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HEADQUARTERS A S I A- PAC I F I C

the Asia-Pacific Magazine for Association Executives Supported by UIA, Union of International Associations, Brussels

Headquarters Magazines Meetings Industry Publishers (Singapore) Published 4 times a year Edition December 2011

INTERVIEW

PENNY LION BUSINESS EVENTS AUSTRALIA

SPECIAL DESTINATION FEATURE MACAU UIA FUNDRAISING FOR ASSOCIATIONS

HQ ASIA PACIFIC THE ASIA-PACIFIC MAGAZINE FOR ASSOCIATION EXECUTIVES

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2012 PLANNING

HQ > CONTENTS

COLOPHON HEADQUARTERS ASIA-PACIFIC OR HAP IS A NICHE PUBLICATION FOR LOCAL, REGIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATIONS BASED IN THE ASIA-PACIFIC REGION DEALING WITH THE ORGANIZATION OF WORLDWIDE CONGRESSES. PUBLISHED 4 TIMES A YEAR. CIRCULATION: 2,500 COPIES IN 14 DIFFERENT COUNTRIES. Subscriptions Subscriptions amount to 85 euros (all incl.). The online version of the magazines is available at www.headquartersmagazine.com Editor in Chief Marcel A.M.Vissers marcel@headquartersmagazine.com Managing Director Cécile Caiati-Koch cecile@headquartersmagazine.com Account Manager - International Sales Kelvin Lu T: +32 (0)2 761 70 58 kelvin@headquartersmagazine.com Managing Editor Rémi Dévé remi@headquartersmagazine.com Editor Rose Kelleher Design Wallrus, Kortrijk - Belgium T: +32 (0)56 24 94 44 info@wallrus.be Print The Neu Print PTE Ltd - Singapore neuprint@singnet.com.sg Supported by UIA, Union of International Associations Address Headquarters Magazines PTE Ltd 1 Scotts Road #21-07 Shaw Centre Singapore 228208 Responsible Publisher Headquarters Magazines PTE Ltd - Singapore Marcel A.M. Vissers marcel@headquartersmagazine.com

MARCEL’S COMMENT

ASIA-PACIFIC EQUALS GROWING At every Asia-Pacific trade fair you hear the same thing: ‘Asia-Pacific is growing’. No questions are asked about how long this growth will continue because in this region of the world the question is redundant -‘Growth will continue as long as we continue to invest.’ This is not the case in the U.S. and Europe where stagnation and saving are the keywords. Investments in the expansion of infrastructure are booming in the Asia-Pacific, it is bursting with new venues. Responding to a great need for exhibition and convention centres, South Korea’s EXCO, Malaysia’s KLCC, Australia’s BCEC and Hong Kong’s HKCEC have invested in the expansion of their capacities. And that’s without even mentioning Singex, the operator of Singapore Expo that embarked on the construction of a new convention wing earlier this year. Called MAX Atria,

the building will feature 23 new meeting rooms and spacious pre-function areas. It is scheduled for completion in 2012! Meanwhile, Hong Kong’s AsiaWorld Expo (AWE) was refurbished with hybrid events in mind (events requiring a combination of flexible configuration under one roof). In Bali, the BDNCC, opened last June, will develop a new venue for cultural performances. And things are moving in Bangkok too, with the people of IMPACT leading the race. Destinations are joining the competition as well. For example, I always thought Vietnam was a bit of a blank area on the meetings industry map. This view changed at the last edition of IT&CMA in Bangkok, where I was confronted with a fantastic stand: the Vietnam MICE Club (I will tell you all about it later). And the story doesn’t finish here. The biggest development

MARCEL A.M. VISSERS Editor in Chief

comes from Macau. A whole new congress destination is being built there, with a massive injection of new rooms and event spaces. The famous Venetian alone will increase its meeting space in its partner hotels with no less than 9,290 m2. Read all about it in the special feature Wow Macau in this very edition of Headquarters Asia-Paciﬁc.

» READ MORE ON WWW.HEADQUARTERSMAGAZINE.COM OR MARCELSBLOG.TYPEPAD.COM

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CONTENTS

Cécile Caiati-Koch

GENERAL

SPECIAL FEATURE

NEWS 5 ASSOCIATIONS IN CHINA 14 VIENNA SURVEY 16 MEETINGS THROUGH A TECH-MINDED LENS 18

MACAU

COVER INTERVIEW

DESTINATIONS

PENNY LION, BUSINESS EVENTS AUSTRALIA

UIA FUNDRAISING FOR ASSOCIATIONS

SOUTH AFRICA MALAYSIA

21 22

Rémi Dévé

HEADQUARTERS 3

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> HEADQUARTERS NEWS

DARWIN, WHERE INDIGENOUS AUSTRALIA CONNECTS Looking out to Darwin’s harbour, an ancient meeting site for the Larrakia people, Darwin Convention Centre is the natural hub for sharing Indigenous ideas, innovation and continuing knowledge. Within the past several weeks alone, the Convention Centre hosted four key conferences on topics that ranged from chronic diseases, environmental health, Indigenous business enterprises, and education. The venue hummed as scientists, business leaders and experts brought insight, academic rigour and wealth of experience to advance Indigenous matters. With the Northern Territory home to Australia’s largest Indigenous population per capita, the Top End and Darwin City remain the cultural and spiritual heart of Aboriginal culture. www.darwinconvention.com.au

Inside Darwin Convention Centre

NEW LEADERSHIP FOR THE JOINT MEETINGS INDUSTRY COUNCIL

The Joint Meetings Industry Council (JMIC) announced that Philippe Fournier, President of the International Association of PCO’s (IAPCO) and Managing Director for France, MCI Group, has assumed the Presidency of the Joint Meetings Industry Council. Fournier replaces Leigh Harry, Past President of ICCA, who led the Council for the past three years and recently moved to a senior government post in Australia. Fournier has over 25 years of experience in the meetings industry and has held numerous positions in prominent industry organizations. www.themeetingsindustry.org

BESTCITIES WELCOMES TWO NEW PARTNERS The international portfolio of Best Cities partners continues to grow with the cities of Berlin and Houston. Making the

announcement at IMEX America, Jerad Bachar, Incoming Board Chair for 2012, said: ‘The BestCities Global Alliance consists of convention bureaux that deliver the world’s best service experience for international meeting planners. These premier meeting destinations already include Cape Town, Copenhagen, Dubai, Edinburgh, Melbourne, San Juan, Singapore and Vancouver and now welcomes the cities of Berlin and Houston. Both cities ably demonstrate the attributes to meet the strict BestCities criteria for membership which includes state-of-the-art convention facilities, a minimum 10,000 hotel rooms, safe, public transportation and excellent air access.’ www.bestcities.net

top ﬁve convention destinations in the world, the Korean government has declared the upcoming year as the 2012 Korea Convention Year. Various programs by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism and the Korea Tourism Organization in cooperation with seven MICE Alliances in regional convention destinations have been planned with the goal to provide better services and support to MICE participants and organizers. k-mice.visitkorea.or.kr

KOREA PREPARES FOR 2012 KOREA CONVENTION YEAR Since the turn of the century, Korea has achieved an enormous growth in meetings and convention industry. In recognition of this, the Korean government has been nurturing and fostering this sector as one of strategic and new-growth industries. In order to boost the country as one of the

Hyangwonjong Pavilion, South Korea

HEADQUARTERS 5

> HEADQUARTERS NEWS

GHOTW LAUNCHES 2012 DIRECTORY

SARAWAK SCHOLARSHIP AWARD WINNERS ANNOUNCED Sarawak State Assembly

21 – 22 February, 2012

AIME ANNOUNCES NEW INITIATIVES FOR 20TH ANNIVERSARY YEAR Taking place on 21-22 February 2012 at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre (MCEC), the Asia-Paciﬁc Incentives & Meetings Expo (AIME) will celebrate its 20th year in 2012 and the show organisers have acknowledged the milestone by implementing new initiatives. Sally de Swart, Reed Travel Exhibitions Director for AIME, says that the 2012 show planning is going from strength to strength and that the team is excited to introduce new initiatives for 2012: ‘AIME provides the platform to conduct meetings and network with exhibitors from all parts of the industry in a short space of time. We are constantly working on developing the show’s offering to keep the event fresh and dynamic. With this in mind and based on customer feedback, we are rolling out some new initiatives and changes in the lead up and during the show.’ New initiatives for 2012 include changes to the Pre Scheduled Appointments’ (PSA) online facility that will help make the meetings’ process more seamless for exhibitors and Hosted Buyers. AIME organisers will also be releasing details on a refreshed Social Program that will give attendees the opportunity to relax and network with new and existing business contacts. This refreshed Social Program will also showcase Melbourne’s premier event products, services and venues. Hosted Buyers have new options in AIME’s Pre Touring Program with the addition of two new tours to cover the Hume City region and a Melbourne coffee and cafe culture tour.

