Joint Meetings Industry Council issues call for case studies

BRUSSELS, Belgium – The Joint Meetings Industry Council has embarked on a program to identify and document events that illustrate the broader economic, academic, business and professional achievements

BRUSSELS, Belgium – The Joint Meetings Industry Council has embarked on a program to identify and document events that illustrate the broader economic, academic, business and professional achievements of global meetings, conventions and exhibitions. The program will be overseen by a group of academic partners led by the University of Technology Sydney and incorporating an academic panel comprising leading researchers in the field in order to ensure the credibility of the results.


โ€œFor a number of years, the focus of our value proposition as an industry has been shifting from one based on delegate and organizer spending to the value of what these events actually achieve for organizers, participants and host communitiesโ€ said JMIC President Joachim Koenig. โ€œThe collective view of the industry โ€“ and certainly those who develop and carry out these events โ€“ is that these are the real purposes and value of such events. However, they are often the most challenging to quantify or monetize because they are often long term and based on things like the benefits of knowledge transfer and relationship-building. Our view is that a solid set of case studies that illustrate what such events achieve is the best possible way to illustrate the value principles, and that is the purpose of this programโ€.

The outputs and legacies to be identified and quantified in the study will potentially cover a wide spectrum, from the value of business transactions arising from an event to medical advancements like improved disease awareness and treatment practices. Also to be explored the benefits that hosting events can deliver to the host community, including profiling a particular country or city in connection with key elements of their economic or social agenda.

โ€œWe cannot possibly quantify the range of benefits arising from every event that takes place around the world so our idea is to instead provide in-depth analyses of representative events that illustrate these, and use them to demonstrate the broader principlesโ€ said Koenig. โ€œThe events that are documented in this manner will get a great deal of attention, which will bring appropriate credit to those who organized and delivered them, and give us a much stronger basis for communicating with governments and communities about why they should support these kinds of activities in their own interestsโ€.

The Council is now seeking out events that have or can be measured against their objectives in ways that illustrate the above factors to serve as key case studies. โ€œWe now have the ability to support and recognize exemplary events in demonstrating their value in broader terms and are looking for partners in the corporate, professional and other association communities to work with us in assembling some rigorous studies on individual eventsโ€, said Koenig. โ€œOur Council members are working with us on that but we want to leave the door open for others with similar objectives โ€“ namely, to demonstrate the value of the events they organize or host โ€“ to join in this program. The result will be a big benefit to all, as clearly documented examples emerge of just what meetings, conventions and exhibitions contribute to the life and economy of destinations all over the worldโ€.

โ€œWe have all been hearing about good examples for many years โ€“ now is the time to get these on the table and capture these examples in ways that will enable us to demonstrate the broader values to the rest of the worldโ€.

JMIC โ€“ the Joint Meetings Industry Council โ€“ was established in 1978 as a vehicle for creating a forum for the exchange of information and perspectives amongst international associations engaged in various aspects of the Meetings Industry. It is dedicated to building awareness of the Meetings Industry and the value it delivers in supporting global economic, professional and organizational development.

JMIC supports industry networking, awards and advocacy programs, and is currently expanding its activities in the areas of information exchange, industry messaging and the development of a collective voice to advance key issues and values. Its programs are supported by partners IMEX and ibtm, who are working actively with the Council to help it achieve its goals.

The active member associations who comprise JMIC today are:

AACVB, the Asian Association of Convention and Visitor Bureaus
AIPC, the International Association of Convention Centres
ASAE, the American Society of Association Executives
Cocal, the Latin American Confederation of PCO and Related Companies
DMAI, Destination Marketing Association International
ECM, European Cities Marketing
EFAPCO, the European Federation of Associations of Professional Congress Organisers
EVVC, European Association of Event Centres
IAPCO, the International Association of Professional Congress Organizers
ICCA, the International Congress and Convention Association
ICESAP, the Incentive, Conference & Event Society Asia Pacific
MPI, Meeting Professionals International
PCMA, the Professional Convention Management Association
SITE, Society for Incentive Travel Excellence
UFI, the Global Association of the Exhibition Industry
UIA, the Union of International Associations



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Linda Hohnholz

Editor in chief for eTurboNews based in the eTN HQ.

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