Business Events: Leveraging Scotland's Intellectual Capital by Caroline Mackenzie

Business Events: Leveraging Scotlandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Intellectual Capital Author: Caroline Mackenzie Director, Global Association Partners

UPDATED SEPTEMBER 2017

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In recent times, the focus of research into the legacy of business events has moved from more easily measurable expenditure to the evaluation of the longer-term gains that are enjoyed by industries, governments and communities1.

If everyone is moving forward together, success takes care of itself

Henry Ford

Conferences: catalysts for thriving economies, Foley, Edwards and Schlenker, 2016.

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CONTENTS

Introduction

ANNEX 1

ANNEX 2

The Economic Value of Events 45

Scotland’s Business Event Strategy

Sector Strategy Recommendations

Business Events: The building of the knowledge economy

Best Practice in Leveraging Destination Intellectual Capital

ANNEX 3

ANNEX 4

ANNEX 5

ANNEX 6

ANNEX 7

ANNEX 8

What’s Disturbing the Client ……

ANNEX 9

Business Events: Leveraging Scotland’s Intellectual Capital

ANNEX 10

ANNEX 11

Aligning Business Events to Scotland’s Knowledge Centres

ANNEX 12

Translating Industry Sectors into BE Value

105

ANNEX 13

Call to Action

109

ANNEX 14

112

ANNEX 15

Barriers to Advancement © Global Association Partners, May 2017

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INTRODUCTION The recognition that Business Events is an important as an economic driver is not a new phenomenon. The contribution this sector delivers in terms of generating employment, government tax revenue and spending by delegates, has resulted in the business events sector in the UK and Scotland being recognised as an important economic powerhouse. Recent research by the industry sector, along with that conducted by national1 and regional government2, has resulted in a greater understanding of the wider value, resulting in the business events forming an intrinsic priority within the wider tourism strategies. The economic benefits have become a more straightforward argument to put forward and are more easily quantifiable, as have been supported by recent research conducted by organisations such as MPI3 and BVEP4. Business Events have been under increased scrutiny in recent years with a requirement to identify the true benefits and ROI/ ROO of these activities. This is due to a number of impactors including a general of: global financial pressures on all organisations to justify spend; the evolution of technology as a facilitator in enabling global communications and learning; wider manpower resource pressures and the sustainability impact of hosting such events, there is a need to understand the tangible value . As a result, there is a much greater understanding of the wider benefits and value of business events, beyond the purely economic value. There are equally compelling evidence that demonstrates that business events provide a platform for businesses to engage, collaborate and sell their products and services to a global audience. There is a very strong argument that instead of the focus and treatment of business events being an extension of tourism as a stand alone sector, but instead being seen as a “thread” that runs through all business sectors as a mechanism for achieving identified growth objectives.

1 All

Party Parliamentary Group Inquiry into the 'International Competitiveness of the UK Events Industry” Scottish Enterprise Business Events Study 2016 3 Economic Impact of the UK Meeting & Event Industry 2013, MPI Foundation 4 BVEP Opportunities for Global Growth in Britain’s Event Sector 2017 2

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Again, this is not a new concept, there are good examples of best practice in global destinations where Intellectual Capital has been identified as a key driver for positioning and leveraging the business events. This document aims to cite some of these best examples and where they are showing evidence of successful outcomes. However, it is arguable that those initiatives that have been implemented that they have missed the opportunity in taking these initiatives a step further and have left “packaging gaps” in terms of the tangible product offering that is being promoted. Whilst there are irrefutable challenges in the business events sectors, the positive is that are for those destinations that have identified this change and are able to position themselves at the head of this change curve there are significant benefits to be realised. For Scotland this is an incredibly exciting challenge, which it is ideally in a position to lead globally and capitalise on. This document aims to act as a catalyst to:  Outline the rationale for Scotland pursuing this direction of travel  Demonstrate why Scotland is ideally positioned to succeed  How this links into Scotland’s economic and wider growth strategy  Align with TS2020 and provides a footprint to strategy development post TS2020  Generate an opportunity for engagement across Scotland; engaging existing stakeholders and helping to achieve goals already identified and prioritised  Illustrate how this approach can avoid duplication, instead bringing together centres of excellence

that already exist in a coordinated way 

Outline a call for action

The opportunity is now!

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Optimism Scotland Scott Naismith

THE ECONOMIC VALUE OF EVENTS

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A number of economic studies have been conducted over the recent year’s into the economic impact of events in the UK. The most recent figures published in March 2017 by BVEP (Annex 1) estimates that in 2016 Britain’s Events industry is worth over £41 billion to the economy through direct visitor spend. Estimated by segment that business events accounts for £34.8 billion of this revenue. Leisure / recreational events £6.6 billion. Accompanying attendees of business delegates and exhibitors are estimated to spend an additional £7.7 billion during their stay on Britain. Trade transacted and facilitated at exhibitions and business events is conservatively estimated to be worth over £150 billion Intellectual capital, knowledge exchange and educational opportunities are immeasurable but immense.

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ALIGNMENT WITH SCOTLAND’S ECONOMIC STRATEGY Scotland’s Economic Strategy5 prioritises a “One Scotland” approach and suggests boosting competitiveness and tackling inequality are “mutually reinforcing goals.” The twin goals will be achieved by focusing on four priorities (the four i’s) as follows:

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Sectors where Scotland has been identified as having a distinct comparative advantage:

Aligning Scotland’s Business Event’s Strategy to Scotland’s Economic and Regional Growth Strategies will create mutually beneficial outcomes for both markets. The optimum value will be achieved in utilising the sectors where there is comparative advantage and translating these into tangible value to the business event stakeholders. 5 Scotland’s

Economic Strategy, March 2015

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Scotland’s Business Event Strategy The recognition of the importance of tourism as an economic growth priority sector is well documented. TS2020 was written by the Scottish Tourism Alliance, identifying the key strategies and priorities for sector growth from 2015 – 2020. To align with this, Event Scotland drafted Scotland’s Event Strategy 2015 – 20256, with a 10 year focus which is reflected of the window of time that is needed to identify, target and secure major events. Both strategy documents reference the value of business events as a key pillar in ensuring growth objectives are achieved. There are examples of positive actions in practice and evidence of growth which align with these focus areas as reported in the TS2020 review7. Latest ICCA statistics also illustrate strong destination performance in the association business event sector for international events with Edinburgh showing particular strength in 2016 rising 8 places in the global 2016 city rankings. Edinburgh is the 2nd ranked UK city after London, but both Glasgow and Edinburgh show significant growth over the last 50 years.