www.aime.com.au

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Great Hotels of the World (GHOTW) has launched a brand new trade directory combining their Meetings, Incentive and Corporate Travel collections for 2012. The 2012 edition includes over 130 of the world’s best MICE and corporate properties, all offering exceptional facilities and services for groups and corporate travellers. Its entries showcase what each property has to offer, including their location, room facilities, hotel facilities, unique selling points and top incentive attractions, as well as details on the capacity of each meeting room in each meeting style. www.ghotw.com

HKCEC LAUNCHES NEW IPHONE APP Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre (HKCEC) launched its new HKCEC iPhone app, downloadable free of charge, in celebration of its 23rd Anniversary on 25 November 2011. The app is a handy and user-friendly tool that offers comprehensive news and information about the HKCEC in three languages: English, Traditional Chinese and Simpliﬁed Chinese. An important feature of the HKCEC app is its ‘Event Calendar’, which lists major upcoming exhibitions, conferences and special events at the HKCEC. Overseas visitors coming to the HKCEC can use the ‘Transportation’ function to get directions to the HKCEC from Hong Kong International Airport and other key locations. Also available in the HKCEC app is a ‘Where to Eat’ function, which lists the different restaurants at the HKCEC. www.hkcec.com

The winners of the International Association Convention Scholarship Award now in its third year were announced by Dato Sri Dr Muhammad Leo Michael Toyad Abdullah, Chairman of the Sarawak Convention Bureau (SCB). The aim of this award is to encourage potential new bidders to actively participate in attending international conventions and in turn, showcase the beneﬁts and opportunities that come from networking at these conventions. Five scholarship awards were presented - winners are Alban @William John Lisen (65th International Dyslexia Association Annual Conference), Alice Jawan Empaling (World Water Congress & Exhibition 2012), Teresa Hii Leh Choo (13th Annual Women’s Business Enterprise National Council 2012), Jane Chan Ai Nyet (4th International Conference on Computer Supported Education 2012) and John Huang Shen Han (2011 International Design Congress). www.sarawakcb.com

2011-2012 MEETINGS INDUSTRY FAIRS WORLDWIDE: MAKE YOUR CHOICE! AIME // 21-22 February 2011, Melbourne // www.aime.com.au Meetings Africa 2012 // 28 February - 1 March 2012, Sandton Convention Centre, Johannesburg // www.meetingsafrica.co.za GIBTM // 26-28 March 2012, Abu Dhabi // www.gibtm.com IT&CM China // 17-19 April 2012, Shanghai // www.itcmchina.com IMEX // 22-24 May 2012, Frankfurt // www.imex-frankfurt.com AIBTM // 19-21 June 2012, Baltimore // www.aibtm.vcom

Arabs, Chinese, Indians and Europeans have long appreciated Malaysia’s position as a nexus for trade and meetings. So much so, they’re still here 600 years later. Our predecessors once braved all manner of hazards to travel to Malaysia. Once here, they thrived amidst the many trade opportunities and warm hospitality of the local Malays. The result is a truly unique melting pot of cultures and customs. This infusion of influences makes Malaysians cosmopolitan and while we are forward-looking, we retain a strong sense of our traditions. As the centre of Southeast Asia and strategically located between India and China, Malaysia knows how to connect the world with Asia. Malaysia is English-speaking yet multilingual; a vibrant emerging economic and business centre; and a great value-for-money destination. You will see it in our ability to host any meeting, incentive trip, convention and exhibition. Malaysia has all the first-world infrastructure you want in a destination enhanced by a fusion of Asian cultures, food and hospitality.

Malaysia - Asia’s Business Events Hub Scan this code to visit our website

MALAYSIA CONVENTION & EXHIBITION BUREAU (MyCEB) Suite 14.3, Level 14, Menara IMC, No. 8 Jalan Sultan Ismail, 50250 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Tel: +603 2034 2090 Fax: +603 2034 2091 Email: info@myceb.com.my Web: www.myceb.com.my

> COVER INTERVIEW

BUSINESS EVENTS AUSTRALIA

PENNY LION A straightforward approach to events AS THE GENERAL MANAGER OF BUSINESS EVENTS AUSTRALIA, PENNY LION HAS COME TO THE ROLE WITH EXTENSIVE KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE IN THE BUSINESS EVENTS INDUSTRY. SHE’S RESPONSIBLE FOR LEADING THE DEVELOPMENT OF TOURISM AUSTRALIA’S (TA) GLOBAL BUSINESS EVENTS STRATEGY AND THE DELIVERY OF BUSINESSTO-BUSINESS PROGRAMS THAT PROMOTE AUSTRALIA AS A DESTINATION FOR BUSINESS EVENTS.

HQ: Could you brieﬂy explain your background? Penny Lion: I joined Tourism Australia as Head of Business Events Australia in October 2010 with 20 years experience in the corporate events industry, most recently in London where I was General Manager, UK and Europe, for cievents. I joined cievents in 2000, when it was the niche event business of Flight Centre Limited (known as The Events Centre), as Director of Product where I introduced a preferred product and branding strategy. One year later I moved into the role of General Manager of Operations and in 2004 became the Director of Sales. In 2006, I was given a brilliant opportunity to set up cievents in the United Kingdom, which in three years grew from one to 20 people with locations in London and Birmingham. Penny Lion

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Prior to cievents, I worked in small, boutique agencies and larger international organisations,

> COVER INTERVIEW

including Carlson Marketing Group. In these roles I worked across sales, operations and product areas.

holding their next event in Australia. The website will be translated into Chinese and Korean later in 2012.

ﬂights on the increase, Australian tourism is well placed to beneﬁt from increasing business event interest from Asia.

I’ve really enjoyed returning home and rediscovering what makes Australia one of the world’s greatest business event (MICE) destinations. Our country’s breathtaking scenery, sophisticated cities and the ‘can do’ attitude of our people gives us very strong selling points internationally. I’m proud to market a country, and an industry, as great as ours.

Also on the digital front, Business Events Australia has recently launched a Twitter account (Twitter.com/MeetInAustralia) to communicate with international trade, keeping them up-to-date with product news and developments.

Globally, Australia is a popular destination; in fact we were awarded ‘Best Country to Visit Worldwide’ in this year’s British Travel Awards. The award was based on nominations from travel industry professionals and a vote by more than 700,000 members of the British public.

HQ: We understand you are responsible for leading the development of Tourism Australia’s global business events strategy. So... what is your strategy in this competitive market? Penny Lion: Business Events Australia is Tourism Australia’s dedicated team devoted to promoting Australia as a business events destination internationally. Our strategy is multi-facetted and involves developing and delivering uniﬁed, strong and strategic communication campaigns. We work closely with Australian operators to achieve this. These integrated campaigns work across public relations, digital and social media, advertising, business to business networking, educational visits, participation in trade shows and the creation and management of our own events. In the Associations sector, we join forces with Australia’s convention bureaux and convention centres to market Australia internationally. As well as our global advertising and PR campaigns, we provide a marketing toolkit for associations to increase delegate attendance at the congresses they host in Australia. We have also released a book of case studies, which demonstrate the success associations can enjoy when they choose to host their congress in Australia. In early 2012, Tourism Australia will relaunch its business events website www.businessevents.australia.com with new case studies, venue information and accommodation options for meeting planners and associations considering

From a public relations perspective, we engage with international business events and travel trade media sharing features, news and product updates. In 2011, we

We remain a safe destination for international travellers. Our infrastructure is advanced and constantly improving, our visa

Our country’s breathtaking scenery, sophisticated cities and the ‘can do’ attitude of our people gives us very strong selling points internationally

created and managed a road show around Asia where we facilitated business to business meetings and networking between Australian suppliers and Asian buyers and sellers. Industry trade shows we participate in include CIBTM, EIBTM, PAICE, IMEX and the Association Congress.

HQ: Where do you think Australia stands in the Asia Pacific? And in the world? Penny Lion: Australia has a good standing in the Asia Pacific region and is well placed to become even more popular with visitors from across North and South East Asia. We remain a desirable place to visit for our Northern neighbours – evidenced by the significant number of incentive programs that have taken place from China, Korea, Taiwan and Singapore amongst other regions. We are excited about the forward confirmed business from both North and South East Asia too. With its proximity to Asia as a one-stop flight in the same time zone, as well as direct

processing system is excellent, our venues are world class and we are governed by stable democratic process. But most importantly, we have landscapes and people unlike anything in the world – and we welcome visitors to come share it with us.

HQ: How does Australia cater to international associations? What are its biggest assets to host association conferences? Penny Lion: We are proud to have convention facilities that lead the world in many ways. Our convention centres are extremely well located in the heart of our cities. This allows delegates the opportunity to experience our cities and our people ﬁrsthand as well as providing association organisers great scope in planning their convention. And to ensure that we offer buyers ﬁrst-rate product, our convention centres continue to invest in upgrading and improving their infrastructure, as do our hotels and other event venues. In Sydney alone, more than AUD$7 billion has been invested

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Asia-Paciﬁc Incentives & Meetings Expo Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre Melbourne, Australia 21-22 February 2012 | aime.com.au

AIME. FOR A FIVE STAR EVENT.

