The tough economic times have seen a rise in tele-conferencing and virtual meetings but most people still prefer face to face contact, delegates heard at the Incentive Travel and Meetings Conventions Asia (IT&CMA) Exhibition held on October 7. During a workshop titled Meetings Still Matter, facilitator Kevin Iwamoto referred to a recent Forbes Insight Study that showed 84% of business executives still prefer in-person contact to virtual meetings. The poll of 760 business executives also showed that 85% feel in-person meetings help them to build stronger, more meaningful relationships.
One of the workshop panellists, Richard Holmes, international director of meetings for the International Leaguer Against Epilepsy said there was evidence that medical meetings were actually on the increase. ‘Next year we are holding our Asia/Oceania congress in Melbourne and we are expecting 3000 delegates (up from about 2000 in 2008). There is a lot of interest in sponsoring the event.
‘Despite concern that incentives and corporate meetings have slowed down, the opposite is occurring in medical association conferences - some have had a five to 10% increase in delegates.’
Holmes says the key is that delegates, sponsors and the association continue to see value in the event. Factors such as new information (ie. trends in the treatment of epilepsy), networking and continued medical education all play a part in growing the conference.
‘From the association’s point of view the conference has to meet the objective and fulfil a mission, as well as providing economic benefits. For sponsors, there there is the opportunity to present data on clinical trends and compounds and to meet with opinion leaders.’
(IT&CMA is held at the Bangkok Convention Centre, CentralWorld in conjunction with the Corporate Travel World (CTW) Conference. Meeting Newz editor Stu Freeman was the only New Zealand based media representative at the double bill event. Full coverage will appear in Meeting Newz and its sister publication TRAVELinc.)

Panellists at the Meetings Still Matter workshop (from left) Sharon Hudson, Talent Tools, Simon Pryor, Mathematical Association of Victoria; Richard Holmes, International League Against Epilepsy.