SINGAPORE — Around 100 executives from business event planners gathered at the inaugural Asia CEO Summit at the Fullerton Hotel in Singapore from October 5-7, demonstrating their commitment to the region’s growth in the business events and meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions (MICE) sector.
“It was very fitting to hold the summit last week, with the theme of Pathways to Growth,” said Chris Skeith, CEO of the Association of Event Organisers. “It was very much a way to build relationships between organisers from the UK, US, Europe, Asia Pacific, as well as Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand. One of the big themes that came out of it was how we’ve come out of the pandemic at different paces. It was a really good immersive discussion between these CEOs about how we can support each other to open up and how the recovery has been.”
Focused on collaboration
It was not only the first Asia CEO Summit, but also the first of its kind, co-organised by the Singapore Association of Convention and Exhibition Organisers and Suppliers, the Association of Event Organisers, the Society for Independent Show Organizers (SISO) and UFI, the Global Exhibition Industry Association, with the support of the Singapore Tourism Board.
“What’s remarkable is that this is the first time that four industry associations have come together to create a cohesive, well-attended event,” said Charlie McCurdy, CEO of Informa Markets. “I’m really pleased that the associations were able to work together for the benefit of all trade show organizers around the world. It created a sense of cohesion and that was really powerful.”
Global industry leaders were able to address key challenges and opportunities at the summit, including talent, new business models, innovation and sustainability, and share insights on the experiences of their respective markets as the global trade fair and exhibition industry continues to recover from the pandemic.
Finding solutions and sharing best practices
“We’ve looked at talent and the talent crisis and we all recognised that it’s a global phenomenon. As an industry, we need to do more to promote the benefits of working in this brilliant sector, such as being able to accelerate your career, being really close to the markets you serve and being able to use the latest cutting-edge sales and marketing techniques,” Skeith said.
A sustainability panel featured discussions on how the trade show industry can help advance sustainability, reduce waste generated by live events and create an impact on other industries, leading to a more sustainable world.
“We and other exhibitors have the opportunity to use the trade show environment to promote sustainable practices, and that can be done through the content we offer, sponsorships and exhibitors, who have solutions for all the participating organizations, most of which have their own adequacy goals. It’s a really important step the industry can take to advance sustainability and climate impact in a coordinated way and in a way that can gain momentum over time,” McCurdy said.
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Digital transformation and communications remain key areas of focus. CEOs from largely recovered regions were able to share their ideas and perspectives on what worked well during the recovery period with organizers from the Asia Pacific region, where events are only now returning.
“We found that we can’t recreate the serendipity of a live event and the connections you can make, but you can engage with communities before and after, you can create knowledge reserves, so digital can help us create better relationships with our customers,” Skeith said.
A joint leadership summit was also held, where industry leaders met with Singapore government ministers to highlight the economic benefits that trade shows bring to the region. Skeith said they hoped to expand the joint leadership summit to include ministers from other countries and to further champion the trade show and exhibition sector.
“The inaugural Asia CEO Summit was a great opportunity for event industry leaders to reunite with their partners across the Asian region after more than two years apart,” said Cassandra Farrington, Founder of MJBiz and President of SISO. “With most markets in the region rapidly reopening and the reopening of China on the horizon, attendees welcomed the opportunity to rekindle efforts to build partnerships for long-term growth in Asia. There is no doubt that this gathering has stimulated economic activity that will bear fruit over the next year, and will be celebrated at next year’s Asia CEO Summit.”
The Asia CEO Summit will be held in Singapore within the next two years.
Contact Chris Skeith at chris.skeith@eventsindustryalliance.com; Charlie McCurdy at charlie.mccurdy@informa.com