As a VIP buyer in the industry, we would like to invite you to apply today. Now in its 20th year, the Asia-Paciﬁc Incentives & Meetings Expo (AIME) is recognised as the premier event in the Asia-Paciﬁc region for event organisers.

Beneﬁts of being an AIME Hosted Buyer include: Complimentary airfares, airport transfers, 3 to 5 star accommodation, pre-scheduled appointments with exhibitors you choose to meet with, pre and post touring options around Victoria and Australia, unrivalled networking opportunities and much, much more.* *

Visit aime.com.au for qualiﬁcation details

You can attend AIME in a number of different ways: As a Fully Hosted Buyer (with airfares included), choose to attend either one (new option for 2012) or both days. As a Semi Hosted Buyer, choose to attend one or both days.

For more details and to apply today for AIME’s VIP Hosted Buyer Program visit aime.com.au/apply AIME IS PART OF THE REED TRAVEL EXHIBITIONS MEETINGS AND EVENTS PORTFOLIO

AIME IS OWNED BY MCVB

AIME IS MANAGED BY RTE

> COVER INTERVIEW

Sydney

into the industry this year including an expansion to the Sydney Convention and Exhibition centre. In Queensland, an AUD$40 million expansion of the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre is close to completion. Melbourne’s six green star-rated Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre is also expanding its award winning exhibition facilities this year and the Adelaide Convention Centre has announced an AU$350 million expansion project. We rose ﬁve places in the ICCA rankings in 2010 to 11th position with 239 meetings and are now the third ranked country in the AsiaPaciﬁc. We see extraordinary possibilities for growth in the next ten years, as the associations sector in China and across South-East Asia continues to grow.

HQ: In terms of marketing, Australia has a young/trendy/cool image. Do you think it’s an asset or a drawback when it comes to attracting ‘serious’ meetings? Penny Lion: In Australia, there is time for both hard work and rest and relaxation. By nature, Australians are friendly, approachable and down-to-earth. We have a straightforward approach to business and are refreshingly unpretentious. We are also innovators. We have an outstanding calibre of researchers and scientists and are very proud of Brian Schmidt, the Australian scientist who won the Nobel Prize for Science in 2011. In the heart of the country, The Ayers Rock Resort conference and hotel facilities are

being expanded and refurbished to increase capacity, quality and generate indigenous career opportunities. This is a great example of the opportunities available in Australia to conduct serious business while learning about the cultural aspects at one of the ‘must see’ destinations of our country. Corporate social responsibility is also important to us. A recent Business Events Australia audit showed 75% of Australia’s convention and exhibition centres hold Corporate Social Responsibility accreditations; 56% of transport and 47% of accommodation businesses hold an accreditation. Australia’s ability to deliver world-class business events is also thanks to a stable economy, a vibrant tourism industry and strong investment in technology and infrastructure. Australia has around $1.3 billion in funds under management and one of the most sophisticated and liquid debt and equity markets - the largest investment fund assets pool in Asia and the fourth largest in the world.

HQ: Where/how do you see Australia say 5 years from now? Penny Lion: Tourism Australia recently unveiled ambitious plans to help double the value of the business events sector to as much as $16 billion by 2020 as part of the industry’s 2020 Tourism Industry Potential - a rallying call to the tourism industry to grow tourism’s contribution to the country’s GDP.

Uluru also known as Ayers Rock

Business events delegates generated $7.9 billion to our economy in 2009, $8.5 billion in 2010 and $9.2 billion in 2011. Clearly this is a vitally important and growing sector for the Australian economy. As the economies around the world continue to recover from the global financial crisis we are seeing a return to growth, with the number of business visitors to Australia on the rise over the past two years. The emerging markets of Asia in particular are delivering significant growth in business events visitors and this represents a real long term opportunity for Australia that we will capitalise on in the next five years and beyond. During 2010/11 there were increases in business events visitors from China (+28%), Japan (+25%), Singapore (+24%), India (+28%), Malaysia (+37%), Indonesia (+14%), Korea (+14%), and Thailand (+11%). In five years time there will also be a host of new in-language planning tools available online, as well products and infrastructure upgrades to make it easier for the business events buyer to propose and choose Australia for their incentives, meetings and conferences. In five years time, we look forward to welcoming more MICE groups to our country and showcasing why there’s nothing like Australia for a business event.

www.businessevents.australia.com

HEADQUARTERS 11

UIA ı UNION OF INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATIONS

MISSION IMPOSSIBLE Fundraising for associations

THE INTERNET AS WE KNOW IT IS NOW TWENTY YEARS OLD AFTER THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE WORLD WIDE WEB IN 1991, AN INVENTION OF BRITISH SCIENTIST TIM BERNERS-LEE. IT HAS HERALDED HUGE ADVANCES IN THE WAY WE COMMUNICATE AND SHARE INFORMATION AND ITS CONTINUING EVOLUTION IS BOTH A THREAT AND AN OPPORTUNITY FOR ASSOCIATIONS. ASSOCIATIONS THAT EMBRACE THE CHANGE AND DIVERSIFY THEIR INCOME WILL SURVIVE TO CELEBRATE THE INTERNET’S 30TH BIRTHDAY. TEXT TOM EELES, KENES ASSOCIATIONS WORLDWIDE

CUTTING OUT THE MIDDLE MAN The biggest impact of the internet for associations is arguably the disintermediation information. Or put more simply, Tom Eeles associations, as the traditional middle man in the supply chain, are being cut out as content producers and content devourers interact directly in the web 2.0 world. A trend that will arguably continue in the web 3.0 world just beginning to dawn, where your internet experi-

HEADQUARTERS 12

ence will be ever more personalised. The internet is one of many catalytic factors that have led to increasing threats to the traditional major income sources for associations; member dues and meetings. Increasingly members can get information direct and don’t need the association as an intermediary. Exhibitors can build rich online product experiences, interactive communities with end users that offer budget decision makers a real alternative to attending your meeting. The need for associations to diversify their income streams has never been greater and more and more associations are calling

for increased fundraising, often leaving busy association executives and volunteers wondering where to start… but fundraising needn’t be a mission impossible. The term ‘fundraising’ is misleading in many ways. Fundraisers are actually nothing of the sort; they don’t earn money and give it away. They are actually conduits, facilitators or middle men, sitting between those who need the money (association members and their beneﬁciaries) and those who have money to invest (donors, sponsors and partners - the people who raise the funds). The ﬁrst place to start in fundraising is to see your role as a facilitator, bringing

together the right people to make good things happen.

PAINTING YOUR FRONT DOOR Have you ever played the board game Monopoly? A little tip, the oranges will give you the best return on investment for your real estate. What’s the reference to fundraising? Well in Monopoly the dice decide what real estate you can buy, but on the internet your website is your real estate and you can determine how much return on investment it can generate. Now that spring has sprung, there is no better time for a spring clean of the front door to your association, your website. It might seem like a funny place to start and you might be screaming ‘show me the money’ but your website is just like the front door to your house. If you are selling your house you would always tidy up your front garden and paint the front door, estate agents call it kerb appeal.

letter, organised a meeting or established some guidelines that will enable you to demonstrate impact. You have to work out what the end impact is for the man on the street. Your members do amazing things, you just need to ﬁnd out what they are and shout about it. If there have been years of different editors adding information, but no-one removing it, check to see if your mission and passion come across clearly. If in doubt ask a child to look at your website

YOUR WEBSITE’S CHECKLIST + Get a child’s feedback on your website - do they know the answers to why, what and who? + Treat it like holiday packing - half of the content is probably old, outdated and unnecessary, put your holiday clothes on the bed and get rid of half of your outdated content + Demonstrate your impact with member stories, quotes and photos

This article will urge you to spring clean your website, help you build a case for support and ﬁnally go after the money. Fundraising is like an iceberg and 90% of the hard work goes unseen. Roll up your sleeves!

ACTIVE, FOCUSED AND EFFECTIVE A potential donor will check out your website as a reference point. They are looking to see if your association is active, focused and effective. So look at your website with fresh eyes, make sure there is fresh content, news items, demonstrations of the impact you have. Use images, quotes and case studies. If you don’t have any material ask board members why they love their profession and what the association means to them. Ask members what the most satisfying accomplishment in their jobs has been. Get photos! Often for professional associations it is not the fact that you’ve distributed a news-

and tell you what the organisation does. At the highest level page on your website it should be really clear that you are there to make a difference.

SOCIAL MEDIA: THE NEXT BIG THING? Maybe. But really social media is just another way of telling your story and your ﬁrst task is to dust off your website. There is a lot of chatter about social media revolutionising fundraising and it has a great impact in the best case studies. But as your website is likely to be overly focused on communication to one group of people members and meeting attendees, the ﬁrst task is to make it communicate to different audiences.