TS2020 Mid Term Review

Scotlandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;sBusiness Growth in Scotlandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ICCA Strategy Rankings Over Event 50 years

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However, both reports recognise that there are areas of improvement that can made to ensure these targets are achieved. It is from challenges that for those destinations foreseeing and reacting solutions and offering that can be leveraged as a competitive advantage.

proactively will devise

ÂŠ Global Association Partners, May 2017

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SECTOR STRATEGY RECOMMENDATIONS In the last three years there have been several studies evaluating the effectiveness and competitiveness for sector growth and a local, regional and national level. There has been a commonality consistency in several of the findings and recommendations from these reports and studies.

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ÂŠ Global Association Partners, May 2017

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BUSINESS EVENTS: THE BUILDING OF THE KNOWLEDGE ECONOMY

One of the predominant recommendations that appears in all of these survey’s and reports is the alignment of business events to key industry sectors. What has become known as aligning to Intellectual Capital also helps to position business events as a catalyst for wider regional economic growth strategies and gives the business events sector a significantly larger and more strategic foot print, when being evaluated as an industry and government, than simply being viewed as a sub sector as tourism.

Page 14 ECONOMIC BENEFITS IDENTIFIED FROM THE 2010 BEYOND TOURISM: MEASURING THE SOCIAL LEGACIES OF BUSINESS EVENTS (ANNEX 8)

Business events have been shown to have significantly greater impact than simply that which can measured in terms of visitor stays and spend calculations. Over the last 7 years there have been a number of academic research studies which have identified and highlighted these wider benefits. One of the first destinations to commission such a study was Business Events Sydney, who commissioned a piece of research in 2010 “BEYOND TOURISM: Measuring the social legacies of business event”8 and have produced the report Conferences: catalysts for thriving economies9 in 2016.

CONFERENCES: CATALYSTS ECONOMIES (ANNEX 9)

FOR

THRIVING

Future Convention Cities Initiative (FCCI), commissioned a follow up report in 2014 BEYOND TOURISM BENEFITS: building an international profile10”.

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Conferences: catalysts for thriving economies (ANNEX 9)

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ÂŠ Global Association Partners, May 2017

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BEST PRACTICE IN LEVERAGING DESTINATION INTELLECTUAL CAPITAL

Globally we have seen a number of destinations, harnessing the value of Intellectual Capital as market positioning for business events. As well as helping to achieve: • Social; • Economic; • Intrinsic; • And practice legacies it also helps to align with:

•

Wider educational, commercial governmental strategies

and

• Facilitates internationalisation and showcasing of key industry sectors of strengths Importantly, that perhaps isn’t promoted enough in the research papers, is the benefit the destination can drive in terms of the: • Attendee experience • Ability to align to the organiser’s direct sector objectives • Illustrate key points and values of differentiation when attracting business events vs competitor destinations

LONDON (ANNEX 11)

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THE NETHERLANDS (ANNEX 12)

Like The Netherlands, Scotland is a small country. The ability to leverage assets in different city locations is relatively easy due to the close geography and engaged business and academic communities.

OTTOWA (ANNEX 13)

MELBOURNE – KNOWLEDGE PRECINCTS)

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WHAT’S DISTURBING THE CLIENT …………………….. To leverage opportunity and to create a differentiation, firstly is important to understand that challenges being faced by those engaging in the business event’s sector. There are often many stake holders involved, all who have differing needs, goals and objectives from the event. By gaining a better understanding of these will enable the destination / local partner to identify solutions they can offer to address these challenges and therefore turn them into opportunity. Where it can add to the experience that isn’t easily replicated in another location it becomes a key differentiator . Where value and benefit can be presented and mobilised it gives another tool to leverage that is simply beyond facility offering and price. Whilst each industry sector will have slight nuances in terms of what these challenges and objectives are, their will be a lot of commonality across industry sector.

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The Delegate -

Time Resources Funding Online access to learning Regulation Desire to network Seeing advancement / collaborations Competition (increased learning platforms) Desire for experience Requirement for practical skills training Safety Desirable location

The Sponsor -

Face to Face time with customer Costs / Budget Time Product placement Networking ROI Regulation Safety Education Competition Desire to create content Company awareness and profile

The Exhibitor -

Face to Face time with customer Costs / Budget Time Product awareness Lead generation ROI Launching Products Brand Awareness Messaging Competition Community engagement Company awareness and profile

Association Organiser -

Quality content Education Engaging members Attracting new members Engaging wider profession Budget / Cost Competition Safety Access Content capture Hybrid activities Maximise outreach Experience Require active local community (commercial and academic)

ÂŠ Global Association Partners, May 2017

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Corporate Organiser -

Budget Lead times Different / unique experience Technology Engaging target audience Regulation Competition Safety Access Content capture Hybrid activities Memorable Appropriateness Attendee and client expectations ROI / justifying need

Host Destination -

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BUSINESS EVENTS: LEVERAGING SCOTLAND’S INTELLECTUAL CAPITAL

Page 23 Scotland’s Economic Strategy has evolved over the last 15 years since devolution.

