Celebrating the value proposition
EW reports on the International Exhibition Logistics Association ’ s recent online Associations Day
T he International Exhibition Logistics Association ( IELA ) recently invited peer associations from the industry to talk about leadership , advocacy and future vision during an Associations Day .
IELA wanted to celebrate the people behind the scenes that keep us connected , and designed a rapidfire online session format giving the association representatives a minute each to answer IELA questions .
Collaboration UFI ’ s CEO Kai Hattendorf was first in the quick-firing question line . What did he think was the key strategic impact of associations over the past 22 months ?
“ Collaboration and changing the narrative of our sector ,” said Hattendorf . “ We are not a sub-sector of tourism ; we are a strategic tool and asset with our event industry . We build and grow economies and societies and help [ them ] to prosper on the other side of the pandemic .”
To SISO ’ s CEO David Audrain the question was : ‘ Being a professional for many years , how do you foster a culture of transformation in your team to help you face new challenges ?’
“ The essential thing ,” Audrain replied , “ is hiring the right people from the beginning , people who are able to work under their own supervision . We must encourage them to stretch us and themselves and bring forward their ideas .”
Resilience IELA then explored the question of developing resilience within association teams .
Cathy Breden , CEIR CEO and EIC incoming chair , said we should
Above : IELA Zooming in at pace on some key industry questions be “ constantly planning , creating different scenarios for budgets , for events . Regarding staff , we remained as transparent as possible : being clear on the financial perspective , with layoffs , getting staff to become resilient by helping them to understand the situation .”
The question posed to Indian Exhibition Industry Association ( IEIA ) president Sonia Prashar , was : ‘ With mental health issues on the increase , how could associations be a factor of positive change ?
“ You can be battered and damaged , but what eventually matters is what is inside . This is what makes the difference . As exhibition people , we need to empathise and rally with our members in order to empower them . This is what we did for the past 22 months .”
And Bianca Kennedy , president of the Canadian Association of Exposition Management ( CAEM ), also on the question of approaches to mental health , added : “ We must commit to recognising the symptoms and take steps to avoid serious consequences . Thankfully , conversations about mental health are less taboo in modern working environments .” ►
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