IAPCO's (International Association of Professional Congress Organisers) international task force which was set up in June to support the congress and events industry in the recovery period following the public health emergency, has launched The PCO Perspective: An Advocacy Guide.
The guide was presented in the recent webinar organised by IAPCO, attended by the members of industry associations from 11 countries that are part of the task force, in which Federcongressi&eventi represents the Italian meetings industry.
The PCO Perspective: An Advocacy Guide, produced in partnership with the Joint Meetings Industry Council (JMIC), provides PCOs with strategic guidelines on how to raise institutions’ awareness of the social, economic and cultural value of congresses and events, in order to obtain the necessary support to get through this undoubtedly difficult period. The document identifies 10 key points for effective communication with institutions.
These include: be proactive (propose guidelines for congresses and events to governments); demonstrate with data the economic impact generated by events and congresses; ask governments to provide a definite date for the reopening of the sector; team up with local stakeholders and invest in digitisation to make events held in person safer.
“Working in close contact with international colleagues shows us how, unfortunately, there is no country in which institutions realise the decisive role played by congresses and events as drivers of research, innovation, promotion of the region and business”, comments Marica Motta, board member and Federcongressi&eventi’s representative on the IAPCO panel.
“This period of major crisis on a global scale may however turn into an opportunity to make governments understand the strategic and cross-sector role of our sector in the economic recovery. It is therefore fundamental that all associations and professionals act to promote the values of the meetings industry with a single voice, following the guidelines set out in The PCO Perspective: An Advocacy Guide”.
The members of the task force are:
- Association of British Professional Conference Organisers (ABPCO) – UK
- Association of Irish Professional Conference Organisers (AIPCO) – Ireland
- Association Argentina de Organizadores y Proovedores de Esposiciones, Congresos, Eventos y de Buros de Convenciones (AOCA) – Argentina
- Asociaciòn Uruguaya de Organizadores de Congresos y Afines (AUDOCA) –Uruguay
- Federcongressi&eventi (FCE) – Italy
- Hellenic Association of Professional Congress Organisers (HAPCO) – Greece
- India Convention Promotion Bureau (ICPB) – India
- PCO Meetings Mexico – Mexico
- Professional Conference Organisers Association (PCOA) – Australia
- Sri Lanka Association of Professional Conference, Exhibition & Event Organisers (SLAPCEO) – Sri Lanka
- Korea Association for Professional Convention Organisers (KAPCO) – South Korea
Federcongressi&eventi, a non-profit organisation created in 2004, is the national association of private companies and profit-making and non-profit entities operating in the sector of conferences, conventions, accredited and non-accredited lifelong learning, DMCs, incentives, communication and events in general. Depending on their main activity, the members are grouped in the following functional categories: Destinations and venues, Organisation of conferences and events and Services and consultancy.
