Event brief
Local DMC Discovery Overland Holidays (DOH) was given 1.5 years lead time to organise an incentive programme in Penang, Malaysia, for 265 of Amway of Australia & New Zealand’s top achievers.
The DMC was to create a seamless experience, from meet and greet at the airport up until the group’s departure. The programme had to include sightseeing tours, meals, entertainment and various workshops.
Challenges
The event was to be held two weeks after Penang experienced flash floods in early November, no thanks to a 17-hour non-stop downpour. The event organiser was concerned about the safety of the delegates and considered cancelling the event.
Another challenge was helping the 60-odd delegates who arrived on the 17.10 flight from Singapore to clear immigration quickly so that they would have time to freshen up in their rooms at the Eastern & Oriental Hotel, Penang, and still be on time for the welcome reception at 19.30. There were other international flights arriving at the same time which created a queue at the Immigration counters.
Another challenge was to ensure that on day four, the branded Achievers Dine-around went smoothly. This fine-dining experience involved seating 265 delegates at eight different restaurants, in various locations around the city.
Delegates had to be shuttled to the various dining experiences from Leong San Tong Khoo Kongsi, where pre-dinner drinks were served along with cultural entertainment. DOH also only had 20 minutes to get all 265 delegates moving.
The challenge was to coordinate the transfers to ensure everyone arrived at the different venues around the same time, as the first course was to be served at around 20.00, and the entire meal was to be completed in 2.5 hours later. DOH also had to ensure that the dietary requirements of all delegates were met.
Solution
Lex Lam, director of sales at Discovery Overland Holidays, recalled: “To reassure the organiser after the flash floods, our staff sent daily weather updates, as well as pictures of clear skies and street scenes to show that things were normal and it was safe to proceed with the event.”
While there was heavy rain during the welcome reception, it did not dampen the mood at 32 Mansion, which had photos of Penang landmarks and attractions projected onto the front of the building, supplied by the Penang Convention & Exhibition Bureau.
“Upon arrival at the airport, we had staff waiting at the aerobridge to greet delegates as they entered the airport terminal. Noticing a long queue at the immigration counters when the third batch of participants arrived, our quick thinking staff requested for two special counters that was opened only for Amway delegates. This helped to create a special arrival experience,” Lam said.
“Prior to the group’s arrival, we received a list of dietary requirements from all delegates, as well as their choice of restaurant for the Dine-Around dinner experience. We trained the waiting staff in all of the eight restaurants on how to greet delegates, and how we wanted to have the food served,” he added.
As serving staff would have to take a delegate’s order for their choice of main course, different coloured stickers were placed on their chairs to help waiters serve main courses correctly. This also helped to adhere to the various dietary requirements.
Delegates left in batches for the various restaurants from Leong San Tong Khoo Kongsi, with those travelling furthest leaving first. This was done so that everyone could arrive at their designated restaurant at around the same time.
Key takeaways
Lam recalled that having a back-up plan was important. For instance, the sightseeing itinerary to Penang Hill had to be scrapped as the road leading to Penang Hill was closed due to road maintenance after the flash flood. Instead, delegates were taken to Tropical Fruit Farm, Tropical Spice Garden and Entopia by Penang Butterfly Farm.
Another takeaway was the need to work closely with the organiser to further enhance the delegate experience.
Event:Amway Achievers Penang 2017
Organiser: Amway of Australia & New Zealand
Destination: Penang
Date: November 21-25, 2017
Number of participants: 265
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Will Hyatt Regency Bangkok Sukhumvit open on time as scheduled in 3Q2018? What’s the state of construction now, and how are you prepping your team for the opening?
Absolutely. We are still on schedule. As for the state of construction, we are doing fitting-out work and systems installation at present. Our newest team members are undergoing our “onboarding” programme. One of the programmes is training to ensure that all our team members understand and embrace our main purpose, which is to care for everyone including one another so they can be at their absolute best.
How will Hyatt Regency Bangkok Sukhumvit differ from its big sister, Grand Hyatt Erawan Bangkok, in terms of hardware and brand positioning?
We are fortunate that we will be the fourth Hyatt brand in Bangkok after Grand Hyatt Erawan Bangkok (1991), Park Hyatt Bangkok (May 2017) and Hyatt Place Bangkok (October 2017). Grand Hyatt hotel guests are seekers of celebratory moments. That’s why there’s such a strong emphasis on MICE and grand events. The one here in Bangkok has amazing event venues, including a grand ballroom, the residence, campus, etc. And it’s located in Bangkok’s most coveted address.
Hyatt Regency is located in a really vibrant part of Bangkok, which has a real sense of place. It’s in a strong neighborhood that is home to the city’s original, multicultural marketplace. This hotel will be about facilitating connection and social interaction for our hardworking professional guests who like to combine business and leisure. Therefore we have to be energetic, clever and confident in ensuring we meet and exceed their needs.
Will you give my readers a sneak preview of your hotel’s meeting event facilities and capabilities?
All of our event rooms will be located on the same floor and feature natural light, making them feel very bright and airy. The Regency Ballroom and four meeting suites offer 1,300m2 of event space. Each of the meeting suites can accommodate up to 75 people for a standing cocktail reception. We can also connect the suites and create larger meeting rooms.
The ballroom has a capacity of 600 people in a round-table setting and a six-meter-high ceiling. In the pre-function area, there are two loft kitchens with a la minute food as well as cluster seating space and a smoking room.
Are there any features of the hotel that you think will particularly charm meeting planners? What are they and why?
We’ll have a new kind of multipurpose residential event venue on Level 29. It was designed by Japan’s Super Potato and it is like a big penthouse. It consists of private dining, a study room, living room, library bar and outdoor terrace that can cater up to 120 people – perfect for wedding receptions or engagement parties, press conferences, product launches and VIP events. It is cleverly done in that it feels like a kind of interactive and self-contained event space. Our roof bar – on levels 30 and 31 – will be where we’ll have a DJ spinning high energy music most evenings. But it will also be a venue that can be booked for private events.
Do you foresee fans of other Hyatt hotels in Bangkok – particularly business travellers and meeting planners – skipping over to your baby, drawn by the novelty of a new property?
As with any new hotel in town, it will of course attract all manner of people, including those who are loyal to even non-Hyatt brands. It’s natural for people to want to see and experience what is new. We would prefer to build our own type of customer base, and maybe convert or appeal to those who are currently patronising non-Hyatt hotels.
Will your team be working with the other Hyatt hotels in Bangkok for cross-selling efforts aimed at business event groups?
Absolutely. Our team has worked very closely with other Hyatt hotels in Thailand. The goal is to ensure that we all deliver distinctive experiences to our guests and create value for all our stakeholders.
There are so many hotels in Bangkok. How do you plan on keeping your beds warm with guests during the opening fanfare and long after the novelty wears off?
The great thing about Bangkok is there is never a dull moment for us hoteliers. However, the trends over the past few years have been extremely positive as a result of great initiatives by and partnerships between the government, TAT and private tourism industries to boost the quantity and quality of tourists to Thailand.
Keeping beds warm with guests is not a challenge exclusive to us, but the way we’ll address it is by upholding our values at all times so that we are continually enhancing the brand’s promise of caring for every person who comes through our doors, whether it be a local, tourist, employee or whoever.