29 Feature
Megan Walters
Michael Gwilliam can now operate on a larger scale and be more innovative and inclusive to global communities .
Change of plan
XSEM is also going through a change when it comes to approaching clients , with the focus now being on longer-term commitments to creative events , rather than the quick turnaround world of tender bid events .
Gwilliam said of this shift : “ If you want somebody to be creative , but they are in a process with six other agencies , the chances are they will spend a sixth of the time on it because they ’ re busy working with paid customers that are supportive of their business and doing that sort of stuff .”
It ’ s not for the sake of practicality that the agency is looking for more value-add partnerships , but also from the perspective of quality . Every eventprof will be able to recall a time when something had to be delivered with a quick turnaround , for many it ’ s part and parcel with the industry .
For Walters , however , the culture of quick turnaround is detrimental for truly creative events . She said : “ I think when you do things on such a short turnaround , there ’ s always a scope for ‘ what would you have done it differently ?’ if you had the luxury to think things through that bit more ”.
Looking forward
Nobody has a crystal ball , but I wanted to find out what the next year meant for XSEM . How does a company experiencing rapid growth move forward .
For Gwilliam it is all about steadying the ship , with a new focus around wellness of employees and delegates . He said : “ We want to put wellness at the centre of what we ’ re doing . We ’ ve just invested in that in terms of wellness consultants to bring the team back together , everybody ’ s working stupid hours . And we want to kind of reset the balance of that .”
That reset angle , needing to stop and appreciate the journey , was also a key point for Walters . She said : “ I think reset and define are the two key words for us going forward , that ’ s what our processes and training are around , especially as we are working towards being more sustainable in how we operate .” CN www . conference-news . co . uk