2015 ECONOMIC STRATEGY PRIORITIES

2015 Scotland’s Economic Framework

PURPOSE

Increasing competitiveness and tackling inequality are mutually supportive

COMPETITIVENESS

INVESTMENT

INNOVATION

INCLUSIVE GROWTH

TACKLING INEQUALITY

INTERNATIONALISATION

As demonstrated from the research evidence of recent studies, business events have a significantly greater impact than purely economic benefit. There is an alignment between the value and benefits arrived from business events and those sought as strategic priorities outlined in the 2015 Economic Strategy. Business Events help achieve the wider objectives of Scotland’s economic strategy, and help to deliver the objectives set out in key industry sectors. They align to City and Regional Deals, as well as individual City Marketing strategies and are an identified priority element within the country’s tourism and events strategy. © Global Association Partners, May 2017

ALIGNING BUSINESS EVENTS TO SCOTLAND’S KNOWLEDGE CENTRES

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As Scotland is geographically relatively small, there is the ability to harness the knowledge centres across Scotland as an asset when “packaging” the offering to potential BE organisers. Scotland as a market is more mature than many and business events are an integral part of the tourism and marketing strategies. There are some excellent initiatives being undertaken and there is an awareness of the legacy benefits. However, there are gaps in the “Delivery Phase” in terms how can assets be packaged to offer a valuable benefit to the business event stakeholder. Greater impact could be achieved with increased cooperation between geographical locations and sector specialisms.

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TRANSLATING INDUSTRY SECTORS INTO BUSINESS EVENT VALUE When reviewing the international destinations who are leading in aligning the value of intellectual capital and business sectors as a positioning and marketing tool, they have all shown good awareness in capturing the sector assets they have at their disposal. However there is a significant “packaging gap” in terms of translating these assets into a value for the event stakeholders. Conversely there is an opportunity being missed for the business sector to capitalise is the value of hosting such events can bring, which could be magnified by having a collaborative Scotland wide approach. By harnessing the collective assets rather than simply individual commercial companies, will: • Create a much greater quantity of scale • Ensure an inclusive approach of engagement; commercial, governmental, academic, third sector • Facilitate business / educational experiences greater than an individual offering can deliver • Help pull together the “strands” that exist independently in pockets throughout Scotland • Align the offerings to address the challenges and” pain points” of the sector • Create a customised strategy and offering for each sector which includes tangible delivery assets.

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CALL TO ACTION • The BTfS Industry Group, including VS, SE, STA and City Marketing Bureaus to agree the alignment approach • The MAXIMUM VALUE comes for an integrated Scotland approach • Determine which sector(s) to kick off with • Create an Industry Sector Working Group to support: - What value do the sector want? / What represents value to industry sector - Gather the asset knowledge - Create the “packaging” • Create a tool and asset library which can be tapped into across Scotland when “selling” Scotland with “added value” to business events • Create a Bid Support tool and Asset Library with specialist content • Alignment Themed Years to sectors • Greater co-ordination and collaboration on bidding • Leverage Scotland wide industry and knowledge assets when destination positioning • Needs consistency in “story telling” • Aim to ensure; economic, commercial, social and academic legacies from business events • Develop a “”Connector” offering together to engage between Business Events and cross industry sectors

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BARRIERS TO ADVANCEMENT

There are many challenges in implementing strategy change. The main challenge in Scotland will be communicating the value and the benefit to the stakeholder, whether that is Governmental, industry or supply partner. It will be essential to bring all partners â&#x20AC;&#x153;on the journeyâ&#x20AC;? and anticipate barriers and preconceptions. To recognise this and be prepared with evidence to support the arguments and demonstrate outcomes benefits is crucial. This has been recognised by the Joint Meetings Industry Council (JMIC) who have been instrumental in gathering internationally economic impact studies and have introduced a Case Study Programme to help gather the evidence of the wider outcomes benefits of business events from destinations who are already adopting this strategy. Annex 14 and Annex 15 detail abstracts to two such case studies certified by JMIC. Consistency in story telling and having the evidence to support this strategy is crucial from top down and bottom up.

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ANNEX

Â© Global Association Partners, May 2017

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ANNEX 1

EXTRACT FROM ALL PARTY PARLIAMENTARY GROUP UK EVENTS INDUSTRY Inquiry Report into the ‘International Competitiveness of the UK Events Industry 2013 Key Recommendations Government  A cross departmental approach should be established to represent the best interests of the UK events industry. Its home should remain within Tourism at the Department for Culture, Media & Sport (DCMS), but it will also have representation from the Department for Business, Innovation & Skills (BIS). A principal function of BIS is to break down the barriers created by unintended consequences of legislation or regulation. DCMS should chair a formal sub-committee with invited stakeholders from Home Office, BIS and Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) •

That a special ‘Events Visa’ is created, that will provide a more positive welcome to influential event parties travelling internationally into the UK and provide pre-approved business travellers and ‘event tourists’ with a more pleasant entry into the UK. This has been authorised for the Commonwealth Games but should be extended to international trade shows, consumer and business-to-business events

•

A feasibility study is set up to review if the tax raising powers of local government to raise income for capital expenditure, that demonstrates a net benefit return for the local community, with the support of the local community by democratic consent, are sufficient to meet industry objectives

•

The Localism Act 2012 allows councils to raise funding from local tax payers subject to approval by local referendum. It is not clear whether these powers would include major infrastructure projects however the principal is clearly positively established by government. A feasibility study should determine the scope of the economic impact of any investment and therefore the practicality of raising public funding across more than one jurisdiction for example

•

The treasury should include, within future economic impact studies, the impact of taxation within the events industry and specifically, but not exclusively: o The impact of APD on travel to major business and consumer events o The impact of VAT on business event success •

The Business Visits & Events Partnership (BVEP) and the Britain for Events campaign is fully recognised by government as the central and fully representative voice of the UK events industry. That representatives from country level DMO’s, along with VisitBritain, be included on the partnership to share learning and best practice across UK destinations alongside the industries many trade associations

