Four MICE major powers to lead new learning festival at IT&CMA, CTW Asia-Pacific

May 18, 2020

ICCA, IMEX, PCMA, and SITE, recognised as the business events industry’s biggest associations and trendsetters, will lend their expertise as content partners to the Dress Down For Inspiration (DDFI) Learning Festival at this year’s IT&CMA and CTW Asia-Pacific.

Held on September 22, DDFI will kick off the three-day doublebill event’s knowledge segment through four parallel themes, each helmed by one of the content partners.

Themes will run concurrently over three hours – across different locations at Bangkok Convention Centre – from 09.00 – 12.00.

DDFI attendees are encouraged to come dressed in smart casuals for an interactive and unrestricted learning experience

Open to all delegates, DDFI features interactive workshop-style sessions centred on a variety of curated case studies and inspiring stories by personalities and brands passionate about Community and Sustainability; Innovation and Enterprise; Professional Advancement and Well-Being; and Mentorship and Future Leaders.

Organiser TTG Events and the four content partners are also exploring added pre- and/or post-event excursions to local business featured in these sessions as part of a cultural immersion objective.

And true to its name, DDFI attendees are invited to ditch the corporate wear and come dressed down in their smart casual attire for a thematic, interactive and unrestricted inspiring learning experience.

Noor Ahmad Hamid, regional director (APAC) with ICCA, which leads the Professional Advancement and Well-Being theme, said: “Investment in professional advancement is crucial for future success. Our most prized assets are people, and it is important for their operating environment to be balanced and secured. Ensuring their well-being contributes not only to productivity and quality, but creativity – the next currency in the business world.”

Karen Bolinger, managing director APAC with PCMA, the content lead for the Innovation and Enterprise track, commented: “DDFI presents an optimal opportunity for us to engage our audience by improving their event growth and ROI, through provocative event programming on how enterprising innovations are reimagining their operating environment.”

Pádraic Gilligan, chief marketing officer of SITE, which designs the Community and Sustainability theme, remarked: “Community is our raison d’être. To connect, learn and shape the incentive travel industry together. We’ll also be delivering insights on Sustainability – a key focus for SITE and global businesses – in areas of stakeholder relationships, business ethics, resource conservation and waste emission to ensure our net contribution mitigates negative impacts.”

Dale Hudson, knowledge & events director at IMEX, which leads the Mentorship and Future Leaders theme, said: “Companies are constantly on the lookout for new talent. It is important for potential employers to learn how to establish their own unique brand. We are excited about delivering this education track as it resonates with our passion for inspiring the new generation of Future Leaders in shaping their careers in the events industry – through expert insights and connections from industry leaders at IT&CMA.”

Penang unveils three-year plan to rejuvenate MICE sector

By S Puvaneswary

May 18, 2020

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The Penang state government and Penang Convention & Exhibition Bureau (PCEB) are jointly developing a three-year business events rejuvenation plan that will start from next year.

Yeoh Soon Hin, Penang state exco for tourism, arts, culture and heritage, said: “We are putting tourism recovery as one of our priorities, and we are working on a Tourism Recovery Action Plan for both the leisure and business events sector.”

Yeoh: Penang unveils details of its plan to revive the MICE industry

The initial focus will be on building and attracting more national meetings and business events, before targeting South-east Asia, Asia Pacific and finally, the global meetings and incentives industry, added Yeoh.

More emphasis will also be given to less popular areas such as Balik Pulau and the mainland as it would be easier to manage social distancing in these places.

Currently, PCEB is in the midst of setting up a post-MCO task force with industry partners – including hotels, convention centres, PCOs and event planners – said Ashwin Gunasekeran, CEO at PCEB. Once it is set up, a list of Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) and guidelines for different categories of the industry will be drawn up.

For the domestic market, Ashwin opined that the recovery for Penang’s business events sector will be six months from now at the earliest.

As part of tourism recovery efforts, PCEB will also roll out a destination branding campaign called “Here for Tomorrow” emphasising that Penang is a Green Zone and that SOPs are in place to conduct business events safely in the destination.