At this stage you don’t need to complicate things by trying to run Twitter and Facebook pages too. It is better to do one thing really well than lots of things badly. Just as prospective donors will check out your website, they will also check out your presence on LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter. If you have dormant accounts with sparse activity that’s worse than no account at all.

www.uia.org

This article has been contributed on behalf of the Union of International Associations (UIA) by Tom Eeles. Tom works as a Fundraising Consultant with the medical association clients of Kenes Associations Worldwide having previously raised funds for UK medical and health charities.

HEADQUARTERS 13

HQ > RESEARCH

THE ASSOCIATION WORLD IN CHINA CHINA REPRESENTS THE LARGEST SINGLE CONSUMER MARKET IN TODAY’S WORLD AND AS SUCH A TARGET EXPANSION AUDIENCE FOR ASSOCIATIONS AND COMPANIES ALIKE. WHAT ARE SOME OF THE KEY OPPORTUNITIES OR CHALLENGES THAT ASSOCIATIONS SHOULD CONSIDER IF WANTING TO DO BUSINESS IN CHINA? TEXT NIKKI WALKER VICE PRESIDENT OF GLOBAL ASSOCIATION MANAGEMENT & CONSULTING, MCI GROUP

The concept of associations as we know it in the west does not exist in China. In Europe and the United States, for example, a few individuals or companies sharing common professional interests or with a desire to defend a certain industry, can get together and create an association. The only restriction to running and operating the association is the need for ofﬁcial incorporation of the desired association within the jurisdiction of the chosen legal system.

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Not so in China. To exist in China, an association must be ‘ordained’ by a government agency. Adoption by a governmental body is a prerequisite for establishing an association in China. This dates back to the pre-liberalisation of China - most of the not-for-proﬁt organisations that exist today were originally established as government agencies, to assist the government in administering or controlling a certain industry.

NO RULE There is currently no rule, regulation of procedure for registering an international not-for-profit in China. A non-Chinese association can do business in China by setting up a representative office, registering a wholly-owned foreign enterprise (WOFE) under the Bureau of Industry and Commerce or partnering with a local association management company with a legal entity. Similarly it is not possible to legally incorporate a chapter or affiliate of an international association. This concept does not exist within the structure of national Chinese associations; most provincial or city branches are autonomous with no need to abide by a charter.

Although there are close to 60,0000 registered associations in China, the association industry, as defined by western standards, is still in its infancy in China and has some unique characteristics. Since most of the associations were transformed from government agencies in the 80s, the majority are still run by government officials and benefit from government funding. The emphasis is on not making profit with limited business activities; programmes and products are often delivered free of charge to members and there is little attention given to marketing and promotion. The increasing influence of international associations is driving change and the association world is rapidly evolving in China. The proactive marketing of the values and benefits of membership and involvement in international associations is changing the perceptions of Chinese professionals and companies towards associations. Volunteerism as a concept is emerging as individuals discover the core values of western associations - such as being member-driven, independent and neutral- and realise that they can actively become involved and help

> RESEARCH

Great Wall of China

local associations, government agencies, universities, state owned enterprises, multinational companies, local companies and individual professionals with whom you want to build relationships.

nised accreditation and technical standards, the knowledge, methodology and training to perform in line with global players and will be seen as essential to their business success.

From this intelligence develop your China strategy, articulate your goals and objectives, build your three to ﬁve year business plan and be prepared to invest in the long term. Do not look for quick wins. You need to demonstrate your commitment to Chinese business and individuals and show that your association is ‘here to stay’, so that they will learn to recognise and trust your brand over time, and be willing to invest in and be associated with it.

Associations can also learn from the Chinese consumers’ attitude to well-know corporate brands. Status symbols, external evidence of personal advancement and prestige are important, and help to fuel the expansion of the middle class in China. Big and ‘bigger’ household items, luxury cars, widely recognised fashion articles are popular. The notoriety of an association’s brand or product offerings matters in China; effective local language marketing and communications is a must and at the very minimum a comprehensive website in Mandarin and with a Chinese URL must be created and maintained. Mobile telephones offer a quick, efﬁcient and widely accessible form of communication across China.

WHAT IS IN IT FOR THEM

shape programmes, activities and communities of practice.

It is important for the Chinese to be clearly able to understand ‘what is in it for them’; what does your association offer them and how will it help them, as individuals advance their career or as companies gain market share and global access. China is enjoying high economic growth and the Chinese society is evolving at a fast pace. Individuals, particularly young professionals, are looking for maximum professional

KEYS TO SUCCESS The Chinese market offers huge expansion opportunities to international associations and the Chinese professionals and companies that can beneﬁt from the knowledge base, education programmes, training, credentials and standards offered by such bodies are highly motivated and keen to invest. Understanding the market potential and the relevance and signiﬁcance of your association, its values, products and programmes in China is a vital pre entry measure. Invest in market research to understand the market readiness; assess the maturity of the profession or industry you represent; understand its demographics and its needs; identify whether your products and programmes are of interest to the Chinese or if customisation is required to both content and pricing to render them valuable and relevant; analyse the local and other international competition; and map out your community and stakeholders – who are the potential partners,

The increasing inﬂuence of international associations is driving change and the association world is rapidly evolving in China

development, status, promotion and recognition; so associations with a sophisticated body of knowledge, strong educational offerings, certiﬁcation programmes and professional credentials are most likely to attract Chinese professionals. Companies will support and pay for their employees’ access to these professional tools. From the company perspective, associations that provide them with an internationally recog-

Telemarketing, as a tactic to stimulate participation in a conference, is a common and fruitful practice. Social media is also highly relevant in China but not with the popular brands accessible in Europe or the United States. Facebook and YouTube, for example, are blocked in China but China has its own brands -such as Kaixin and RenRen (Facebook equivalents) and Youku and Tudou (same functionality as YouTube)equally as proliﬁc as their western counter parts. Social media is growing in importance in China; research indicates that 92% of Chinese internet users are likely to use social media and that Chinese internet users are twice as likely to use chat, and three times more likely to micro blog, than American users. As in other parts of the world, social media tools provide an excellent platform for association communities to share ideas and comments and are helping organisations to increase their brand awareness, listen to customers and beneﬁt from the power of viral marketing. Word of mouth and peer referral are fundamental to helping your association’s growth in China.

www.mci-group.com/associations

HEADQUARTERS 15

> VIENNA SURVEY

CONGRESSES IN VIENNA

The epitomes of events in the meetings industry? EVERY FIVE YEARS, THE VIENNA TOURIST BOARD COMMISSIONS MARTINA STOFF-HOCHREINER, MANAGEMENT CONSULTANT AND LECTURER AT VIENNA UNIVERSITY OF ECONOMICS AND BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION, TO ANALYZE VIENNA’S NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL CONGRESSES TO HIGHLIGHT DEVELOPMENTS IN THIS SECTOR, ALLOWING TRENDS FOR THE FUTURE TO BE PREDICTED AND CORRESPONDING STRATEGIES TO BE DRAWN UP FOR MARKETING THE CONGRESS DESTINATION. BETWEEN 1991 AND 2011, A LOT HAS CHANGED. WITTY OBSERVANTS WILL SAY THAT WHAT HAPPENS IN VIENNA MAY WELL BE WHAT HAPPENS IN THE REST OF THE WORLD.

Between October 2009 and October 2010, the ﬁrm of Triconsult Ges.m.b.H. carried out personal interviews with a total of 4,114 individuals (3,715 congress delegates and 399 exhibitors) at 35 congresses (26 international, 9 national) at 16 conference venues for the survey which Stoff-Hochreiner recently presented at a press conference.

“Everything points to the fact that - from the delegate’s point of view congresses have largely lost any tourist value”

‘The most remarkable results include those with a direct impact on bednights,’ she explained. ‘This related primarily to the number of accompanying persons, which has fallen sharply. Whereas in 1991 just over every second congress delegate came in company, by 2010 this applied to only one in six delegates. Over the period 1991 to 2010 there was also a marked decrease in the average length

HEADQUARTERS 16

of stay, from 7.3 to 4.6 days. In 2010 for the first time, this indicator was even identical with average congress duration. It is now the exception for a delegate to extend his or her stay, a situation aggravated by delegates who do not even stay for the entire congress. Time has become a rare commodity, as indicated by the question as to what might prevent an individual from attending a congress at all: 68% of respondents mentioned lack of time, whereas only 49% stated a shortage of funds. All these trends are clearly manifested in Vienna’s results for 2010: they are prevalent world-wide and will continue.’ ‘This is also clearly apparent from other details of this survey,’ confirms Christian Mutschlechner, director of Vienna Convention Bureau. ‘Everything points to the fact that from the delegate’s point of view - congresses have largely lost any tourist value, and are perceived almost entirely as professional engagements. The effect of this attitude is reflected not only in the decline in the number of accompanying persons and extended stays, but also in the activities of delegates during the congress. We have seen a significant drop in participation in the official supporting programs arranged by congress organizers. Whereas in 2004 some 75% of congress delegates took advantage of them, in 2010 this figure was just 53%. Delegates

prefer to use their time for professional activities. 17% stated that they spend signiﬁcantly more time on meetings and further education programs than they used to: this ﬁgure is further relativized by 28% who have not yet been attending congresses for long enough to be able to make a comparison. The same trend is revealed by the indicators of what is important in a congress. 52% of delegates

COMPARATIVE EXPENDITURE OF TIME, MORE TIME FOR MEETINGS AND EDUCATION THAN BEFORE 17% of the participants spend more time for education, compared to previous congress stays.