•

That local authorities / DMOs work closely with businesses and organisations concerned with the events industry to develop a region specific approach to subvention not limited to purely fiscal support but providing a long term and sustainable support for returning events business

•

That a communication programme e.g. conference is produced and delivered in partnership with the events industry and aimed at local authorities to promote the benefits of the events sector in local destinations, and to provide information and advice on subjects such as e.g. licensing and regulation, health and safety etc

ANNEX 1 CONTINUED

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Industry • Sharing best practice across the sector was not evident within the inquiry. Destination success stories should be shared throughout the UK events industry so that others can benefit. This could be coordinated through e.g. BVEP / Britain for Events and/or country level DMOs, and could include: o Scottish Exhibition + Conference Centre (SECC), Glasgow City Marketing Bureau (GCMB) and VisitScotland o International destination successes e.g. Vienna, Barcelona, Lisbon • Industry regional partnerships should be formed with local and regional authorities. Whilst there is evidence that forward thinking local authorities have examined the return on investment (ROI) of investing in the events industry and subsequently invested where appropriate, such engagement with the industry is patchwork across the country and often on an informal basis. This will also help drive inward investment to areas in line with the growth agenda • Industry to fully embrace the Ministerial Support Bid initiative and closer relations with UKTI, including the newly formed UKTI Events Alliance, to ensure stronger pitches for meeting and convention business • Sustainability and apprenticeships are both a key part of the government agenda, both as a stakeholder to the industry, but also as potential buyer. These areas should therefore be more widely embraced by the events industry • A single professional organisation, funded by the industry, with representatives from leading bodies could help ensure a unified, coherent and consistent relationship is built with government, local authorities and regulatory bodies. This could be a better resourced BVEP to ensure the industry speaks with one voice 4. Terms of Reference: To what extent is the UK events industry internationally competitive? The UK events industry is currently worth £36bn, in terms of visitor expenditure, with aspirations to grow to £48.4bn by 2020*. The UK’s reputation in the creation, staging, and production of events**, be they business (brand activations, conferences, conventions, large meetings, exhibitions), cultural and music festivals, sporting events and other indoor and outdoor public events and fairs is unparalleled. Even before 2012, with both the Olympic and Paralympic Games, the Cultural Olympiad and the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Celebrations, projecting the UK’s event expertise to the forefront of global event excellence; the UK event industry had already been recognised as one of the most creative, diverse, and professional sectors in a global market place. The industry’s reputation is built around: the quality of our creative industries; the diversity of our venues; our alignment with industry – financial, medical, environmental, sporting or digital; and the global expansion of our events and exhibition industry. Events have so much to offer UK plc. They support the industrial strategy of the UK by positioning Britain as a centre of commerce, attracting companies and industries to do business in our country. They are also an ever-increasing export opportunity as they grow into new territories, creating inward investment opportunities, selling UK skills, expertise and products abroad.

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ANNEX 1 CONTINUED

As an industry, events lead to the provision of over 530,000* (full time equivalents) jobs from apprenticeship level upwards. They stimulate thought leadership through the sharing of knowledge, research and intelligence that progresses scientific and technological understanding and innovation. They also bring communities together, whether they are united by a common geography, interest, cause or belief. Finally, events attract international audiences to the UK, who buy our products and services and, in many cases, return with their families boosting and complementing the UK tourism industry. Most importantly, the industry’s aspiration to expand by £12bn by 2020 supports the growth agenda for the UK. 14 This inquiry has been established to explore and understand how competitive the UK is internationally and to provide recommendations to government on the steps it can take to increase its share of the global events industry. * Source: Britain for Events Report ** The word event is representative of any event, including but not limited to: meetings, exhibitions, conferences, corporate hospitality, sporting, and festivals, live events, experiential, product launches both indoor and outdoor etc. 5. Supporting Conclusions It is clear that UK events, whilst often the victim of economic trends, is an industry that holds global respect for its creativity, people and the quality and uniqueness of its venues and destinations. UK event and exhibition agencies have grown internationally and represent success stories for the exportation of the UK creative sector. There can be no doubt that the Olympic and Paralympic Games, alongside the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations contributed to this reputation as will the forthcoming Commonwealth Games 14 and Ryder Cup 14 in Scotland next year.

Balanced against this positive reputation comes a negative perception of cost and all evidence given by event organisers cited price as a key issue in not selecting the UK over other international destinations. In short however, this is a competitive industry and the question should therefore be, how can it be made more competitive and how can government support its growth. It should be noted that the role of local authorities here is paramount. This is a ‘destination’ led industry and whilst national representation creates cost effective and coherent umbrella support for local DMOs, it will be the individual and more localised destinations which gain most from increased activity in this industry. Prospects of the Growth Agenda Evidence given to this inquiry demonstrated that events play a role in the growth agenda of this government. Events impact on UK tourism, they place the UK as a centre of business excellence, scientific knowledge and research and development.

