead to a cut back on spending on meetings, conferences and trade shows - fewer number of participants, delegates, exhibition and even sponsors. Companies will be more reluctant to send their employees on overseas trips to attend meetings or participate in other MICE activities etc.

The negative impact on the MICE sector is in part due to the misunderstanding of the sector's contribution to business and industry growth and development. MICE events are foundational blocks for companies and business executives wanting to increase sales and business opportunities.  As such, MICE events take on greater importance when economies are going downhill.  This is a point worth addressing in detail and I intend to write more on this in a later blog.

Destinations and Business events

One of the evident benefits destinations and cities gain from hosting major business events is a heightened level of publicity and image branding  that takes place.  The public relations machinery automatically kicks into high gear resulting in numerous articles (in major dailies and industry-related magazines) featuring the positive characteristics of the destination/city as a centre for regional and international business.  Its a fairly common occurence each time a major business event is held. 

The recently completed TravelRave week, which featured a number of major travel-related conventions, conferences and high-level meetings, is a good example.  Activities for the week included the ITB Asia tradeshow. Trade publications distributed to event participants and visitors included positive image-building news for Singapore (the host). One of the publications reported on Singapore maintaining its position as Asia's top convention city based on global rankings issued by the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA). Another publication featured a case study on the successful execution of a conference held at one of the city's integrated resorts. 

This has just to do with what is reported in the media.  Have you ever considered the impact (internationally) when event participants and visitors return to their home countries, their families and places of work, and then start relating their experiences and memories of Singapore to loved ones, friends and colleagues?  That impact can be massive. This is one way of contemplating the multiplier effect. One of the most important inputs into a decision making process is recommendations received from family members, friends and colleagues. So when event participants take back happy experiences and memories, what begins to happen is impactful direct marketing for the destination and very positive inputs into decision making processes - to visit the destination or not.  And destinations enjoy these benefits for free - its free publicity, free services of a respected "consultant" promoting the destination as a must-visit place, free access to relevant market segments...

It is no wonder that the local governments of more and more cities and destinations are developing infrastructure and processes that will enable the cities to be business events destinations.  Within the Asia context, major cities in China are aggressively bidding to host international business events; the key cities of Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh and Danang in Vietnam are experiencing a spate of developments in the business and convention hotel arena.....and the list goes on.

There are exciting times ahead and it will be very interesting to follow the progress of the MICE sector in Asia.  The increasing number of regional-type MICE events can only lead to an increasing number of destinations in Asia becoming more atuned to the benefits that are derived from playing host to such events.

Association Day at ITB Asia - 20 Oct 2011

I had the opportunity to attend the ITB Asia trade show on Thursday, 20 October 2011.  The event was held at the Suntec Singapore Exhibition & Convention Centre. I spent most of the day attending the Association Day sessions, which featured the Center for Association Leadership (ASAE). The primary focus of the sessions was association meetings/conventions and how these events have presented platforms for associations to grow their membership bases and add value to members.

Current trends indicate that the associations meetings sector will continue to grow over the next few years and be a critical contributor to the MICE sector. This is good news! Here are some interesting infobites I picked up during the course of the day:

1. For technical-based associations, the most compelling component of an association meeting/conference would be the scientific programme.  The programme content - topics or research areas discussed and who the presenters are - is the major draw factor for attendees.
2. There is a general trending towards holding regional-based association meetings and conferences instead of the common practice of a global-based meeting or conference.
3. Many associations engage the services of a professional conference organizer (PCO) to help in the managing of their meetings and conferences.  In order for this relationship to work (and therefore the event succeed), it is important that it is built on a collaborative platform rather than a customer-service provider platform.
4. The issue of keeping delegates engaged during conference sessions was discussed.  It is interesting to note that as much as they are multiple techniques and practices to build engagement - facilitated conversations, deep dive sessions, ignite sessions, experiential learning, speed learning, and others - feedback from some association members and PCOs was that association delegates prefer the traditional methods of delivering conferences and technical sessions.  Attempting to change format could result in mutinies.

I took some photos of the event.  I do want to issue a caveat on the quality of the pictures - I am in no way good at photography.

This was the Registration Area for the ITB Asia event. The location was the ground floor of the convention centre, facing the entrance  The registration area for Association Day was one level up and located in the ballroom foyer.

These 2 photos were taken during the Association Day sessions. The seating style for the floor was based on the half-rounds format where 5-6 delegates sat around a table, but positioned in such a way as to be facing the stage.  This seating style facilitates discussion among delegates. The top photo shows a panel discussion going on, with the panelist currently speaking projected onto the screen - it becomes easier for delegates to see the facial expressions of the speaker.

The ITB Asia tradeshow area was located in the exhibition halls on the 6th level of the convention centre. This photo shows the entrance arch that was purpose-built for the show.

The day ended of with a guided tour of the convention facilities offered by Marina Bay Sands.  I will share my thoughts and photos of that tour in a later post.

Overall, one of the messages that seemed to resound - based on feedback from association meetings organisers, PCOs and even corporate travel executives - is that face-to-face meetings and conferences are here to stay. It will be very difficult to replace the intrinsic value that such events offer for business executives and professionals.

Business Events - the continuing evolution

There are a number of critical foundations that drive commerce and business. One of these foundations is communication. Organisations and companies involved in commerce and business (of any kind) need to communicate - with staff, with customers, with stakeholders, with business partners, with service suppliers, with government and regulatory agencies.....the list goes on. This need to communicate and connect provides the very essence of Business Events, or what in Asia is commonly referred to as the Meetings, Incentives, Conventions and Exhibitions (MICE) sector.

The majority of industry practitioners and academics will readily agree that a successful and growing MICE sector will very positively impact a destination. Studies on the impact of MICE on destinations often discuss impacts in terms of direct spending, indirect spending and induced spending. I intend to take a closer look at this issue of impacts in my next posting. For now, the area that is of concern (to me) is that of the growth and level of professionalism in the MICE sector. 

There are a multitude of professional organizations and associations which focus on service components of the MICE sector.  I applaud these organizations and associations and their specific objectives aimed at increasing the level of professionalism amongst industry practitioners. It is really heartening to see more and more industry practitioners participating in certification courses, as well as the growing number of tertiary institutions offering undergraduate and post-graduate programmes centered around events management. Most of us who are involved in the sector recognise the critical contributions we make to the destinations in which we operate in.  Unfortunately, the recognition of professional certification and academic qualifications (in events management) is still lagging.  Yes, the development of professionalism in this sector has come a long way.  We now need to convince the rest of the world that MICE sector practitioners are professionals.

I hope to add to the existing body of knowledge on MICE/Business Events with this blog and certainly welcome comments and contributions from one and all.