CAN NOT ANSWER NO

55%

28% YES

17%

> VIENNA SURVEY

3 MORE QUESTIONS TO CHRISTIAN MUTSCHLECHNER HQ: From a delegate’s point of view, congresses seem to have lost their tourist value. All the more work for convention bureaus and less for tourist ofﬁces? CM: The focus of the work of a convention bureau is changing. In the past, our role was just to inform the clients about available infrastructure; now we more and more have to consult and discuss and try to give advice on how they can make their meetings more sucessful for delegates.

CURRENT AND FUTURE RELEVANCE OF CONGRESSES ‘Networking’ ranks currently (52%) and in the future (58%) amongst the most important aspects.

CRITERIA FOR ATTENDING A CONGRESS Important criteria for attending a congress: 95% relevance in ﬁeld of activity, 94% good accessibility and 90% excellent scientiﬁc content.

Christian Mutschlechner

RELEVANCE OF CONGRESS IN MY FIELD OF ACTIVITY (in%)

NETWORKING future (in%) 58

52 currently (in%)

8 2

9 2

GOOD ACCESSIBILITY (in%) 58

54 35

HQ: Does this mean no matter where the congress will be held, as long as the academic/ educational value of it is there, people will also be there? CM: The future is clear - content must be of top quality, all kinds of scientiﬁc communication must be of the highest standards possible and attendance for delegates must be made as convenient and easy as it can be. If all these ingredients are to be found, then, yes, where meetings are held doesn’t really matter.

44 currently (in%)

HQ: In what ways what happens in Vienna reflects what happens in the rest of the world? CM: We see change happening this very moment and European congresses are the first concerned. But in the long term this will have an impact on destinations globally - it’s all about trying to figure out in which direction the market develop, so we can try to help and support clients as best as we can.

TOURISTICAL EVENTS

Some 85% of congress delegates stayed in hotels, 7% in pensions, and 8% had private accommodations. Accommodation costs of 24% were the largest item of their domestic expenditure, followed by travel costs to and from Vienna (21%) and

8 2

ATTRACTIVE VENUE (in%)

CONTINUING EDUCATION

future (in%)

43 currently (in%)

INTERNET ACCESS IN THE HOTEL (in%) 41

INTERNET ACCESS IN CONFERENCE ROOMS (in%) future (in%) 24 36 20

POSTER SESSIONS (in%)

currently (in%) 1

FAVOURABLE HOTEL COSTS (in%) 28 47 20

congress fees (18%). Shopping accounted for 14% of their expenditure, food for 10%, and cultural and recreational activities for 6%. As far as accommodations were concerned, there was a trend towards four-star establishments, which increased their share to 49% (compared to 43% in 2004), whilst luxury hotels shrank to 19% (compared to 24% in 2004). The majority of delegates traveled by air (76%), with only 11% travelling by car and 10% by train. Shopping was congress delegates’ favorite recreational activity, with 52% indulging in it, 19% visited museums, 13% strolled around the city, 10% went to the opera and 5% to concerts.

ACCOMPANYING EXHIBITION (in%) 26

FAVORITE RECREATIONAL ACTIVITIES: SHOPPING AND VISITING MUSEUMS

8 2

NETWORKING POSSIBILITIES (in%) 51

(1 as most important, 4 as least - in%)

considered congresses a very important opportunity for networking, 44% as a discussion platform, and 43% as educational events. On the other hand, only 20% attached much importance to the tourism aspects.’

EXCELLENT SCIENTIFIC CONTENT (in%)

PLATFORM DISCUSSION future (in%) 50

CATERING INCLUDED IN PARTICIPATION FEE (in%) 25

LOCAL SHUTTLE SERVICES (in%) 24

OFFICIAL SOCIAL PROGRAM (in%) 23

SATELLITE SYMPOSIUM SPONSERED BY INDUSTRY (in%) 19

DINNER (in%) 11

(1 as most important, 4 as least - in%)

HEADQUARTERS 17

HQ > TECHNOLOGY

FILTERING MEETINGS THROUGH A TECH-MINDED LENS Interview with Ruud Janssen

RUUD JANSSEN IS THE FOUNDER OF A NEW KIND OF COLLABORATIVE CONSULTANCY, TNOC (THE NEW OBJECTIVE COLLECTIVE) AND PRIME MOVER OF EVENTCAMP EUROPE, A BRAND NEW FORUM THAT STARTED OFF AS A TALKING POINT FOR THE TECHIES OF THE EVENTS WORLD. THROUGH A NETWORK OF TECH SAVVY PARTNERS, A BACKGROUND IN EVENTS AND A FEEL FOR THE CHANGING LANDSCAPE OF MEETINGS, HE HELPS PLANNERS APPLY NEW IDEAS TO AN OLD FORMULA. TEXT ROSE KELLEHER

‘One of the conclusions that we’ve come to is that events is one of those horizontals that crosses all the different silos Ruud Janssen of business. Events touch on every part of what’s going on in the globe, just like the Internet.’ Meetings are nothing if not a means to share information, and there is an ongoing conversation on new ways of doing just that. From behemoth congresses, like the 3,500-delegate ESOT (European Society of Organ Transplantation) Congress, to the tech savvy Eventcamp in Glasgow, both held in September, Ruud’s international TNOC collective helps planners ﬁnd angles through which to explore new ways to organise and promote their events.

LEAVING FOOTPRINTS, CHANGING BEHAVIOURS Ruud emphasises the importance of examining how things were done in the past. He then ﬁlters client expectations through a new, more tech-minded lens: ‘We look at their

HEADQUARTERS 18

content: ‘We help organisations craft their events and to leave a footprint.’

previous event. Then it’s a process of defining their new objectives and finding partners that have similar objectives so they can collaborate. Primarily, we work with the clients on the format, the look and feel and how the participant would consume the content on-site and off-site.’ Though Ruud has a background in events, he doesn’t involve himself in the day to day organisation, but rather how technology can be applied to more efficiently allow users to consume

This means introducing and incorporating new media for conferences and events, ﬁnding ways they can be used to make connections before the event, and then extending the shelf life of the event afterwards: ‘This is something that is relatively new, but I take examples from organising other types of events like Eventcamp or TEDx, other spaces that use this technology already. Those communities are more connected. Now we are transposing it onto more traditional events, like the ESOT congress.’ ‘I think one of the major shifts over the last two or three years has been the affordability and the quality of the technologies you can buy off the shelf. It offers a real alternative to the traditional live meeting formats.’ But it’s important, he says, to gauge who

> TECHNOLOGY

you’re dealing with, too. ‘The key thing about functionality’ says Ruud ‘is to really know the audience and how they behave. It’s important to know what kind of devices they are using. In the case of the ESOT, because we didn’t know what types of devices they were using, our online tools were accessible by any type of device. There were no limitations, whether it be Blackberry or Android or Nokia, or an iPhone. That’s an important thing to be aware of before you start selecting the type of app or the functionality you want built in.’ As the demographics and training of any gathering varies, Ruud reckons onsite assistance is also an important factor: ‘A big effort was made at the opening session (of ESOT) to explain to people how they can use these innovations. We created an onsite help desk to help people get connected, this way they really learn how to use new media components. We had volunteers from the associa-

“One of the major shifts over the last two or three years has been the affordability and the quality of the technologies you can buy off the shelf”

tion to connect with the more senior individuals in their industry. Technology seems to be the thing that helps them to connect to their peers - to explain to them how to send a tweet or take a photo and to put that on the photo stream of the conference.’ There is an added value for the organisation in this: ‘By helping people solve those problems quickly and easily instead of doing it for them, you’re creating room for a conversation that turns into a value: behaviour change.’

