The most anticipated launch in Switzerland is expected to be unveiled Summer of 2020! The Zurich Airport will feature the Circle Convention Centre, two hotels, restaurants, retail outlets, office space, a health center, and in true Swiss style, a park! As your delegates disembark, there’s a short 5 minute walk to The Circle’s exciting additions and or a 10 minute train ride to downtown Zurich.
Some of the highlights include:
The Circle Convention Centre: Already noted as Switzerland’s largest meeting venue, the Convention Centre spans a total of 53,000 square feet and will accommodate up to 2500 people.
New Hotels: Hyatt Regency Zurich Airport and Hyatt Place Zurich Airport set to open in third and fourth quarter of 2020 respectively. Designed to host 255-300 guests, the buildings will be equipped with free high-speed WiFi throughout the complex. That is sure to attract new business to Switzerland!
Multinational Presence: Global corporations such as Microsoft will be moving its Swiss headquarters to Zurich. Football/Soccer fans from all over the world will be able to visit FIFA’s World Football Museum and hold a replica of the World Cup!
As a global venue, the Circle aims to showcase the beauty of Switzerland by incorporating technology, nature, and easy access to all the destination has to offer.
To read more on The Circle’s September 2020 launch, click here.
Some exciting news to share from Korea! Launched in 2001, Daegu Exhibition & Convention Center (EXCO) is undergoing an expansion by adding a 2nd Exhibition Hall area tentatively set to be completed by February 2021. The highly anticipated expansion was given the green light costing an estimated $269.4 million.
The additional space will be a total of 435,626 square feet with 1 underground and 2 above ground floors, creating a total display area to exceed 322,917 square feet.
Kwon Young-Jin, Mayor of Daegu City stated:
“With the expansion of the second exhibition hall, EXCO will now have the capacity to become an exhibition and convention center of international scale. We will use this opportunity to further develop the regional MICE industry’s competitiveness” (koreaconvention.org)
For more information on EXCO’s recent expansion, click here.
I met Nell recently at the HelmsBriscoe Annual conference in Houston, Texas. She has been a familiar face in the industry for almost 20 years. As the Senior Director of Global Accounts at HelmsBriscoe, she brings a wealth of experience and understands the importance of building sustainable relationships. Nell is also an 11 time Presidents Club winner at HelmsBriscoe! She adds that “it is my great honor to be part of the HB family.”
In the midst of her demanding schedule, she shared her journey thus far with MCIntl…
JN: In your tenure at HelmsBriscoe, share sample(s) of challenging yet rewarding experiences as the Senior Director of Global Accounts?
NN: As Senior Director of Global Accounts for HelmsBriscoe, I have experienced both challenges and rewards with my work with some of the best in the business for almost 19 years. My greatest challenge was my first year at HB, starting immediately after 9/11. With an immediate change to the landscape of global travel and meeting trends, I had to shift my mindset to a new world of fierce contract terms review-force majeure and performance clauses to name a couple. The market shift created opportunities to drive rate down for my clients. At the same time, planning departments were slashed and meetings practically came to a halt in the short term-it was an interesting time.
I am blessed with so many rewarding experiences in my tenure at HB because my clients have been wonderful to work with. My greatest reward is the simple pleasure of a hard fought and mutually-agreed upon contract for a win/win for supplier and planner. When those meetings are executed seamlessly by the planning department, it’s a “feel good” all around. I have worked with some terrific suppliers over the years and its truly rewarding when they see the value of the supplier/planner relationship which translates into more business. When suppliers can offer a little more to the planner and benefit from consecutive meetings from those little extras, both parties leave the negotiation table happy.
JN: What global legacies or impact are you and/or HelmsBriscoe creating?
NN: I book a fair amount of global programs from Latin America to Europe and Asia. I appreciate the fact that the world is shrinking and we should use that to our advantage. The HelmsBriscoe network of over 1,400 associates in 55 countries helps connect us to every point on the globe. The collective knowledge we share is a powerful tool for our clients and certainly enhances their meeting/conference experiences.
Nell with Founder & CEO of HelmsBriscoe, Roger Helms.
JN: From your perspective, what are some of the lessons learned from managing a global meeting?
NN: The main lesson I have learned regarding the procurement aspect of meetings is different business practices implemented around the globe. Getting familiar with cultural differences in business practices is helpful. From response times, to technology platform usage to contract terms, one has to stay on top of their game when booking global meetings. It’s not a one size fits all. I certainly appreciate English is commonly used around the globe in our business so I can communicate easily with my suppliers. This is an aspect of the global meeting environment for which I feel especially thankful
JN: What advice would you provide to our readers?
NN: Keep Calm and Plan On! There are so many resources out there for anyone that is booking their first global meeting to seasoned professionals who want to hone their skills. Even though our industry spans the globe, it feels like a small community in many ways. One might meet a new industry colleague on a FAM trip and years later find a time to work together. Aren’t we lucky to have picked the best industry as our career?
In one month, MCIntl team will be heading down to Vegas for another productive IMEX America from September 9th – 12th!
The most exciting part for me as MCIntl’s Hosted Buyer Group leader is heading up a team of meetings and events professionals! By doing so, I am part of their experience at IMEX America. We are looking forward to an inspiring roster of education seminars, events, and opportunities to network.
My top 3 activities at IMEX America:
Smart Monday: Educative seminars focusing on professional development, leadership, and engaging workshops.
Association Evening: An opportunity to network with other association meeting planners and executives.
Be Well Lounge: This was so needed! Scented oils, soothing music, and a brief pause to the nonstop activities. I highly recommend!
If you are attending IMEX America this year, be sure to visit our clients to see what’s new in their respective destinations:
Safety is always top of mind for meeting planners. Two travel journalists, Asher and Lyric Fergusson have a blog focused on travel safety and in turn, they created the Women’s Danger Index. The complex goal was to rank nations based on 8 factors; street safety for women, intentional homicide of women, non-partner sexual violence, intimate partner violence, legal discrimination, global gender gap, gender inequality index and violence against women attitudes.
In a recent Forbes article, out of 5 destinations, our clients Vienna, Austria, and Switzerland made the list of the top Safest Places for Women Travelers! In an industry dominated by women, such ranking is very valuable. Congratulations!
From its inception in 2005, the Kuala Lumpur Convention Center (the Centre) in collaboration with Malaysia Convention & Exhibition Bureau (MyCEB) have operated beyond the obvious elements of business event planning. As associations look into a destination for their global events, some key factors considered are venue availability, location, space and technical capabilities.
The Centre and MyCEB noted that building a partnership with the associations is much more valuable than treating the exchange as a transaction.
On the importance of strengthening local associations for a stronger more capable global support, Alan Pryor, the Centre’s General Manager shared their long-term strategy:
“We view our investment in developing local associations as part of long-term strategic objective to grow their capabilities. We feel that this partnership approach helps differentiate us from our competitors. Even if local associations go on to bid and host meetings in Malaysia that end up going to other venues, we see this as a positive and part of our ongoing contribution to the development and growth of the local business events industry and the country more generally – which benefits us all.”
To learn about the Centre’s and MyCEB’s thriving partnership, click here.
