MPI Predicts Challenging 2015 for Meeting Planners
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The report declares that this is "crunch time" for many meeting professionals who are facing increasing pressure on every front as the pace of meetings and events grows in segments throughout the industry.
Meetings and events are being complicated by factors such as limited guest room availability ("book now or forget about it"), shorter lead times and continually increasing airfare on flights with fewer open seats, according to survey respondents. The challenges appear to be affecting U.S. meeting professionals in particular.
In a post-recession environment where many organizations are still emphasizing significant ROI in meetings, the trend toward holding meetings with a demonstrable business payoff is continuing. Meeting professionals can expect to see the greatest increases in gatherings focused on practical topics such as training, sales and education.
Increasing costs for services across the meeting and event spectrum combined with only slight budgetary growth is setting up a more challenging year ahead.
Key predictions for 2015 include:
- Costs will increase greater than budgets with air travel (5 percent) and F&B/catering (4 percent) growing the most.
- Overall budget growth: 1.7 percent.
- Organizations are investing more in employees.
- Of all meeting/event types, training, educational events and sales meetings will grow the most.
- Incentives will also be on the rise after several weak years.
- Overall business for meeting and event professionals in the U.S. and Europe will grow at 3.2 percent and 3.6 percent, respectively.