ROLES BEYOND DESCRIPTION Ruud admits it’s not always easy to ‘pin down’ what it is exactly that he does: ‘I think the complexity of events is dramatically increasing, which is good in one way, as I’m sure it will create a lot of new roles and functions in the future in the industry.’ But,

THE AUDIENCE OUTSIDE THE ROOM Eventcamp is the result of a twitter community of the hashtag #eventprofs, initiated by Blair McCullough Carter. Meetings professionals found a common place to discuss the use of technology and its evolution at events, communicating on weekly tweet chats on Friday afternoons. ‘And after some 14-15 months’ says Ruud Jannsens of TNOC (see over) ‘someone said we should meet, what a crazy idea!’ So the first event camp was born in New York. ‘It was a very informal unorganised conference type event, to experiment with new technologies and formats amongst ourselves before we bring these things to the marketplace for our clients.’ ‘At first everyone was involved in events and technology, but the community has grown very quickly and now a lot of the corporate event planners and association planners are getting interested. People knew that if you don’t have a Twitter account and you’re not tweeting out questions then you’re not part of the conversation.’ Eventcamp, which took place in Europe for the first time in September, featured 5 remote ‘pods’, alongside the live event in London. Of 150 participants, 40 were onsite.

these new roles are not easy for people in a traditional sense to understand: ‘People always try to pigeon hole you and say so you’re a consultant, or a media agency. It’s hard to say what the role is of our team members have onsite because the services are so complimentary to what the traditional professional conference organisers do.’ With a recent study announcing that 65% of jobs that today’s school children will be doing as adults do not exist yet - what will the future job descriptions in this industry look like? In terms of education, new technologies are only just starting to garner attention. ‘I see people recognising that this is a need that people have; the service of enabling people to use technology.’ He adds ‘I teach at a couple of hospitality schools. I think

‘A lot of the traditional thinkers are basically troubled by hybrid events and don’t exactly know how to react’ - but there are just as many people embracing this type of experimentation: ‘They want to involve audiences outside of the room.’ Ahead of the game hybrid events like EventCamp don’t necessarily signal the death-knell of the traditional face-to-face: ‘I think the more connected you make people to an event, the more they have the desire to be at the live event. I also think he best marketing tool for live events (if it’s done well) is this connectivity to these people outside of a room. If a hybrid event is done well and connected it generates so much more attention than it would if it were just a live event. People have turned to me to say can you come help us organising our upcoming event because they want some of this magic sauce. But I don’t consider it magic sauce. It’s just another way of dealing with information.’

that’s probably the best learning school for identifying which roles will be relevant in the future, and how can we deal with them and start innovating events today. I talk about dealing with the turbulence of hybrids coming online, about new media technologies and how that can be applied to events.’ And what does the future hold for the traditional event planner? ‘I think you need to have a really hospitality minded team that are really willing to solve problems onsite. I also think there will also always be a role for the traditional conference organiser, because let’s be honest, putting on an event like ESOT with 3,500 people over a 4 day period requires signiﬁcant skills in logistics and being able to deal with large amounts of people.’

HEADQUARTERS 19

> SOUTH-AFRICA

DURBAN - FUSION IN YOUR MEETINGS SITUATED AT THE HEART OF KWAZULU-NATAL, KNOWN FOR ITS PARTICULARLY GOOD WEATHER ALL YEAR ROUND, DURBAN IS A SOPHISTICATED COSMOPOLITAN COASTAL CITY, A FUSION OF EAST, WEST AND AFRICAN CULTURE, OFFERING CULTURAL DIVERSITY AND MULTI-CULTURAL TRADITIONS, SOPHISTICATION AND STYLE. Fascinating with a wealth of influences, Durban caters to every taste. There you can sample the unique vibrancy of urban township life and traditional Zulu culture, the finest curries outside India and a calendar filled with thrilling events. From Durban, it takes a mere few hours drive to a choice of two World Heritage sites, game reserves, coral reefs and historic battlefields, all ideal destinations for pre- and post conference tours.

DIVERSE CHOICE When it comes to conferences, Durban offers a diverse choice of meeting venues totaling more than 19,000 cinema-style seats. Its award-winning International Convention Centre Durban (ICC Durban) - the biggest in Africa - is centrally located, and adjoins the Durban Exhibition Centre, which together can cater for up to 18,000 delegates. A purpose-built centre, ICC Durban boasts three convention halls that are interlinked but separate, where moveable walls allow for a number of different venue conﬁgurations. No wonder the city has played host to numerous international conventions, such as COP17 or the International Satistical Institute conference, especially since ICC Durban has won the title of Africa’s Leading Convention Centre by the World Travel Awards for the past nine consecutive years.

There is also a range of business hotels, boutique establishments, and guest houses that offer meeting facilities as well as a good selection of stand-alone conference venues. Hotels like the Hilton Durban, located near the ICC Durban, offer ﬁrstrate meeting venues, as do the Sibaya Casino & Entertaiment World, the Suncoast Conference Centre, and Makaranga Garden Lodge & Conference Centre - just a few of hundreds of meeting venues located in and around the city. Another option for large conferences is the Olive Convention Centre located close to the beachfront, its main auditorium has the capacity of seating up to 1,400 delegates. The hosting of the 2010 FIFA World Cup was a spectacular success, and saw the Moses Mabhida Stadium and its surroundings developed in a majestic manner. Now the Stadium can serve as a stylish new venue, as well as a tourist attraction with its arch and panoramic views of the city, with a fair number of meeting options.

GOLDEN MILE The Southern Sun Elangeni, located on Durban’s ‘golden mile’, offers a variety of meeting rooms catering for gatherings of all types, accommodating between 10 and 500 persons. Durban has a vast selection of accommodation of a very high standard,

ranging from luxurious 5-star establishments, beachfront self-catering apartments with sweeping views of the ocean to intimate guest house and boutique hotels. With many of these being located along, or with easy access to the beachfront, activities and events that revolve around the ocean are never out of reach... Let’s also mention the Signature Life Docklands Hotel located on Durban’s Point Waterfront. It’s a trendy hotel with three large conference venues able to host small groups to large conferences and banquets able to seat up to 600 delegates and guests. Makaranga Garden Lodge in Kloof caters for a range of disabilities, with its wheelchair friendliness, and offers conference facilities for up to 100 delegates.

CONTACT + South African Tourism Eric Lewanavanua Business Tourism Manager (Asia & Australasia) Tél: (+61)2 9264 8376 eric@southafricantourism.com.au www.southafrica.net + ICC Durban www.icc.co.za mktg@icc.co.za + Durban KwaZulu-Natal Convention Bureau James Seymour, CEO james@durbankzncb.co.za www.durbankzncb.co.za

HEADQUARTERS 21

HQ > M A L AYS I A

Malaysia Truly Asia

70th IIA International Conference

CASE STUDY

THE INTERNAL AUDITORS CONFERENCE IN MALAYSIA

Ofﬁcer, said: ‘I am extremely proud that our global organisation had the opportunity to gather in one of the most vibrant, dynamic and diverse international cities anywhere. Just as Malaysia has a history of long-held traditions and values, it is appropriate that this conference was held in Asia when the IIA was celebrating its 70th anniversary.’

‘Our partnership with the IIA Malaysia has made this event possible and a success. Their resources on the ground provided a high level of professionalism. From a meeting planner’s perspective, the local vendors were of high quality. Hosting the event at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre was also a key to our success. Not only it is a world-class facility, the staff support was outstanding. Furthermore, the support from the Malaysian government also played a large role in the success by helping to promote the event and to bring stature to the programme by attending and participating as key speakers,’ Augusto Baeta, Director of International Conferences for the IIA, commented.

‘Themed ‘Standing Tall’, it is particularly relevant as Kuala Lumpur is home to a unique international landmark - the PETRONAS Twin Towers, one of the tallest man-made structures on the planet. The Twin Towers perfectly symbolises the aspirations of Malaysians to ascend to new heights and be leaders in their own right,’ said Wee Hock Kee, Chairman, Host Conference Committee, IIA Malaysia.

As the first business event to be held with subvention support from the Malaysia Convention & Exhibition Bureau, Chief Executive Officer, Zulkefli Hj Sharif said: ‘We are very pleased with IIA’s achievement and the ‘Malaysia Boleh’ (can do) spirit shown by our local team including IIA Malaysia, Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad, Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre plus other

THE COMMITMENT AND FORMIDABLE EFFORTS OF THE INSTITUTE OF INTERNAL AUDITORS (IIA) MALAYSIA IN HOSTING AND DELIVERING A GOOD SHOW IN THE RECENTLY CONCLUDED 70TH IIA INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE 2011 HAS CERTAINLY BEEN NOTHING SHORT OF PHENOMENAL.

The IIA is the global leader of the internal audit profession with over 170,000 members in 165 countries, headquartered in Florida, USA. Setting a milestone in the IIA’s history, the IIA 2011 conference was the ﬁrst in Asia and registered a record-breaking attendance of over 2,200 delegates for a conference held outside the USA. It also provided a platform to celebrate the IIA’s 70th anniversary on a high note. Malaysia is becoming an increasingly popular inaugural destination for global associations’ entry into Asia which capitalises on its strength as the gateway to the world’s largest region, plus the fact that Malaysia often attracts record attendance. Richard Chambers, IIA Global President and Chief Executive

HEADQUARTERS 22

‘Standing Tall’ is a call to the internal audit profession to assume even greater leadership roles in promoting and advocating sound governance standards and practices in both the private and public business sectors.

