Last Word
Lisa Hannant
Lisa Hannant, group MD at Clarion Events, who
played a role in the creation of exhibition return
frameworks for both UFI and the AEO, steers
Clarion towards a new era post-Covid-19
Along with all of our
industry peers we are
heavily engrossed in figuring
out what the new normal
will be.
Following the initial
frenzy of activity and
the extraordinary work
undertaken by our teams in
rescheduling shows around
the world, we are now
very much focused on the
reopening phase and what
recovery may look like from
an operational perspective
and from a long-term
customer value proposition.
While trends are emerging,
there is still no clear
answer. What is certain is
that waiting for a full set
of facts to emerge before
determining what to do
will be too slow. We have to
take steps now to both build
confidence and value for
our customers at our future
shows, which will mean a
complete rethink in many
areas. And, we are certainly
open to that at Clarion!
The way in which the whole
industry has responded and
has come together has been
truly inspiring. While we
have always had incredible
relationships across the
industry, many of which
have been developed over
many years (and hours spent
in various bars around the
world), recent months have
seen this displayed tenfold
with huge amounts of
collaboration and openness
between organisers and
partners globally as we
adapt.
I have had the pleasure
in recent weeks of working
with colleagues across the
industry in contributing to
the UFI Global Framework
and also developing the All
Secure Standards, which
is a framework to help us
visualise and implement a
safe and secure environment
for our customers.
Communicating how we, as
an industry, can deliver this
is critical to our reopening.
I am delighted that
governments and authorities
all over the world have
acknowledged that we can
begin to reopen the doors to
our events and take steps to
minimise the risk of further
infection.
Of course, while industry
collaboration has been
essential to deliver All
Secure, we also see this
period as a great opportunity
to develop competitive
advantage. Our internal
collaboration efforts are
focussed on creating even
more value for our customers
now, while we can’t run
physical events, and also
long-term as we reopen.
At Clarion, we are taking
everything back to basics to
understand how we deliver
customer value. We are
collectively thinking beyond
the sale of space and building
a co-creation culture within
and across our teams and,
as a result, innovation,
smart thinking and results,
are being driven across the
entire organisation.
Being agile and learning
in an ever-changing
environment is how we are
going to need to operate in
the future and to continue
this in a meaningful
way we are developing
cross portfolio and cross
geographical strategies
which best serve the
customer and their likely
change in expectations.
Doing something
developmental has given
us a real positive energy
and, with everyone working
remotely, it’s given us a great
opportunity to connect
globally. But mostly, the
advancement of our digital
and tech capability as part
of our return to live offering,
has been exponential; the
thinking and discussions are
light years ahead of where we
were even a month ago and
there are more new voices
joining the conversation
every day.
So, while the past months
have been some of the most
challenging ever, the spirit
in which we have come
together both internally
and as a collective industry
shows that, through
collaboration, we have the
ability to influence and make
long lasting change which is
desperately needed to kickstart
our wonderful industry
again.
‘The advancement of our digital and tech
capability has been exponential; the thinking and
discussions are light years ahead of where we
were even a month ago’
30 — August