These efforts, and more, were revealed during the Next Normal webinar organised by PCEB.

Another speaker, Khoo Boo Lim, chairman of the Malaysian Association of Hotels Penang Chapter, foresaw the use of more technology adoptions in the future of the meetings industry and stressed that hotels should be agile to changes that are looming and make the necessary investments.

Meanwhile, Charles Teo, honorary secretary of Institute of Landscape Architects Malaysia and event director of IFLA2020 World Landscape Architects Summit said both the ILAM and IFLA 2020 local committees had worked with PCEB to postpone their event next year. It was supposed to take place in August this year.

Teo shared that the event next year will rely on the usage of conference apps that sport with new features which will include the tracking of delegates health post-conference, so that tracing can be done more quickly if someone contracts Covid-19.

The local organising committee is also looking at other precautionary measures such as pre-packing food (as opposed to buffets), and having an isolation room at the venue and a health officer on standby.

TCEB releases guidelines for MICE events as country eases lockdown

By TTGmice

May 18, 2020

0

bangkok-lotus-suite-1-4-03-640x457 — TCEB has released a new set of meeting guidelines that have resulted due to Covid-19; a meeting space within Centara Grand & Bangkok Convention Centre at CentralWorld pictured

Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau (TCEB), in partnership with business events stakeholders in Thailand, have launched MICE Venue Hygiene Guidelines.

The guidelines comprise five key measures: limiting the number of attendees (one person per two square metre space); temperature screening of attendees, with a follow-up system for patients; distancing practice within business premises; tracking system in case a delegate becomes ill after visiting the premise; and a queuing system with separated waiting areas before entering the premises.

TCEB has released a new set of meeting guidelines that have resulted due to Covid-19; a meeting space within Centara Grand & Bangkok Convention Centre at CentralWorld pictured

The MICE Venue Hygiene Guidelines also features three key practices spanning pre-event, on-site, and post-event.

The pre-event practices include preparedness of staff; transport; setting up of screening point; self-screening application or website for attendees to feedback within 24 hours before the event; manual on the permitted number of attendees; instruction on holding large scale activities; hygiene instruction for attendees; etc.

On-site practices focus on the use of IT to mitigate risks; the arrangement of venue to reduce touchpoints and regular cleaning of touchpoints; QR code for registration and satisfaction survey to ease the congestion; room layout for better ventilation; two-metre apart seating; microphone set up at different points and regular cleaning after use.

Should speakers be invited from outside of the host city, attendees must be informed of safety measures taken to reduce incoming risks.

For exhibitions, advance booking technology for visiting booths or virtual exhibition technology should be deployed to create experiences for those waiting in the queue. Online platforms should be developed for product booking or purchasing.

Post-event practices include the employment of waste management system that can prevent infection, and producing a report on event organisation for concerned authorities in accordance with the orders and announcements of the government’s Center for Covid-19 Situation Administration).

The aim of these guidelines is to help the sector prepare for the resumption of business under a new normal environment where hygiene and health safety will be key concerns.

The MICE Venue Hygiene Guidelines was produced by TCEB and stakeholders including Thailand Incentive and Convention Association, Thai Exhibition Association, Event Management Association and Thai Hotels Association.

Incentives will bounce back stronger, though adjustments have to be made in new normal: experts

By Anne Somanas

May 18, 2020

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SITE_webinar_screencap — Panellists at the first SITE Thailand webinar discuss the future of incentive travel

The Society for Incentive Travel Excellence (SITE) Thailand jumpstarted its new webinar series with a discussion on the future of the incentive travel, where topics included adjustments the sector will need to make in the new normal.

“What remains unchanged is people’s desire to travel; however, a sense of safety, confidence and hygiene must be there,” stated Nichapa Yoswee, president, Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau (TCEB), one of the panellists.

Panellists at the first SITE Thailand webinar discuss the future of incentive travel

The other panellists were Sumate Sudasna, president, Thailand Incentive and Convention Association (TICA); Jennifer Glynn, president, SITE Global ; alongside Alicia Yao representing SITE China  and Nitin Sachdeva representing SITE India.