ANNEX 1 CONTINUED

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The Industry’s Response After extensive industry collaboration, this document has solidified the response from the events industry, to the findings of the report. This document has been drafted with the expectation of hearing further feedback from the industry before being presented back to the enquiry and implemented by UK events industry as a whole. 1. Sharing of best practice • It is widely accepted by members of the events industry that the sharing of best practice should be encouraged to both underline areas of industry quality, and to advocate benchmarking and continued improvement throughout the industry • Many initiatives already exist throughout the industry that reward best practice, there is however a need to ensure this is disseminated throughout the industry • The Business Visits & Events Partnership has agreed, through its partners, to encourage the sharing of best practice through: o Website o Newsletter o Britain for Events • Best practice can be deemed to include o Professionalisation (apprenticeships) o Sustainability o Event case studies • •

The ‘Interboard’ (VisitEngland, VisitScotland, Tourism Ireland, NITB, London & Partners) will support this drive through its own membership reach The Interboard will also support the process in terms of prioritising the different aspects of best practice but also collating tangible examples

2. Form industry partnerships with local and regional authorities • The industry agreed with the sentiment that it should have good relations with local authorities to encourage them to support local events and to create supportive environments that allow events to take place within local counties, towns and cities • The BVEP will continue to support better relationships with local and regional authorities, principally through our partner organisations the MIA Destinations Group, LAEOG and Interboard • There was a suggestion as part of this recommendation that a regional roadshow be considered by the industry. This is not something that is planned at present but could be progressed through a partnership between national destination body and a BVEP partner • It was suggested that English destinations could incorporate the work currently being undertaken with LEP’s (in establishing and increasing the emphasis on the visitor economy in their economic growth priorities) and DMO’s (offering guidance/sharing best practice) • The Interboard agreed to lead on messaging for this communication 3. Greater engagement with Ministerial Bid Support and UKTI Events Alliance • Since the APPG inquiry took place, VisitEngland has set up and is achieving success with the Ministerial Bid Support Initiative • VisitEngland, BVEP and Britain for Events continue to keep dialogue with UKTI

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ANNEX 1 CONTINUED

The Industry’s Response Continued • The BVEP and Britain for Events campaign is working with the Department of Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) to encourage further use of ‘Events’ within the GREAT campaign to support development of trade and inward investment and the export of event creativity. • The BVEP has coordinated a committee to produce an Events Manifesto with the objective of outlining its aims and ambitions to government 4. Embrace Sustainability and Apprenticeship programmes • The industry needs to gather further research / information on the validity of this claim • The BVEP will invite prospective chairs to create a subcommittee comprising influencing organisations and individuals with a view to producing a quantitative piece of research in three areas: o Sustainability o Apprenticeships o Internships • The industry accepted that, whilst there are multiple examples of professional qualifications and CPD opportunities, many of these need to be standardised and offer consistency to executives in the industry. The BVEP will report the findings of the APPGI to the Institute of Event Management which has now been established within the industry 5. Create a single better resourced organisation to represent the industry • The BVEP reiterates that it remains the most representative body in the UK events industry, however it acknowledges the need to be even broader in its representation and seeks improved financing to take on industry progressing activity • Financing of the BVEP would be through sponsorship, private and public funding, and commercial initiatives and is creating a commercial action plan for the partnership • The BVEP continues to seek government funding to support its growth and employment agendas and is encouraging industry cohesion behind the Institute of Event Management who will aid the industry in this area

ANNEX 2

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EXTRACT FROM Scottish Enterprise Business Events Study Executive Summary APRIL 2016 Background ES.2 The key objective of the study is for the Partners to understand if and where further significant opportunities exist to attract additional business events revenues into Scotland. The outputs of this study will be used by the Partners to identify and agree the collaborative growth priorities for the sector, to deliver the objectives set out in ‘Tourism Scotland 2020’ and the Government Economic Strategy. ES.3 The business tourism/events sector has become more prominent in Scotland over recent years. The national tourism and events strategies, Tourism 2020 Strategy and Scotland the Perfect Stage have set the strategic priorities. The formation of Business Tourism for Scotland and the highly regarded work of VisitScotland, the four convention bureaus and the cities have further raised the profile of business events within and outside Scotland. The business events market is estimated to be worth between £900m and £1.9bn per annum to Scotland. Strategic Context ES.6 The strategic context in Scotland is shaped by the Government Economic Strategy, Tourism Scotland 2020 and Scotland the Perfect Stage 2015-2025. These strategies together identify the key targets for growth in the business events sector, key industrial priorities for Scotland and ways in which Scotland must develop its business events sector to achieve its targets. ES.7 Scotland has ambitious targets for growth at a national and sub-national level. Business Tourism for Scotland has set the national target for growth: to grow the economic impact of business events by 20% and for all regions of Scotland to grow business tourism by 20% by 2020. This is an ambitious target, in excess of the projected growth for the UK business events sector over the period. Therefore to achieve it, Scotland has to increase its market share of events. Business Event Market ES.10 The global and UK business events markets are projected to grow into the future. This includes meetings and conferences, exhibitions and incentive travel. The meetings, conferences and incentive travel markets had been affected by the global economic downturn in recent years; however growth is now expected across all business events sectors. The international associations’ conference market has grown continuously for the last 60 years, with c10% growth per annum. ES.12 Technology, education and financial services are growth sectors for business events as well as key industries for the Scottish Government. Medical sciences are also a growth sector for corporate events and exhibitions, and represents 17.2% of the international association market.

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ANNEX 2 CONTINUED

The Scottish business events market (supply and demand) ES.13 There is limited data collated on the demand for business events in Scotland. A one-off study was undertaken in 2013 on the meetings and conference market (Business Event Tourism in Scotland 2013 (BETS)) however there are no regular studies which enable an assessment of performance over time and identification of trends in Scotland. There are no national studies available on the exhibition or incentive travel markets. ES.14 BETS found that Scotland held 118,000 conference and meeting events in 2013, accounting for 7m delegates and 11m delegate days. The majority of conferences and meetings were corporate (54%), with 18% association events and 28% government/public sector events. This is a higher proportion of government and public sector events than the UK as a whole. ES.15 The majority of events (61%) were for less than 50 delegates, with only 6% of events attracting more than 200 delegates (approximately 7,000 events with more than 200 delegates). 71% of events in 2013 were generated from within Scotland, 22% from the rest of the UK and 7% from overseas.