> M A L AYS I A 70th IIA International Conference

Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre

Malaysia Business Tourism Green Programme

A cultural showcase of pewter-smithing

strategic partners in ensuring a successful conference. This is a real testament of our mission to be recognised as Asia’s hub for business events, providing the leading edge in terms of professionalism and best practices.’ As its contribution to greening the environment, the delegates of the IIA 2011 International Conference have wholeheartedly responded to MyCEB’s proactive eco-action to green the earth as part of the Malaysia Business Tourism Green Programme. Delegates were given the opportunity to contribute a minimum RM30 (7€) to the tree planting activity and a total of RM25,000 (5,762€) was raised to plant 250 trees at the Forest Research Institute Malaysia (FRIM). Chambers said: ‘Our commitment to the environment and helping to make it more sustainable is an inherent part of our Global IIA’s corporate philosophy. A significant impact of this tree planting initiative is the opportunity presented to our IIA 2011 conference delegates who have participated as a collective global effort from 93 countries in this green programme. We are confident as the roots of these trees grow deeper and stronger with time, so does the impact of the role of internal auditors on corporate Malaysia.’ Malaysia definitely gave its unique touch to the organisation of the IIA 2011 International Conference. As lauded by Baeta: ‘We were

Malaysia is becoming an increasingly popular inaugural destination for global associations’ entry into Asia which capitalises on its strength as the gateway to the world’s largest region

looking for a central destination in Asia that could attract delegates from other continents. Delegates from 93 different countries attended the conference. Malaysia’s diversity and international ﬂavour have made everyone feel at home. The Malaysian hospitality is second to none. We had high expectations regarding our event and Malaysia was able to meet all of them. We would certainly recommend Malaysia to other international associations and meeting planners.’

Concluding the interview, Yong Ngeak Choo, Executive Director, IIA Malaysia said: ‘The success of this event will give impetus for the Institute to take the lead and position Malaysia as the regional hub for the development of the internal audit profession in Asia Paciﬁc - which represents the legacy of this event.’

CONTACT Ms Ho Yoke Ping General Manager, Sales & Marketing Malaysia Convention & Exhibition Bureau T. +603 2034 2090 F. +603 2034 2091 pingho@myceb.com.my www.myceb.com.my

HEADQUARTERS 23

HQ > BRISBANE

BRISBANE A World Scientiﬁc Hub Brisbane’s acknowledged reputation as one of the world’ scientiﬁc destinations of choice has been boosted by a series of major international conferences recently announced for Brisbane and the Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre. The conferences will attract some 9,000 leading medical, science and allied health experts to Brisbane from around the world. They include the world’s largest meeting of water researchers and practitioners, the International Water Association’s World Water Congress in 2016 for 3,000 delegates. The wins were the result of a motivated and united effort by ‘Team Brisbane’, coordinated by the Brisbane Convention & Exhibition

Centre with the collaboration of Events Queensland and Brisbane Marketing. Tom Mollenkopf, Chief Executive of the Australian Water Association, the host body for the World Water Congress, said it was an extremely enthusiastic and professional bid which received outstanding support from the sector, resulting in an unbeatable proposition. The Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre provides the perfect venue to showcase Brisbane’s world leading science and this will be further enhanced with the completion later this year of BCEC on Grey Street, the Centre’s boutique expansion, specifically designed for meetings from 200 to 600. The expanded integrated facilities and niche nature of the new venue has generated consistently strong interest particularly from the smaller international scientific meetings and associations who are impressed by the quality and flexibility of the development.

Newly conﬁrmed meetings for Brisbane and the Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre include: + World Conference on Design and Health 2013 + Annual Scientiﬁc Meeting of the International Society for Pediatric and Adolescence Diabetes 2015 ( ISPAD) + International Marine Conservation Congress (IMCC) 2016 + International Water Association World Water Congress and Exhibition 2016

CONTACT BCEC (Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre) Alison Gardiner, Manager International Convention Bidding T +61 7 3308 3034 Alisong@bcec.com.au www.bcec.com.au

BCEC on Grey Street opening soon

T +61 7 3308 3063 E sales@bcec.com.au W www.bcec.com.au

H&J11361

creating Australia’s most ﬂexible meetings and events venue

more personal - more choice

The Centre is owned by South Bank Corporation and proudly managed by AEG Ogden

HQ > MACAU

MACAU

Asia’s newest premier MICE destination UNTIL NOW, MACAU WAS A SMALL, SPECIAL ADMINISTRATIVE REGION OF CHINA, RELATIVELY UNKNOWN TO THE MICE WORLD. ITS IMAGE WAS MOSTLY A TOURISTIC ONE, AND IT’S STILL ONE OF ASIA’S FAVORITE GAMBLING DESTINATIONS. FOR EUROPEANS, IT WAS A FASCINATING PLACE TO GO DUE TO THE COLONIAL LINK WITH PORTUGAL. BUT A TRUE MICE DESTINATION? NO, THAT WOULD BE GOING TOO FAR. THINGS ARE CHANGING NOW. TEXT AND REPORT MARCEL A.M. VISSERS

HEADQUARTERS 25

> MACAU

Lotus Square

MACAU

Becoming a premier MICE destination MARCEL A.M. VISSERS MET WITH SOU TIM PENG, DIRECTOR OF MACAO ECONOMIC SERVICES THAT HAS JUST FOUNDED A CONVENTIONS AND EXHIBITIONS AND ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT, WITH CHAN WENG TAT AT ITS HEAD.

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Macau has developed in the past industries such as textiles, electronics and toys, while today has built up world class tourism industry with a wide choice of hotels, resorts, MICE facilities, restaurants and casinos. Macau’s economy is closely linked to that of Hong Kong and Guangdong Province, in particular the Pearl River Delta region, which qualiﬁes as one of Asia’s ‘little tigers’. Macau provides ﬁnancial and banking services, staff training, transport and communications support.

of these continues to be Macau’s unique society, with communities from the East and West complementing each other, and the many people who come to visit.

DEFINITELY GROWING

Since Macao ﬁrst strategically positioned itself to become the ‘global centre of tourism and leisure’, much earnest efforts had been invested into developing a handful of industries, which could help take Macao a few steps closer to this ultimate goal, and the convention and exhibition industry has been identiﬁed as one of them.

Today Macau is a Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China, and, like Hong Kong, beneﬁts from the principle of “one country, two systems”. It is deﬁnitely growing in size - with more buildings on reclaimed land - and in the number and diversity of its attractions. The greatest

Sou Tim Peng says: ‘In the Policy Address 2011 delivered by the Chief Executive of the Macao SAR, a unit was announced to be established and designated with the responsibilities of developing the convention and exhibition industry. In August 2011, the

> MACAU government ofﬁcially incorporated such responsibilities into the scope of duties of the Macao Economic Services, under which, the Conventions and Exhibitions and Economic Activities Development Department was established. With this

In the coming year, Macao will launch a series of programs promoting its convention and exhibition industry in Asia, Europe, parts of North America and Australia Department in charge of stimulating development in the convention and exhibition industry, the implementation of promotional, supportive and directional policies is thus centralized and reinforced.’

COMPETITIVE MACAU Does that mean Macau wants to compete with neighboring Hong Kong? It might be, as Macau seems to want its part of the cake. Aside from nurturing locally originated events (such as the annual Macao International Trade and Investment Fair - MIF), Macao has indeed been striving to attract foreign and mainland Chinese shows to anchor in the city. The 2011

Import and Export Fair Macau International Yacht and the 2011 China (Macau) International Automobile Exposition recently held are two important examples resulting from such attempts. Sou Tim Peng comments: ‘While Macao tries its best to display its unique appeal as an event destination, it does fully acknowledge its limitations (including its distance to producers and buyers, and a shortage of human resources). It was from these insufﬁciencies that derived cooperating opportunities, rather than competitive threats, with neighbouring cities, especially Hong Kong and those in the mainland China. Regional collaboration could allow the capitalization of strengths from both sides and the concerted development of different market segments.’ In the coming year, Macao will launch a series of programs promoting its convention and exhibition industry in Asia, Europe, parts of North America and Australia, by means of placing advertisements in magazines and other professional publications. Moreover, exchanges by local industry professionals with their foreign counterparts would continue through their participation in overseas shows and exhibitions, as well as ofﬁcial visits conducted in other cities renowned for their convention and exhibition sector.

