Education for hosted buyers, day buyers, and the next generation of event managers will be a strong focus for MEETINGS 2024, the largest gathering of business events professionals and service providers in New Zealand.
This year’s event at Rotorua’s Energy Events Centre on June 19 and 20, 2024, will be the biggest yet, with 246 stands representing 205 businesses from 18 regions of New Zealand including 36 new exhibitors.
New to MEETINGS 2024 are education sessions for buyers, held during lunch breaks, covering a wide range of relevant and trending topics. Day buyers registering before the end of May will receive priority registration to their choice of sessions.
The 50-minute education sessions will include: identifying and managing unexpected risks; corporate social responsibility through an indigenous lens; Aotearoa New Zealand’s special status globally – and how to tell its story; securing commercial and third-party funding for events; and how tikanga Māori – customs, protocol, and values can enhance events. These education sessions will also be recorded and made available to all attendees.
For example, Team Up Events’ lunchtime workshop on June 19 is an interactive Corporate Social Responsibility teambuilding session set to make a positive impact on the local Rotorua community. Attendees will experience first-hand how the power of events can create meaningful benefits for local communities.
In addition, the Tourism New Zealand Knowledge and Destination Hub will host 23 different 15-minute targeted presentations throughout the two days of MEETINGS. Attendees can find out what’s new in New Zealand events with regional showcase updates from across the country, gather insights into the Asian and North American events markets, and learn more about Toitū and Qualmark and what these certifications mean for assessing the sustainability of an event. Other topics will include everything from the application of GST in Australasian events, to the role and value of a PCO, and the significance of Māori cultural protocols for events.
Tourism New Zealand’s Business Events team will also be on the stand to discuss the support, bid assistance and resources available to help attract and host successful international conferences.
And, the next generation of event management and hospitality professionals will be given hands-on insights into the burgeoning business events industry.
This year, MEETINGS will support over 100 Level 5 and 6 students studying hospitality, event management and tourism at the local Toi Ohomai Institute of Technology in Rotorua. They will have the opportunity to explore the MEETINGS tradeshow before an afternoon of sessions designed to develop their knowledge and understanding of the business events industry, how their specific areas of study play a part in the overall business events ecosystem, as well as their career pathways. Students will also have a chance to gain practical experience by working with the organising team at MEETINGS 2024.