The primary destinations ES.18 Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen are the primary destinations for business events in Scotland. These cities contain the largest purpose built facilities, are supported by city convention bureauâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s, international airports and good transport links and are the top ranked Scottish cities in UK business events studies and by ICCA. Edinburgh and Glasgow ranked 4th and 5th in the UK as the top destinations used by UK meetings organisers, behind London, Birmingham and Manchester. Aberdeen has fallen down the rankings for corporate meetings from 10th to 17th following the downturn in the oil industry. ES.19 Edinburgh alone accounts for 31.5% of the total GVA for the Scottish business events sector, ÂŁ601m of ÂŁ1.9bn according to the MPI Economic Impact of the UK Meeting and Event Industry 2013. Edinburgh is the primary destination in Scotland for incentive travel; SITE Scotland estimates that c90% of incentive travel trips will include at least one or two days in Edinburgh. Key Competitors ES.23 Scottish destinations and venues compete against each other for business events, in particular for events from within Scotland. Glasgow, Edinburgh and to some extent Aberdeen would typically compete with each other (rather than the smaller destinations) to secure business events. ES.24 All Scottish destinations consider other parts of the UK as competitors. Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen primarily compete with London, Manchester, Birmingham, Liverpool and Newcastle. When Scottish destinations are competing for European and international business events they can compete against other major European cities and venues. Whilst the specific competition for each event could be different, there are a number of cities that Scottish destinations regularly come up against, for Edinburgh and Glasgow these include: Dublin, Barcelona, Vienna, Paris, Amsterdam, Copenhagen and Berlin. Aberdeen cites Paris, Frankfurt and Stavanger (another oil based economy) as its key European competitors.

ANNEX 2 CONTINUED

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Scotland’s key strengths, weakness, barriers ES.28 Scotland is well respected as a business event destination, with Glasgow widely cited as an example of best practice within the UK. This study identified the following key strengths: • positioning of Scotland internationally: Scotland is a popular international visitor destination, it has strong brands recognised around the world in particular in the USA, it benefits from being part of the UK (with a strong reputation for hosting events) and recent high profile events (e.g. Commonwealth Games) have further strengthened Scotland’s position • Scottish assets: Scotland has a range of key assets that appeal to tourists and business visitors, including: scenery and environment, castles and historic buildings, culture and authenticity, history, golf, whiskey and friendly people

• sectors and universities: Scotland has a strong academic, research and industry base, in particular in its key sectors • ambassadors: Scotland and its regions have made an asset of its ambassadors in the academic and research sectors, in particular in areas such as Edinburgh, Glasgow, Dundee and Aberdeen ES.30 The study found that most of the barriers to growth, were similar to the weaknesses identified above, with the following additions:

• reducing public sector investment: the recent and future projected cuts in public sector expenditure could have a large impact on the business events sector, in terms of possible reduction number of events undertaken by the public sector and reducing investment in facilities and softer services such as destination marketing and subvention • competition: increasing pool of competition, with existing competitors investing further in their offer • EU referendum: is expected to create a degree of uncertainty for event organisers, as some consultees experienced during the Scottish Independence referendum • factors affecting customer spending/choices: the perception of spending on events, and in particular of the highest quality (e.g. 5* resorts) is challenging in the current economic climate. The Bribery Act has also impacted on what companies’ consider as appropriate expenditure on business events • local funding: the availability of local funding to support venues to attract business events is considered a barrier in some places. For example, matched funding is required to make an application to the national Bid Fund.

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Market Growth Opportunities ES.31 The study identified a range of opportunities for Scotland to maintain its current position, and grow its business events sector in the future. These are detailed in Table ES 1. Table ES 1: Opportunities for growth MARKETS AND EVENTS

Opportunities

Description

Targeting and attracting more international association conferences

International association conferences are a target across the country and for VisitScotland. This sector has seen continual worldwide growth since the early 1960’s, and does not appear to be slowing. It is considered as less volatile than other types of business events in relation to world economic conditions. International association events bring international delegates, profile, decision makers and many more benefits to Scotland and its regions. Additionally, with long lead-in times, availability is less of a limiting factor, and it provides secured business (in the books) for the future.

Targeting events in Scotland’s (or a region’s) key industries

Increasingly, cities and regions have begun to focus on attracting events in Scotland’s (or the local) key industries. In some locations this is partly for the purpose of economic development of the industry, but in other locations it is recognition that there is likely to be more chance of securing a business event if vit is in a subject where the region/country is strong. This is a subtle but important difference in approach. All types of events in the key sectors

Investing in and developing new events to be based in Scotland

There is potential for Scotland to develop new events that can take place in Scotland on an annual or biennial basis. These could be exhibitions or conferences in any of Scotland’s key sectors, where there is a gap in the market for a new or additional national, UK, European or world event. This could include for example creating an international Life Sciences event. This approach was taken by Amsterdam in establishing its International Broadcasting Convention (IBC) Exhibition that now takes place annually in Amsterdam attracting c70,000 delegates per annum. Amsterdam developed the event alongside developing its broadcasting industry by encouraging broadcasting companies to locate in Amsterdam.

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Table ES 1: Opportunities for growth IMPACT

Opportunities

Description

Maximising delegate attendance at all types of events

Growing the number of attendees at events has two major benefits. Firstly, this provides additional visitors to Scotland and its regions which in turn increase the total level of expenditure and economic impact. Secondly, attracting delegates is a major factor for event organisers, particularly in the association sector therefore if Scotland can demonstrate higher average delegate numbers for these types of events; it will encourage further events to Scotland.

Increasing the impact of events – including increasing business visitor spend, promoting extended stays and measuring and valuing wider industrial development and social impacts of events.

Increasing the impact of events is also an opportunity to promote and support growth. This includes both the economic impact of delegates and visitors and the wider economic, industrial and social benefits of business events. With respect to visitor spending and impact, this includes: increasing visitor spend within Scotland, increasing the amount of time delegates spend in Scotland by extending their trips (this could also be used to spread the benefit of an event outside of the host location), promoting return visits. Importantly, these factors need to be attributable impacts of the business events, and not lost in wider tourism measurements. Increasing visitor spend per day is a challenging target, because it needs to be balanced against the need to provide value for money, however it is already recognised by a number of the cities as a focus of attention. With regards to the wider economic, industrial and social impacts, this includes: • positioning a destination in key industry sectors • bringing global expertise into the community • facilitating networks for local professionals and academics • attracting new investment and talent • showcasing local products and accomplishments • enhancing destination profile and image • boosting education, innovation and knowledge transfer • advancing professional standards and practices.

