Interview |
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Our team is structured and focused around delivery of live tradeshows . In the digital world , however , everything was new . The IMEX Group had to learn to work in a new way and adopted an agile project management approach while collaborating for the first time using Microsoft Teams . The collaboration process created many cross team squads who worked together and really fostered a strong sense of teamwork and pride .
They also had to get to grips with new technology suppliers and tackle the sheer complexity of delivering online education – especially such a large concurrent programme with 40 + speakers , four concurrent tracks and 32 sessions in just one day !
The whole process also uncovered new skills within the business . Some of the team were able to apply their personal talents - for example , one of the Operations team is now resident DJ for PlanetIMEX and provided a live mix during one of the EduMonday Live social events .
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Above : Are our new friends electric ?
Below : Time for connecting on a deeper level
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How have you managed your key relationships with all your stakeholders ? Has there been a sharing of the financial losses involved , because the relationship , particularly between organisers and venues has varied widely around the world in this crisis ? Our relationships with key stakeholders have gone very smoothly indeed . These are relationships built and maintained at the highest level over many , many years and there has been great understanding . In both Frankfurt and Las Vegas the venues and other suppliers that we work with could not have been more supportive .
Some PE-owned organisers have cut expenditure radically and raised investment in the money markets as a medium-term fix for the situation . What have been your key tips for surviving this crisis in business terms ? Cash conservation is critical - the key to business survival is to have sufficient cash to come through the crisis as demonstrated by many of the major exhibition companies , whether on the public markets or owned by private equity .
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“ We often don ’ t like to explain our industry in terms of economic impact , because we know that bringing people together means so much more . However , economic impact figures resonate with politicians and we have some powerful stats to hand to convince them of the value of our industry ”
In general , in some countries there have been furlough schemes or unemployment benefits of some kind which have encapsulated all industries ( including ours ). I believe there will be more sector-specific support to rebuild the meetings industry , and frankly travel in general , as we come out of the pandemic .
The events industry has come together and acted collectively to deliver a level of partnership that ’ s on a different level to previous years .
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What ’ s next for IMEX . How do you see the shows evolving and how may PlanetIMEX integrate with the shows in future ? We ’ re currently in the exploration phase and looking carefully at how best we can serve the industry and our many special interest groups . We expect to go through another learning curve with PlanetIMEX in October . After that , we ’ ll set out our plans for 2021 . |