Singapore's MICE results for 2011

Singapore's business events (or MICE as it is referred to in this part of the world) sector recorded a 46% growth in the number of events to 2,130 conventions, conferences and tradeshows, as compared to 2010.  The sector is reported to have generated SGD 550 mn in tourism receipts, representing a 10% increase as compared to a year earlier.  These figures were recently released by the Singapore Tourism Board and augurs well for the sector.

The Board has also announced that it is setting aside SGD 265 mn from the Tourism Development Fund towards the developing and building of manpower capabilities and productivity.  The activities that fall under this initiative will include training programmes and scholarships.  MICE industry members have already recognised the existing shortfall in both manpower capabilities and productivity, and are calling for increased efforts to enhance talent development and retention.  They point to a gap in the boosting of MICE knowledge and raising skills levels of MICE professionals.

Some of the conclusions I am drawing from these reports and discussions with MICE industry professionals are:

1. Singapore's regional competitors have realised that there can be competitive advantages from have well-trained and skilled MICE professionals, and are therefore investing time, effort and money into skills development and manpower capability development.  Singapore will need to not only keep pace but exceed what is being done elsewhere in order to hold on to its competitive advantage.
2. Singapore's MICE sector is facing a dearth in terms of renewal of manpower and professionals.  There is an urgent need to draw young capable people into the industry, to equip them on an ongoing basis, and give them opportunities to learn from the experience of the MICE "old guard".
3. The MICE sector needs to make itself a whole lot more attractive to both young and mid-level professionals.  Afterall, the sector is really the premier segment of the tourism industry, and yet it still faces challenges in talent retention. There needs to be more concerted efforts to share the buzz, excitement and wow factors with the general marketplace.

Singapore: MICE is a key growth sector

I just happen to read an article that appeared in the Channel News Asia website. Singapore Tourism Board estimates that of the 13 million people who visited Singapore in 2011, one third of them did so to attend a business event.  The current focus of the Board is to develop Singapore as a "lifestyle and business events hub".

A couple of the industry executives interviewed noted that Singapore faces a shortfall in manpower capability and just simply numbers.  This is obviously something that is close to my heart.  The MICE sector is definitely in need of large injections of well-trained business events professionals.  Our regional competitors include major cities in Asean and North Asia.  In many cases we are unable to compete on a price basis, given Singapore's relatively high cost of running events.  However, our primary differentiator is capability and professionalism.  If we lose this, we will face extremely difficult challenges.

So it has become critical for Singapore to further build on our MICE capabilities and to attract more young, well-trained individuals to enter the sector.  There are amazing opportunities in the sector!

The REAL ROI of Business Events

One of the questions that has always bothered me is, "What is the true return on investment of business events?". A lot of the time, the ROI (return on investment) is presented in terms of the number of overseas visitors; the average spend of business travellers or business event attendees; tourism receipts; occupancy rates of business hotels and the number of business events hosted by a city or destination. 

While this is all well and good, I have been more interested in the business perspective and impacts on business that are wrought by the hosting of business events.  I have been, therefore, reading up and looking at both academic journals and publications.  One of the more enlightening papers I came across was one commissioned by the Business Events Council of Australia (BECA) examining the contribution of business events to the economic and social wealth of the country.  I thought it would be good to just list some of the outcomes of business events as identified in this paper, which was titled "Delivering Innovation, Knowledge and Performance: The Role of Business Events":

1. Development of industry positions and policy.
2. Collaboration of new products and services.
3. Release of new research.
4. Improved organisation performance.
5. Encourage of investment and business migration.
6. Trade negotiations.
7. Introduction of new products and services to the market.

These impacts cut across the boundaries of corporations and commercial entities, industry associations, government agencies and NGOs.

In another study, commissioned by Oxford Economics, some 500 global business travellers and executives from the US, UK, Germany, Brazil and China were surveyed.  The findings included the following:

1. Trade shows and exhibitions generate an average of 15% of a company's annual revenue.
2. An estimated 50% of sales prospects become customers when a face-to-face meeting takes place as compared to a 31% conversion rate without a face-to-face meeting.
3. Some 64% of respondents noted that participating in trade shows and exhibitions prove to be 'significant' in building partnerships, professional development, generating new insights and career development.

So it appears that when considering the issue of ROI, the focus should not be limited to tourism-related statistics and figures.  The real value is how business events impacts the participating business executive, the company he represents, the industry his company is involved in, and ultimately the economy of the city or destination his company operates it.