Robyn Johnson , CEO of Meetings & Events Australia
There is so much opportunity for the events industry to grow and prosper in the coming years and this is very exciting . There are new venues opening , and existing ones expanding or being redeveloped . High profile events are in the calendar . The Commonwealth Games in 2018 , for example , will once again put Australia in the international spotlight , further endorsing our strong reputation for delivering world class events .
This will be a year of great change with new programs and initiatives for MEA members . Our annual conference reflects this sentiment with its theme ‘ Reboot ’ – which signifies a new beginning for MEA in a changing world . In planning the conference our goal has been to deliver an event rich in information for delegates to take away ideas and valuable initiatives they can incorporate in their own events or their clients ’ events .
The program is eclectic to reflect the diversity of the industry and the varying levels of experience of our members . The Program Committee has developed sessions that will spark interest and attract new event professionals and perhaps the disengaged members back to what is the ultimate event industry conference .
The first new national program for the year will be launched at AIME with others to be introduced throughout the year and early 2018 . A great deal of work has already been undertaken , however it will take us time to implement all of the programs . As we commit to improving the services we provide to our members MEA needs to upgrade many of our internal processes and resources .
Carol Giuseppi , CEO of Tourism Accommodation Australia
The business events sector needs a continuous pipeline of new hotels to fuel the industry ’ s growth , especially if the industry is to compete in the 1000-plus delegates ’ space . The great news is that Australian tourism industry has entered an era that will see the largest ever growth of hotel rooms – over 100 hotels and up to 30,000 new rooms are scheduled to come on line over the next five years .
The ‘ room boom ’ is already very apparent in cities like Perth , Brisbane , Adelaide and Canberra , and this has been complemented by a vast upgrading process of existing hotels as they refurbish to ensure they remain competitive with new entrants in the marketplace .
Of course , when people look at the hotel situation and the business events sector , the focus usually turns to Sydney , where – to be fair – the flow of new rooms has taken longer than most other cities . However that is changing dramatically , with 3000 new rooms in the pipeline , which will support the opening of the spectacular new ICC Sydney .
A key aspect of this new era of hotel renewal is that it is being accompanied by significant government investment in new conference and events facilities , which will help make this new wave of hotel development sustainable in the long-term .
However , while city areas have enjoyed significant increases in conferences and events , that hasn ’ t been the case for a large percentage of regional areas . To even out seasonality , it will be important for governments to fund specific units and programs that promote and sell regional business events .
Margy Osmond , CEO of the Tourism & Transport Forum
2017 is shaping up to be another cracker year for the visitor economy . Last year we set a new record of attracting more than eight million international visitors and its growing at more than 11 per cent . Sometime this year we will see China overtake New Zealand to become our largest overseas visitor market – that will be more than 1.3 million Chinese visitors spending close to $ 10 billion in our economy in just the coming 12 months . Truly mindboggling when you think about it .
More visitors of course means we need to invest in our visitor infrastructure as well as the cultural and business events that attract and encourage these visitors to stay longer in a destination . We are already off to a good start with the new ICC Sydney now open for business – a brilliant state-of-theart conference and exhibition facility that will boost Australia ’ s global reputation as a great venue to hold an international delegate event .
But any good business leverages the assets it has to get the maximum benefit . That ’ s why TTF is calling for the Federal Government to establish a National Business Events Bid Fund in this year ’ s budget . This fund would be used to support winning bids for truly national significant business events that would have a flow on effect through the Australian economy . Considering that Australia has slipped in recent years from 7 th place in 2000 to 15th place in 2015 for international events , we need a new partnership with government to make sure Australia is getting a fairer share of the international event market .
12 Convention & Incentive Marketing , Issue 1 , 2017 www . cimmagazine . com