Future Growth for the Global Events Industry

Future Growth for the Global Events Industry

In November, we attended and exhibited at IMEX America in Las Vegas where we hosted our EIC Global Awards during which we welcomed our Hall of Leaders honourees and celebrated the achievements of our award winners. The Events Industry Council also hosted 17 education sessions across the three-day event.

I was delighted to be back at IMEX America, and I am looking forward to attending more events, both here in the US, but also in Europe and Asia as our industry continues to reopen and get back to what it does best – connecting people.

We want to see our industry thrive and grow, and we are fully committed to providing the necessary resources to do this.

But this growth shouldn’t just be measured by volume. We need to ensure that the entire industry has growth in influence. Growth in Equity and Diversity. Growth in our ability to do what we do in a more sustainable way.

The last two years has taught us that to do that, we need to change and do things differently.

There has been a significant and vital renewed emphasis on the importance of "people, planet and purpose." Our industry has the ability and responsibility to drive meaningful change, create welcoming communities and improve society through our actions. Whilst the industry has made some fantastic progress in terms of equality, diversity and sustainability, our discussion must turn into action.

We have recently extended the deadline for input for our Equity Study, until the January 15, 2022. The study, which is part of our wider Equity Acceleration Plan, will help us to understand the current state of diversity, equity and inclusion within the workplace across the events industry and to establish a benchmark to measure future progress. I would encourage you, if you haven’t done so already, to take part and share your personal opinions and or experiences. Without these honest anecdotes, we will not be able to understand the true magnitude of this issue or provide solutions.

At IMEX, we launched our Growth Through Change plan, which focuses on three key areas: people, planet and purpose. The plan contains a range of practical tools, resources and initiatives designed to lead and support the entire global events industry over the coming years, to ensure we are fit and ready for the future to come, and for all of us to drive positive change that creates a better and more resilient events industry.

Over the past two years, we have welcomed a great number of new event professionals from our Certified Meetings Professional (CMP) programme. I am truly impressed by their commitment to excellence throughout what has been a testing time for our industry. Their continued learning is a testament to their strength and resilience in the global business events sector. To strengthen this offering, we recently launched the CMP Fellows Programme, which recognises and rewards CMPs and/or Emeritus who continue to make a significant investment towards the betterment of the events industry and the community of people working within it.

In addition to this, our Centre for Sustainability & Social Impact has continued to work had to provide the industry with some relevant and accessible resources that champion the adoption of sustainable and socially impactful practices. There is a wealth of information, including educational resources, our State of Sustainability research, and our Sustainable Event Standards, which are all free to download.

As we move into 2022, we must start talking differently about our industry’s ability to be a driver for change and how we can use our knowledge and skills to contribute towards a solution to these challenges. Let’s make time for the important conversations that really matter and lead to change.

Warmest Regards,

Amy Calvert, CEO

Events Industry Council