Conferences in form

It is not surprising that governments and the private sector invest hundreds of millions of dollars in setting up their cities or venues with the latest and greatest for business events tourism. The reasons are obvious — over time corporate conference and association convention business inject many more dollars into a destination's economy, or a venue's coffers. Acity can have character, great shopping, sightseeing, nightlife and a brilliant airport where you are off your flight and into your five-star hotel's limousine in minutes. However, if the business of the day is spoiled by substandard meeting rooms, faulty AV equipment and worst of all — management that can't act on the go or simply don't care if things begin to go wrong — then all the brilliance and efficiency of a city means next to nothing. Singapore success Singapore has excelled in this area, being voted in our Annual Industry Survey as the best city in terms of overall experience and facilities. Next followed Bangkok, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Kuala Lumpur and Sydney. "STB understands that businesses face many risks. We believe that organising business events should not be one of them," says Aloysius Arlando, STB's acting assistant chief executive (Business Travel & MICE Group). "Companies that organise corporate meetings or business events in Singapore have the assurance that their events will take place smoothly and successfully. "It is this assurance which make Singapore an appealing place to organise business events. Singapore has also done a good job in effectively communicating its other strong selling points — its compact city location with key MICE facilities, hotels, shopping and entertainment options conveniently located within easy reach of one another and Singapore's extensive air links to 181 cities in 56 countries." Bangkok style Thailand, and in this case specifically Bangkok, has done well in many areas of this year's survey. It's little surprise the Land Of Smiles and its City Of Angels has scored so well in this segment. Thailand's service industry has improved in leaps and bounds over the past decade. The launch of the Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau (TCEB) has had a positive effect on this result. TCEB has several projects planned that it intends to use to help Bangkok challenge Singapore for first place next year. The bureau's director-general Peerapong Oeusoonthornwattana says further projects planned for 2006 are: better coordination between government and private sectors; a CEI information and education centre; and hiring of more TCEB staff to manage this expansion. "We also need to obtain real statistics on the business tourism market as opposed to the data supplied by the Tourism Authority of Thailand," says Peerapong. "Currently we compare CEI statistics with the Tourism Authority of Thailand's arrivals as a percentage but it's not the real figure." He adds that Thailand won 13 of 16 bids for major conferences and conventions for 2006. Perfect location Situated right on the harbourfront is the incredibly successful Hong Kong and Convention Centre (HKCEC). While HKCEC is known for its quality, it is now competing for business with the newly opened AsiaWorld-Expo, situated on the former site of Chek Lap Kok airport. HKCEC managing director Cliff Wallace continues to raise the bar in service. After a successful 2005, he is confident even more delegates will use the award-winning centre in 2006. "There will be about a four per cent increase in operating revenues during 2005 primarily from conference (and exhibition) business," he says. "But this increase is attributable to the centre's major conference events such as the 88th Lions Clubs International Annual Meeting last July and the World Trade Organisation Ministerial Conference in December. "These are the types of events that also bring international attention and enhances the overall reputation of HKCEC's ability to host prestigious meetings, conferences and exhibitions. "The fantastic staff have excelled and proven their experience through hosting events including the World Bank and International Monetary Fund Annual Meetings in 1997, global forums and summits, and other major association annual conferences." Wallace says he was humbled to be rated so highly in this sector (HKCEC was also the best convention and exhibition centre in the region). However, he insists that with his business expanding both the HKCEC and Hong Kong will have to continue to improve. "As our business continues to grow, standards will also need to rise," he says. "Fortunately, this reputation continually impacts on the voting by our wonderful friends and supporters in the industry in a positive way." Sydney style Apart from its stunning harbour, Sydney's inner-city is also known for its vibrancy and welcoming nature and like Hong Kong, the Sydney Exhibition and Convention Centre (SCEC) also sits right on the harbourfront. SCEC chief executive Ton van Amerongen says Sydney had a very strong year in terms of conventions and conferences from Asia. In fact, in delegate numbers, 2005 was the centre's best year ever for business from Asia. With more delegates accessing Sydney from Asia, more respondents were able to list Sydney in their survey responses as Sydney did not make the top five last year in this category. "Both 2004 and 2005 were very strong for the centre, which hosted scores of international congresses, incentive groups and gala dinners," says van Amerongen. "However, 2005 saw the centre host more Asian delegates than previous years at events like the massive 13,900-delegate Amway China event and the 2000-delegate Cathay Life incentive meeting. This may explain why we have been ranked higher in the Asia-Pacific region for that year. "As more Asian delegates come to experience the delights of Sydney as a meetings destination, we're sure our ranking as a venue will increase even further." The recent openings of promotional offices in Asia to represent both the SCEC and the Sydney Convention and Visitors Bureau (SCVB) add strength to this view. "We believe this new business from Asia will sustain our high rating as a venue in the region," says van Amerongen. "The outlook for the centre in 2006 is extremely strong. Currently we have 25 major international events on our books for the year." However, as successful as certain venues were this year, there is every reason to believe this order could receive a drastic shake-up in next year's survey. Kuala Lumpur ranked fifth this year, but with the opening of the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre its profile will surely increase