THE Asian Federation of Exhibition and Convention Associations (AFECA) has seen its membership expand in the past year to include more representatives from Myanmar, Japan and Hong Kong, allowing members to benefit from a greater pool of experts who can share trade knowledge.

Speaking to TTGmice e-Weekly during the AFECA Forum today, Walter Yeh, AFECA president, said: “AFECA was set up 10 years ago to promote the industry of conventions, exhibitions, meetings and events, and it has been growing its membership. We now have 28 association members. This has enabled us to strengthen our ability to exchange business knowledge, and we will be doing more activities in the coming years to facilitate such intelligence sharing.”

The association also has 98 regular and affiliate member companies from 17 countries, and nine advisory council members from eight countries.

Yeh said AFECA intends to make the AFECA Awards and AFECA Asia MICE Youth Challenge annual affairs, although the decision to host a second edition of the AEC+ Expo is now pending, subject to trade feedback on the inaugural show which ends tomorrow.

“We may even enhance the AFECA Asia MICE Youth Challenge next year by turning it into a competition that is open to MICE professionals,” Yeh revealed.

“Going forward, AFECA will be even more active and will look for other opportunities for our members to engage one another,” he added.

SINGAPORE’S second Sofitel property has opened on Sentosa island, armed with 211 rooms and suites, four villas, more than 1,300m² of MICE facilities, four dining options and what is said to be the world’s largest So SPA.

Sofitel Singapore Sentosa Resort & Spa spots a bold and elegant design that integrates the surrounding nature within the hotel’s various buildings, and boasts more than 27 acres of tropical woodlands, offering guests a sense of relaxed sophistication and urban resort living.

It is also the only hotel on Sentosa that overlooks the South China Sea, with easy access to Tanjong Beach.

Offering a rich option for event planners, the hotel’s revamped Conference Centre houses two ballrooms, 15 pillarless meeting rooms, outdoor verandas and a bridal suite. All meeting rooms are illuminated with natural light and stretch out to the outdoor lawn, making them ideal venues for corporate brainstorming sessions, teambuilding, leadership training and cocktail receptions.

The hotel is also collaborating with DirectStreams, a long standing technology partner of Sofitel, to offer the latest fully-connected innovative lifestyle technology through DirectStreams’ LG Smart TV Guest solution, allowing guests the best technology experience to meet the needs of a diverse audience.

Vincent Lelay, cluster general manager of Sofitel Singapore Sentosa Resort & Spa and Sofitel So Singapore, said: “The Sofitel Singapore Sentosa Resort & Spa represents a significant step for Sofitel in further increasing its presence in South-east Asia, and bringing French elegance and sophistication to the increasingly discerning travellers in this region.”

A MICE-FOCUSED business exchange debuted at this year’s Taipei International Travel Fair (ITF), with destinations from all over the world coming together to reach out to Taiwanese incentive planners.

The 60-minute Incentive Travel Forum, held a day ahead of ITF, saw participation from destinations near and far, including South Korea, Thailand, Hong Kong, Macau, Oman and Guam.

Hong Kong Tourism Board lured Taiwanese corporates at the event with its year-end festivals, said tourism marketing manager, Joey Kao, who added that escalating room rates in Taiwan should encourage local companies to take their events overseas.

Guam Visitors Bureau, also a participant at the forum, shone the limelight at the five-star, 419-key Dusit Thani Guam Resort which will officially open next month.

“Its meeting space can accommodate more than 1,000 people, and we hope to use this platform to reach the right target audience,” remarked Guam Visitors Bureau, senior project manager, Ean Chen.

Local corporate buyers welcomed the incentive focus.

Sothis Yang, a representative from Cathay Life Insurance, general marketing administration department, told TTGmice e-Weekly that the event provided opportunities for direct dialogue with destinations, which was helpful as not all travel agencies were able to offer what she needed.

Wang Hau-mei, welfare committee group leader with Taiwan Railway, which rewards 40-50 top performing employees annually with overseas trips, hoped the forum would expand in scale and feature more destinations.

ITF, chairman, Cherng Tyan Su, said the new event aimed to cater to planners of various event scales and budgets, “especially for SMEs with a staff count of under 100”.

“If results are good, we hope to make (the forum) an annual event,” Cherng added.

FOR companies sending employees on international assignments it’s important to get accommodation provision right – not least because it is expensive but also because it can have a big impact on the willingness of the employee and his/her family to accept or continue an assignment. The vast majority of companies will pay all host country housing costs but – and particularly with the current appetite for cost savings – this will often be up to a specified ceiling.

Before the assignment begins, our research shows that over 70 per cent of companies provide look-see visits, usually lasting five to seven days for which they will cover the cost of flights and short-term accommodation, at least. Many pay for the partner to go too. These trips can help in allaying any family anxieties about living in a different country as well as ease the process of adapting to a new culture and lifestyle. So although additional costs are incurred the long-term benefits can be invaluable: the employee is prone to be more productive upon relocation and more likely to complete the assignment.

According to our latest research, China is the most common destination for international assignees – and compared to 15 years ago when the US topped the list, there are now a number of Asian locations among the top 12. In fact moves from Europe to Asia followed by intra-Asia moves are the most typically among our clients.

The majority of assignments are still long-term – from two to five years, and for these, temporary accommodation will be provided at the beginning, should it be necessary, by almost 90 per cent of companies. Just over half of companies will provide such housing at the end, too, if the family need to make arrangements for long-term accommodation in the home location. Typically this will be provided for up to a month, prior to the employee and family moving into something more permanent. The host country HR department will usually be responsible for planning and booking temporary accommodation.

However, increasingly, companies are adopting alternative assignment types to meet business needs and reduce the impact of barriers to mobility such as children’s education or partner’s career. Shorter or commuter style assignments often involve the assignee staying in hotels or serviced accommodation for a longer period. The type of accommodation offered will be governed by cost and practicality.
Hotels are more common for trips of under three months, for example, and serviced apartments for assignments up to a year after which the savings afforded by providing unfurnished long-term rental accommodation are well worth it. The accommodation provided will also depend on availability and security issues or whether the assignee is accompanied or not.

A variety of housing-related assistance is commonly provided at the start and end of the assignment, particularly if it’s long-term. This may include home-finding services in the host country, assistance with terminating lease/rental agreements on repatriation, and opening and closing utilities contracts.

This is an editorial contribution by Lee Quane, regional director, Asia Pacific, ECA International. Recognised since 1971 as a world authority in its field, ECA provides knowledge, information and technology to inform, guide and support managers handling compensation and benefits for international workers moving around the world (www.eca-international.com).

By Lee Quane