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WE EXAMINE THREE HOT TOPICS TOP OF MIND AT THE GERMAN CONVENTION BUREAU
1 . Innovation Network ‘ Future Meeting Space ’ The Future Meeting Space innovation network was launched in 2015 by the German Convention Bureau ( GCB ) and the Fraunhofer Institute for Industrial Engineering IAO , with the key goal of boosting the role of business events as a driver of innovation and key instrument of corporate communication .
Providing trends research , Future Meeting Space attempts to anticipate developments in the business event ecosystem and identify requirements for successful events as regards concepts , technology and event spaces . The innovation network develops distinct recommendations for individual stakeholder groups while validating them in a real-life lab with what is happening within the industry in practice .
The GCB and Fraunhofer IAO and their research partners are really pursuing a role of catalysts for the future of business events ‘ made in Germany ’.
Results are already in for the FMS 2022 first research phase ‘ Redefining Event Attendance ’, which asked the question : Why will people attend in-person events in the future ? and , in 2023 , the research effort has continued under the headline ‘ Navigating business events in challenging times ’.
Analysis into the requirements and key components needed for successful business events reveals that factors such as seamless travel , micro mobility , safety and hygiene , as well as regional and cultural characteristics , can contribute significantly to increasing people ’ s motivation to travel to events . Ninety percent of respondents said that
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seamless travel is very important to them . This goes hand in hand with safety and hygiene standards , which are an absolute basic requirement for 60 % of those surveyed to attend an event . The use of climate-friendly means of transport and offsetting the CO2 emissions generated by events are relevant for 75 % of the FMS respondents .
Micro mobility means and cultural experiences at the respective destination are particularly appealing to the 26-35 age bracket and international attendees . Opportunities to experience the local character is , therefore , one of the must-have components for getting international attendees to attend in-person events .
Overall , the FMS research revealed three key findings , according to the GCB : Firstly , in-person events are mainly attractive because of their ability to inspire people and provide opportunities for face-to-face encounters . New ideas emerge mainly when we interact with other people .
“ Events continue to deliver when it comes to inspiring people and promoting innovation ,” says GCB managing director Matthias Schultze . “ Diving into different , local cultures and creating shared experiences only works at live events .”
Secondly , the research shows the importance of events for staff retention and employer attractiveness . Events and business travel also promote long-term loyalty to companies .
Thirdly , the survey data reveal that sustainability plays a significant role in the decision-making process whether to attend in-person events or not . Factors taken into consideration include the possibility of climate-neutral travel , offsetting CO2 emissions as well as regional and seasonal catering .
The ‘ Redefining Event Attendance ’ research 2023 confirms that in-person
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‘ Diving into different , local
cultures and creating shared experiences only works at live events ‘
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events are unique and irreplaceable . While face-to-face encounters may have temporarily decreased in recent years , they still have immense value .
Nevertheless , business events are faced with multiple challenges , such as climate change , energy supply , international conflicts , the pandemic , staff and skills shortages .
The continuing FMS research under the headline ‘ Navigating Business Events in Challenging Times ’ is now looking for the kind of solutions events offer in this context , explains Dr Stefan Rief , head of organisational development and Work Design Research Unit at Fraunhofer IAO .
“ Our FMS research shows that people will continue to seek out face-to-face meetings , attend business events , and again travel more in the future . However , they will make more deliberate decisions than before on whether they attend an event in person or not . The event ecosystem will therefore have to look at the question of what kind of solutions business events can offer in the context of multiple challenges .”
2 . Open Data ‘ A second key focus of the GCB is digital transformation and the bureau is sure it will be one of the most important drivers of destination marketing in the foreseeable future . ‘ Open data ’, i . e ., free access to all data relevant to users , is becoming a key factor in international competition , the bureau believes , and says making full use of the associated potential for Germany as a meetings destination is the primary goal of its Open Data MICE project , pursued in co-operation with the German National Tourist Board .
The goal of the project is to create a data basis for mapping German MICE offerings through open and machine-readable data .
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