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Supporting growth and recommendations ES.32 Scotland will need to continue to invest and improve its business events offer to maintain its current position as well as to achieve growth in the future, as competition continues to increase and expectations of event organisers and delegates continue to grow. The main report identifies what Scotland needs to do to support growth and maximise the opportunities identified. ES.33 Table ES 2 sets out the key recommendations of the study with an explanation and suggestions of what Scotland should do to develop and grow the business events sector. Table ES 2: Recommendations National

Recommendation

Explanation

N1: Promote and support national interventions to make Scotland more competitive internationally

The sector and its key actors should continue to promote the needs of the business events sector at Government level. Key interventions to improve Scotland’s competitiveness that should be developed further and supported include: • the removal of Air Passenger Duty (already under consideration) • promotion of tax incentives for business travel/events (to be developed) • visa red carpet scheme or equivalent (to be developed) • consider options for including business events in any incentive packages for companies to locate to Scotland (to be developed).

N2: Promote the business events sector as an industrial development tool

Business events deliver a wide range of economic and industrial benefits beyond the creation of bed nights and visitor spending, such as: positioning Scotland or a destination in a key industry sector, bringing global expertise to Scotland, knowledge and skills transfer and advancing professional standards. Recognition and promotion of these wider benefits to industry sectors and public and private bodies in Scotland should precipitate their involvement and investment in the business events sector. For example, the sector teams within Scottish Enterprise would recognise what value business events bring to industrial development, therefore making it more likely that they will engage in attracting more events to Scotland and potentially providing additional investment in the sector. This principle applies across a wide range of organisations.

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Table ES 2: Recommendations National

Recommendation

Explanation

N3: Define the business events sector and its targets more clearly

There is no standard definition of the business events sector in Scotland. The type and scale of events included within the sector differs between organisations, destinations and venues. This presents a challenge when measuring the performance of the sector, growth in the sector and its impacts. Therefore, a standard definition should be agreed between the key national partners and promoted across the county. This definition can then be used as a starting point for measuring performance, growth and impacts. The national partners should consider providing additional targets/guidance in relation to growth of the business events sector. The national targets set out by Business Tourism for Scotland are high level (20% growth in economic impact of business tourism for Scotland and 20% growth in business tourism in all areas of Scotland) and understandably focussed on the business tourism impact. The current targets do not therefore include the potential industrial impacts that could be targeted and provides relatively limited structure to how growth could be achieved (for example, an X% increase in visitors, a Y% increase in expenditure, Z% of visitors extending their stays).

N4: Invest in measuring and monitoring the Scottish business events market and trends, to support the market and measure growth effectively

There is very limited published data available on the Scottish business events market. Therefore it is not possible to identify trends, or track progress over time. There is no published data for Scotland in the exhibitions or incentive travel sectors, and only one study in 2013 for the meetings and conference market.

ÂŠ Global Association Partners, May 2017

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Recommendation

Explanation

N4: continued

There are a range of estimates of the value of the business events market in Scotland. The MPI UK Economic Impact Study 2013 estimated this to be £1.9bn and this is the baseline to be used by Business Tourism for Scotland to measure growth by 2020. However, this report contained limited information broken down to the Scottish level and it is not clear when this report will be repeated. We also understand that the outputs of the MPI report are not accepted by Scottish Government for investment purposes. Therefore, Scotland should invest in measuring and monitoring its business events market, through an annual survey or study. This could then be used as the baseline for setting future targets, measuring growth and supporting investment decisions.

N5: Promote increased collaboration and partnerships within the business events sector

A weakness of the business events sector is the level of collaboration achieved. Where collaboration happens, it is seen as a great strength, therefore increasing collaboration should provide further benefits. The key challenge is that many destinations, venues and businesses within Scotland are competing with each other, and therefore there is a reluctance to share information and expertise. Key areas for promoting increased collaboration are: • with UK government, Scottish government and key public sector bodies, between the cities and regions and within regions, cities and towns – and potentially wider with UK, European or other cities worldwide that provide mutually beneficial opportunities •

sharing information, data and leads – for example, any economic or industry data produced by Scottish Enterprise would be beneficial to the business events sector to identify trends and potential growth areas. Any leads that cannot be followed up by a city should be passed on to the rest of Scotland.

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Recommendation

Explanation

N5: continued

•

N6: Clarity of roles in the business events sector nationally

Ensure that there is a clarity of roles and responsibilities, particularly at the national level, in the business events sector, and communicate this more widely across Scotland.

N7: Use other major events in Scotland to cross-sell and develop the business events sector

All major events supported by public bodies in Scotland should include a plan for promoting and attracting business events before, during and after the event.

sharing experiences and lessons learned – there is a large amount of good practice within Scotland (and the UK), this should be more effectively disseminated and shared to benefit the whole of Scotland.

Markets

Recommendation

Explanation

M1: Support and further develop the national and destination Ambassador’s programmes and Think Scotland Think Conference

The Ambassador’s schemes have proven highly successful for Scotland, attracting a wide range of events that would not have been possible without the use of Ambassadors. However the scheme can be developed even further, as some destinations noted that whilst they have a long list of Ambassadors, they are not active.

M2: Identify opportunities and influencers through public sector bodies

Scottish Enterprise and the other public agencies in Scotland have significant expertise, knowledge and contacts, in particular in the key industries. These bodies should be encouraged to identify potential markets/ trends, influencers and events that could be brought to Scotland. Leads should be shared and influencers introduced to VisitScotland and the relevant destinations to work to secure the events.