The session was moderated by news anchor Honey Cholaphansa Narula, and saw 593 travel professionals tuning in.

“TCEB is now working closely with TICA and SITE to come up with tailor-made guidelines to cater to each source market because each will have its own requirements. The whole intention is to make sure we can support whichever (source market), whenever and wherever so that they can bring in the groups as easily,” Nichapa stated.

She also pointed the audience to the new Thailand Redefine and MICE Venue Hygiene Guidelines campaigns, both a part of TCEB’s three-year restoration plan for the events industry.

Other topics discussed included taking a stab at which markets will bounce back the soonest. China and India remain tops, with the luxury incentive sector also on the list.

“China business and incentive travel will come back first,” opined Yao, referencing the travel corridor between the two countries is the most likely to open up. She added that Thailand would do well to introduce and entice the China market with early bird recovery destinations.

Sachdeva said India should not be overlooked, stating that the country has been one of the “fastest come-back markets”.

“Once the rules are set, once the government allows it, they will definitely bounce back very quickly,” he opined.

Glynn meanwhile, predicts that luxury incentive travel will rebound “with charter flights and boutique hotels”.

To this end, Nichapa added that the market could possibly see exclusive buyouts of hotels to facilitate group isolation, and enhance the sense of safety and hygiene for all delegates.

Yao and Glynn also pointed out that incentive programmes could be scaled down, although this did not mean a reduction in budget, as social distancing would be more costly to implement.

In addition, sustainability would get more focus in incentive programmes, predicted Nichapa.

Despite current setbacks – all 2020 programmes have been postponed for one to two years, according to Sumate – the outlook remains bright for incentive travel.

“Studies indicate that 90 per cent of individuals miss the live experience; the more we are suppressed, the more we need to go out,” Yao said.

Agreeing, Nichapa said people would adapt to the new normal in other to have their social gatherings.

The biweekly webinar series, presented by SITE Thailand in collaboration with TICA and supported by TCEB, will be followed by, We are all in this together: The empathic communication to get closer to your clients on May 29; and Germaphobes’ Rules: Reorienting your business to gain trust from health-concerning clients on June 12. More details will be available on SITE Thailand’s Facebook page.

Duty of care takes centre stage in new normal of business travel

By Caroline Boey

May 18, 2020

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Business-traveller — Covid-19 has brought to the surface issues that CTMs are facing with hotel and TMC partners

Duty of care has become the battle cry for corporate travel managers now that domestic business trips are restarting in markets such as China, India and other parts of Asia.

This is as buyers have been frustrated by travel supplier services in managing disruptions amid the pandemic, citing situations where some airlines are not giving the option of refunds, the shuttering of hotels, and TMCs reducing staff numbers and work hours.

Covid-19 has brought to the surface issues that CTMs are facing with hotel and TMC partners

A corporate travel buyer from the pharmaceuticals industry commented: “There were a lot of cancellations in the beginning and the lag for issuance of invoices – usually two to three days – became two to three weeks, which affected our business movement controls and billings to the corporate card.

“When the TMC saw the problem, it outsourced the function to South Asia, and the local team was retrained to get on top of the situation.”

He added: “The market is now quiet, so TMCs can put staff on furlough and cut hours. Eventually they need to have their finger on the pulse.

“Moving forward, we would need our TMC to hit the ground running, and the airlines must be clear about scheduling and requirements because once our manufacturing standard operating procedure is enforced, it cannot be stopped.”

The buyer of another pharmaceutical company shared that “US$100,000 was spent last year – it is a lot of money – to work with our TMC to monitor our hotel programme”.

To manage costs this year, the company has opted to move away from static to dynamic hotel rates which come with fewer restrictions and allow the company to mix and match hotels depending on requirements.

She added: “It is complicated with airline cancellations. Many are giving refunds but the US carriers are offering credit. It is a problem because that is going back to the employee’s account and we are pushing our TMC to come up with a solution. The pharmaceutical industry is in demand now and we need our TMC to be proactive.”