WHY MACAU? During the CIBTM Fair in Beijing this year, 23 Macau trade partners presented the latest offerings of Macau, as well as the Macau Government Tourist Ofﬁce stimulation programs to assist MICE event organizers who are interested in bringing their conferences and events to Macau. They all promoted the 3 Top Reasons to choose Macau as a Premier MICE Destination: 1. Macau World Heritage - Macau is home to 25 UNESCO-listed World Heritage sites with a unique blending of Portuguese and Chinese allures. 2. Asia’s largest fully integrated Convention and Exhibition facility - The Venetian: everything from accommodation, meeting and exhibition space, restaurants and entertainment all under one roof. 3. Asia’s Entertainment Capital - Macau is Asia’s newest and most exciting destination for major international conventions with billions of dollars worth of infrastructure on the way.

Senado Square, the most popular venue in Macao for public events and celebrations. The square is surrounded by pastel-coloured neo-classical buildings, creating a consistent and harmonious Mediterranean atmosphere.

Historic Macau

Macau Peninsula

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> MACAU

WOW MACAU

EVERYONE WHO HASN’T BEEN IN MACAU FOR A WHILE WILL BE AMAZED BY WHAT’S BEEN HAPPENING THERE. MACAU IS BUILDING A WHOLE NEW WORLD TO EXPERIENCE. FOR ME, IT FEELS LIKE

A SMALL HONG KONG, BUT PERHAPS IN A WHOLE OTHER WAY. THIS SMALL ADMINISTRATIVE REGION ON CHINA’S SOUTH COAST HAS BECOME AN ATTRACTIVE CONGRESS DESTINATION. WHAT USED TO BE A THE KINGDOM OF CASINOS IS NOW MAKING ROOM FOR HISTORY, CULTURE, HERITAGE, SHOPPING, DINING AND... NATURE.

Galaxy y Ma Macau cau Gr Grand a Re and Resor sortt

WHERE IS MACAU? I visited a great deal of Macau on foot (but also by car - taxis are formidably cheap!) and took note of every new development. Macau is situated 70 km from Hong Kong, separated by water and easily reachable from Hong Kong city and its airport. It consists of three islands interlinked by beautiful bridges and articiﬁcial lakes. It was once the oldest European colony in China and has no less than 26 world heritage sites being enlisted by UNESCO. The Portuguese touch is also still very present here.

NOT JUST A GAMBLING CITY ANYMORE Before I took a good look at what Macau

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had to offer, I had always thought it was a gambling hole and nothing more, even when Bruno Simoes, of Macau-based DOC-DMC, had tried to convince me otherwise at various fairs: ‘Come visit Macau, and see for yourself, a lot is happening here.’ I thought Macau was not suitable for European markets, because when Europeans hear the word ‘casino’, they don’t want to go. I decided to go anyway and became enthralled with what I discovered.

NEW MICE HARDWARE Everyone in Macau more or less involved in the meetings industry says that a revolution is happening. The focus lies more and more on events, congresses and experiencing

Macau’s rich cultural heritage. This latter aspect is fairly unknown. DionneYuen, Sales Manager - ZAiA™ of Cirque du Soleil, says it best: ‘The tourism industry in Macau has been developing so rapidly that the tourists coming here have became a lot more diversiﬁed and international. Casinos are no longer the only focus for them. Different types of entertainment are becoming more important. Cirque du Soleil, being globally well-known for high-quality acrobatic performances, brought the ﬁrst splendid show ZAiA to Macau in 2008. Since then we never stopped modifying and perfecting the show in order to give a fresh image to the audience every year. This year we relaunched it again, and the new image was released

> MACAU Historic Macau

Grand Hyatt Macau, City of Dreams

to the public on September 1. Therefore, we believe that now is the perfect time to introduce or re-introduce ZAiA to the public.’ Cirque du Soleil plays exclusively at the Venetian Macao. You can also notice the big changes by looking at the number of hotels being built. Emigly Ng Man Sam, Ofﬁcer of Public Relations of the gigantic Galaxy complex, told me something else: ‘We are currently giving out services to Asian customers under the motto “World Class, Asian Hearts”. We are conﬁdent that we can

Everyone in Macau more or less involved in the meetings industry says that a revolution is happening

brighten up the Cotai Strip Macau with our phase two, three and four developments, which are believed to catch the eye of tourists around the globe in the coming years. The new Galaxy Resort, opened last June, comprises Banyan Tree Macau, Hotel Okura Macau and Galaxy Hotel with a total of 2200 rooms.’ Hotel Vice-President, Conventions and Exhibitions of The Venetian Macao said another very important thing on Macau’s growth: ‘It is fortunate that Macau is relatively safer than many other regions in terms of natural disasters. This, in addition to stable politics, an open port policy and visa-free status for most countries, makes Macau a preferred MICE destination.’

Climbing the Sky Tower

LIVING IN THE CITY OF DREAMS I stayed in a beautiful venue called the City of Dreams for a few days. What can visitors expect of it? It’s a mega-size entertainment property on the well-known Cotai Strip. The architecture is very remarkable, in the style of a podium with four towers: more precisely the Hard Rock Hotel, the Crown Towers Hotel and the splendid Grand Hyatt Macau, which occupies the last two towers (see the cover of this feature - you’ll get a pretty good idea!). A stay in one of these hotels is an experience in its own right. There’s (of course) a mega-casino, more than 200 shops and more than 200 restaurants and bars (including the largest in the city) to be found. Two theatres make sure you’re entertained until you drop. One is called the Bubble and is currently showing an immersive HD media projection presentation called Dragon’s Treasure, which is fairly scary. The second one was opened in September 2010 and is named the Dancing Water Theatre. It features an in-the-round water show, the largest of its kind in the world. This last show for me was the most exciting thing I saw this year.

A Delicious Gamble

A NEW

GAME CONCEPT Bruno Simoes, of DOC-DMC, told me he is having a lot of success with a new gaming concept. It’s called ‘A Delicious Gamble’ and could be summed up as a game being played in a wine and gourmet casino, said to be the ﬁrst in Asia. This could be very appealing to delegates. The gambling concept can be integrated into social function programmes and is a game of luck and knowledge. Guests receive complimentary casino chips to bet at special gaming tables themed around wine, tea, cheese, jam and any food or drink item the clients desire. The highlight of the event is a fun auction of secret gifts, using chips accumulated throughout the activity (this activity available for groups of 30 to 500 persons).

As a preeminent convention and exhibition venue, The Venetian Macao is also playing a crucial role in making Macau one of Asia’s most exciting destinations (more on this in the next pages).

CONTACT Tourism Product and Events Department Macau Government Tourist Ofﬁce mbtc@macautourism.gov.mo www.macautourism.gov.mo Ambassadors at Galaxy Macau

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> MACAU

THE VENETIAN MACAO

Hotel Vice President, Conventions and Exhibitions, Gene Capuano:

‘We expect continued growth in Macau’s MICE performance in 2012. We will add over 10,000 m2 of meeting space at our partner hotels: Conrad Macao, and Holiday Inn Macao and an addition of 5,800 rooms!’

A power congress facility

It’s probably the same for everyone visiting Macau for the ﬁrst time: you get confronted with a lot of casinos. Or is everyone just repeating this so often people believe it spontaneously? I was more amazed by the architecture of the city, its history, its ties with Portugal, the new hotels, the relative quiet in the streets, the nice avenues with appealing shops, nice restaurants and a lot of different types of people. But there was more: The Venetian. As a preeminent convention and exhibition venue, The Venetian Macao Resort Hotel is playing a crucial role in making Macau one of Asia’s most exciting destinations.

THE VENETIAN MACAO: EVERYTHING IS THERE UNDER ONE PALACE ROOF A visit to Macau isn’t complete without a stop at The Venetian, Macau’s most spectacular venue. For a certain category of congress organizers, this venue is a gift from heaven. Just because absolutely everything is there, under one and the same roof. Its origin is the Venetian in Las Vegas, Nevada. With almost 50,000 m2 of casino space it’s ﬁve times bigger than its older American brother. Opened in 2007, it’s also the largest hotel in Asia and surface-wise the sixth biggest

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building in the whole world. There are even little canals you can sail inside. The ceiling is also famous, because it makes you feel like the heavens are moving with you. It’s not only an immense hotel (3,000 suites), but also a shopping and dining paradise. There are 330 premier boutiques, over

THE HARD FACTS As Asia’s largest integrated resort, The Venetian Macao offers more than one million square feet of flexible convention and exhibition space - giving you ample room to host large-scale events. + CotaiExpo offers more than 75,000 sq.m. (800,000 sq.ft.) of exhibition space + 25,000 sq.m. (269,000 sq.ft.) of flexible meeting and ballroom space + 108 flexible meeting rooms + 6,500 sq.m. (69,000 sq.ft.) of pillarless ballroom space - an excellent venue for gala dinners and exclusive parties + CotaiArena: 15,000-seat venue for special events ranging from sport, concerts and large scale conventions

35 restaurants and a myriad of sporting, leisure and conference facilities. But the most important thing is that The Venetian features a 15,000 ﬁxed seat plenary hall, 25,000 m2 of meeting space and about 75,000 m2 of exhibition space.