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Recommendation

Explanation

M3: Investigate the potential to develop strategic partnerships or incentive schemes with agencies at various levels

This report has identified that agencies play a key role in the delivery of events in Scotland. 27% of events in Scotland are delivered with/through third parties. Further, the BMEIS research shows that 15.5% of corporates and 9.2% of association destination choices were influenced by third party event organisers (higher than through influencers or ambassadors). Relationships with agencies at a national, destination and venue level are important for attracting events to Scotland. Therefore, the potential to develop strategic partnerships or incentivised relationships with these partners should be investigated, and if viable implemented.

M4: Support the continuation of the Bid Fund and any proposals for increasing subvention budgets across Scotland

The national Bid Fund has proven highly effective in attracting events to Scotland and supplementing funding from destinations and venues, to provide a higher level of subvention funding than was previously available. Feedback from consultees suggests that long-term certainty about the availability of the Bid Fund is important to their future plans.

Therefore it is important to support the next stage of Bid Fund development alongside VisitScotland and to ensure any parameters for funding do not exclude any potential bids with a major or mega impact (regardless of matched funding or limits on funding). Any further proposals coming forward to provide additional subvention funding for events should be supported.

M5: Support and invest in the development of new events to be held in Scotland

There may be opportunities for Scotland to create and grow events that take place regularly in Scotland. This could be a new event in one of Scotlandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s key sectors, for example life sciences. These opportunities need to be identified and progressed; this could be with destinations in Scotland and/or event organisers. It is likely that these events will require strategic support and potentially investment in the early years. However, once established these events will provide a long-term benefit to Scotland.

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Impacts

Recommendation

Explanation

I1: Co-ordinate the consistent measurement of the full range of impacts from business events and disseminate the findings

The business events sector generates a wide range of economic, industrial and social benefits. These are not currently measured consistently or at a national level. Developing a national framework for measuring these benefits will enable the sector to better measure and promote its impacts, engage with those outside the sector and secure future investments to support growth. As part of this, it will be important to support the implementation of the strategies set out in TS2020 and Scotland the Perfect Stage to improve measurement in the sector and to ensure that the toolkits developed are tailored/appropriate for business events (compared with major sporting/cultural events).

I2: Encourage complimentary programming of business events in the non-peak tourism season

As set out within the report, a key challenge for the business events sector is the availability of accommodation and other facilities in the peak tourism season. Therefore, where possible, business events that complement the tourism season should be targeted. This will enable the maximum use of the existing accommodation and other assets.

I3: Promote schemes and initiatives to increase business visitors to events and increase visitor spending

Two key ways to maximise the impact of existing and future business events is to increase number of visitors/delegates and to increase delegate spend. Targets for the business events sector should specifically include these two elements, with strategies on how to achieve and promote these factors developed.

ÂŠ Global Association Partners, May 2017

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ANNEX 3

EXTRACT FROM The Economic Impact of the UK Meeting & Event Industry JUNE 2013

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EXTRACT FROM BVEP Opportunities for Global Growth in Britainâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Event Sector MARCH 2017

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EXTRACT FROM Scotland’s Economic Strategy MARCH 2015

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EXTRACT FROM Scotland the Perfect Stage 2015 - 2025

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EXTRACT FROM TS2020 Mid Term Review 2016

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EXTRACT FROM Business Events Sydney â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Beyond Tourism Benefits Report 2010

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EXTRACT FROM BES Research Report - Conferences: catalysts for thriving economies 2016

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EXTRACT FROM Future Convention Cities Initiative (FCCI) – Beyond Tourism Benefits Report 2014

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EXTRACT FROM LONDON – The Capital of Cutting Edge

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EXTRACT FROM THE NETHERLANDS â&#x20AC;&#x201C; SECTOR ALIGNMENT

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EXTRACT FROM OTTOWA â&#x20AC;&#x201C; MEETINGS OF MINDS HEALTH AND LIFE SCIENCES

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ABSTRACT OF JMIC Value of Meetings Case Studies Series ICC Sydney: Feeding Your Performance, May 2017

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ICC Sydneyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s full submission and details of outcomes benefits can be found at: http://static1.1.sqspcdn.com/static/f/544461/27562936/1494857979807/JMIC _Case+Study_ICC+Sydney_Feeding+your+performance+17.5_V2.pdf?toke n=NFTgM1WKWxeI%2BgT58vC7zxi%2FBmI%3D

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ABSTRACT OF JMIC Value of Meetings Case Studies Series SWISS FINTECH CORNER SETUP AT SIBOS, Geneva 2016

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Genevaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s full submission and details of outcomes benefits can be found at: http://static1.1.sqspcdn.com/static/f/544461/27558368/1494484389053/Sibo s+Final.pdf?token=g5XtRnGtqr7d74FnVxAThlwhE8A%3D

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“We are in the middle of a century of change, and this middle segment of the next 33 years really matters. The decisions we make now on issues such as infrastructure, trade, population movements, and dealing with climate change, will set the pattern that will endure for the next 100 to 200 years.” The role of the meetings industry is crucial in advancing these areas, yet it remains “almost invisible to many policy makers. It does not appear in economic development strategies as much as it should. An industry that brings large numbers of elite decision makers to cities should be acknowledged more.” The “partnership gap”, between cities and the meetings industry, the successful cities of the future will be those who best solve these issues and who make meetings a component of the way ahead. “Without meetings to think about the issues we face, we would not know where to start. Everything begins with a meeting.” PROFESSOR GREG CLARK CBE, THE BUSINESS OF CITIES LTD

For further information Caroline Mackenzie Director Global Association Partners Warrender House Haywood Road Moffat DG10 9BU E: caroline@globalassociationpartners.com T: +44 (0)7379 429500 www.globalassociationpartners.com