With little business travel activity this year due to Covid-19 travel and movement restrictions, one Shanghai-based travel manager has found himself having to “carry over 2019’s pricing” in his RFP activity due to a lack of “meaningful data”.

He added: “Volumes and changes in the pattern of international travel have also become very controlled, and 2020 budgets will be conservative because many of our stores have closed, (impacting) sales and profit.

“Perhaps there will be no full 2020/21 RFP. With so many unknowns, we may have to rely on spot contracting. Flexibility is the key as we would have to review the situation all the time in moving towards recovery.”

During a May 13 Corporate Travel Community webinar that discussed the new state of travel programmes, Gavan Fraser, global head of travel and expenses, BHP, said duty of care and the travel manager’s role in rebuilding traveller confidence when international borders reopen, was now “front and centre”.

Rajdev Bhattacharya, Wipro’s global head of travel and hospitality, added the focus was also shifting to the traveller and “the ability for him to decide (to take or reject a trip)”, which was not so before.

“Of course cost and compliance will still be important, but convenience to the traveller will take centre stage,” he added.

In urging airlines to do more, Bhattacharya said the aviation ecosystem did not support multiple itineraries and changes, adding that aviation partners would have to change the way they work and distribute their products.

He believes that this would be possible post-Covid-19, as consolidation could result in a standard code of operation, with Fraser hopeful of a change in airline support for online booking tools by “talking to one another” to facilitate the booking and changing of multi-sector itineraries.

New Zealand allows business events of up to 100

By TTGmice

May 18, 2020

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Auckland-skyline — The New Zealand government has allowed business events of no more than a 100 to start; Auckland skyline pictured

After the recent easing of restrictions on social gatherings and travel, the New Zealand government has confirmed domestic business events and conferences can now go ahead with a 100-person limit.

New guidelines for New Zealand state that large ticketed events and business events must be seated with a one-metre distancing requirement, they must allow for contact tracing, have physical distancing in place, good hygiene procedures, and any food and drink must meet the hospitality provisions.

The New Zealand government has allowed business events of no more than a 100 to start; Auckland skyline pictured

Conventions & Incentives New Zealand (CINZ) chief executive, Lisa Hopkins said the industry welcomes clarity on numbers from the government, and the acknowledgement that business events should be viewed differently to social gatherings.

“This helps the New Zealand business events sector restart for domestic attendees, and is the first step in the right direction,” Hopkins said.

“We understand the cap on numbers is set by the Ministry of Health based on the ability of public health to be managed in the case of an outbreak, including contact tracing, isolation and critical care facilities.

“An increase in a cap from 100 attendees to 200 attendees, for example, is exponential in risk – the contract tracing requirements alone following on from an event becomes much greater, so caps are set at a level where safety can be managed from a public health perspective.

“The Ministry has confirmed this is not a reflection on the ability of event organisers to mitigate risk or fail to do so. It is about allowing New Zealand to keep stamping out Covid-19. Keeping numbers low, for now, will help New Zealand be able to respond swiftly and effectively and possibly prevent an increase in restrictions by doing so,” Hopkins elaborated.

The current caps across all aspects of New Zealand business and social gatherings are for the first stage of Alert Level Two and will be revisited on May 25. There is still no timeframe for when Alert Level 1 will come into place.

Singapore, Tokyo part of ICCA’s top 20 city rankings for 2019

By TTGmice

May 18, 2020

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ICCA has released its annual city and country rankings, where two Asia-Pacific cities and countries feature within the top 10 for their respective lists.

In the number one spot in the ranking by number of association meetings in 2019, Paris holds on to the title and remains in first position. This is followed by Lisbon, the city with the highest increase in number of events (+38) moving up four places from being sixth last year.

Singapore (pictured)ICCA takes seventh spot in top 10 cities list

Singapore comes in the seventh spot with 148 meetings, while Tokyo sits at 10 with 131 meetings. Other regular contenders like Berlin, Barcelona and Madrid are third, fourth, and fifth respectively.

Other Asia-Pacific cities that have made it to the top 20 list are Bangkok (13), Seoul (15), Taipei (19), and Sydney (93).

Meanwhile for the country rankings, US remains tops; the country has been the titleholder for the last two decades. The list remains relatively unchanged with countries moving up or down a spot. Within this list, two Asia-Pacific countries feature – China in seventh, and Japan in eighth.

Other Asia-Pacific countries within the top 20 list are Australia (12) and South Korea (13).

ICCA CEO Senthil Gopinath said: “ICCA’s annual statistics report is one of few that compares destinations’ meetings-related performance on a global scale and therefore provides great insight into global trends in the meetings industry. Given the current circumstances, it is great to once again highlight the consistent growth in association meetings globally. These figures show the need and importance of face-to-face events, and consequently that the industry will be instrumental in the global recovery when the time is right.”

In 2019, ICCA’s statistics captured 13,254 rotating association meetings, the highest ever recorded annual figure in its yearly statistics, with an increase of 317 from the previous year’s figures.

Year on year, ICCA has seen a promising consistent growth pattern in the association meetings market. The ICCA Association Database now includes 21,000 regularly occurring meeting series, 260,000 meeting editions and 12,000 international associations.

Only meetings that meet ICCA’s stringent assessment criteria – rotating between at least three countries, have a proven attendance of at least 50 participants, and are held on a regular basis – are recorded within the global association’s annual statistics.

The full ICCA statistics reports are available now to ICCA members only in the ICCA Destination Comparison Tool. A public abstract of the report, including rankings for all countries and cities will be released to the public in mid-June.

Thailand’s extended flight ban draws mixed trade reactions

By Anne Somanas

May 18, 2020

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While Thailand has scaled back its evening curfew by an hour, reopened malls and allowed 10 types of businesses and activities to resume, the Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand (CAAT) has chosen to extend its ban on international flights until June 30.

Travel and tourism Industry stakeholders are divided on the announcement, with some feeling that the extension is unnecessarily harsh given the country’s low numbers of daily new coronavirus cases which have hovered close to zero for several weeks on end.

Thailand has reopened 14 airports, including Suvarnabhumi Airport pictured

“I feel it’s the suitable thing to do for now while hygiene measures and protocols are (in the process of) being applied towards the entire business events sector,” opined Max Boontawee Jantasuwan, president of the Society for Incentive Travel Excellence (SITE) Thailand chapter and founding CEO of Events Travel Asia Group, referencing the joint effort between the Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau and other business events associations to launch MICE Venue Hygiene Guidelines to prepare the sector for the new normal.

“It also echoes the situation outside Thailand, because even if we were to open the airspace now, nobody would start travelling here as of yet,” he added.

The ban, which covers all international passenger planes, means that the earliest foreigners could come to Thailand is in July.

“Thailand has maintained a low number of cases and few fatalities in this crisis. The focus is, understandably, on a regulated return to normality in the country. For the suffering Thai tourism industry, a return of domestic tourists will be the fastest way to (secure) some revenue. However, even if Thais will engage in some ‘revenge travel,’ it will not by far be enough to replace the full stop on international travellers,” said Willem Niemeijer, CEO and co-founder of Khiri Travel.

As the rest of the world begins the process of reopening, “CAAT’s decision to extend the ban on international arrivals until July 1, six weeks from now, seems an unnecessary overreach,” Niemeijer added, citing Italy’s decision to reopen for all international travel on June 3 and the ‘bubble tourism’ bilateral agreements being pioneered now, such as those between Spain’s Mallorca and Germany, or between New Zealand and Australia.

Flight consultant Luc Citrinot suggested that a gradual reopening of international travel would make sense, by first facilitating small travel corridors between Thailand and neighbouring countries with low numbers of infections, such as Vietnam, and gradually extending to South Korea, Taiwan and China.

Niemeijer believes that a gradual reopening would help to “plant the seed of confidence” in longhaul travelers who are in the process of making longer-term travel plans now.

“Thailand is risking trampling the excellent handling of the crisis compared to other countries, and giving first-mover advantage to other tourism destinations in the world, prolonging the crisis for the country’s recovery,” he said.

The country’s beleaguered national carrier, Thai Airways, which is still hovering between bankruptcy and bailout, has also scheduled its first flights on July 1, 2020.

Thailand last week removed China, Hong Kong, Macau and South Korea from its dangerous disease zone list, meaning travellers from those countries will be subject to fewer restrictions and less monitoring.

Fourteen of Thailand’s airports are currently operating, with Bangkok Airways being the latest Thai airline to resume domestic flights, since mid May. Phuket International Airport remains closed indefinitely; though scheduled to reopen May 15, CAAT issued an order the same day for the airport to remain closed.

Visas for all foreigners currently in Thailand have automatically been extended until July 31, 2020. Forty-two inter-provincial train lines, some longhaul, have resumed with inter-provincial buses also now running select routes.

Meanwhile, the Thai government is still debating whether to lift its state of emergency by end-May.

The Fun Empire launches a virtual escape room

By TTGmice

May 18, 2020

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Singapore-based events company The Fun Empire has opened its Virtual Escape Room Experience, building on its previous Escape Room Experience.

The experience – with facilitation via video web platforms – promises a host of challenging puzzles and storyline, where participants will have to work together to uncover secrets and solve mysteries.

One session will last around 1.5 hours, not including 30 minutes for set-up and debrief. A minimum of two pax is required for a session to run, with no maximum limit. Prices start at S$20 (US$14) per pax, and prizes for the winning team is included in the pricing.

Should clients have overseas-based team members, or are based overseas themselves, the virtual teambuilding sessions can also be conducted.

The Fun Empire offers over 30 different teambuilding games and activities, and other online activities in their portfolio include virtual creative workshops, party mania, and nightfall.

Contact hello@thefunempire.com for more information.

Wyndham names new APAC head

By TTGmice

May 18, 2020

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Wyndham Hotels & Resorts (WHR) has appointed Joon Aun Ooi as president, Asia-Pacific, effective June 1, 2020.

In his new role, Ooi will lead the growth of WHR’s portfolio of brands across the Asia-Pacific region – which combines South-east Asia and Pacific Rim (SEAPR) with Greater China, following a restructuring – and drive its strategic objectives, as the tourism industry recovers from Covid-19.

“These are extremely challenging times for the hotel industry and it is more crucial now than ever for Wyndham Hotels & Resorts to be agile in adapting to the evolving situation to be able to drive greater value for our owners and partners,” Ooi said in a press statement.

“Across Asia-Pacific, the consolidation will enable the company to leverage on a broader pool of resources – allowing it to strengthen its strategic positioning to support existing operations, drive further expansion and create additional opportunities for cross-border collaborations.”

With nearly two decades of experience in the hospitality industry, Ooi joined Wyndham in 2013 as vice president, openings and operations, Greater China. In 2018, he was appointed president and managing director for SEAPR and led WHR’s regional growth and development after its spin-off from Wyndham Worldwide.

Prior to Wyndham, Ooi held leadership roles across Asia and Greater China including vice president strategy at InterContinental Hotels Group in 2002. He moved to China in 2005 to take on the role of vice president, hotel openings (Greater China) where he played a key role in establishing and implementing the China growth strategy for the group.

In 2009, he was appointed vice president strategy and hotel openings (Asia Pacific) at Hilton Worldwide where he oversaw the growth of the Hilton portfolio in China.

Before joining the hospitality industry in 2002, Ooi spent more than seven years at The Boston Consulting Group as a principal.

Four MICE major powers to lead new learning festival at IT&CMA, CTW Asia-Pacific

Penang unveils three-year plan to rejuvenate MICE sector

TCEB releases guidelines for MICE events as country eases lockdown

Incentives will bounce back stronger, though adjustments have to be made in new normal: experts

Duty of care takes centre stage in new normal of business travel

New Zealand allows business events of up to 100

Singapore, Tokyo part of ICCA’s top 20 city rankings for 2019

Thailand’s extended flight ban draws mixed trade reactions

The Fun Empire launches a virtual escape room

Wyndham names new APAC head

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