ITE and MPI Collaborate to Enhance the MICE Industry

•   January 24,2018
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In January 2018, many meeting and incentive professionals from across the world joined together in Rome for the SITE + MPI Global Forum, which took place at the Rome Cavalieri, Waldorf Astoria from the 12^th to 14^th January. The aim of the global conference was to share industry trends, provide innovative education, and offer a collaborative yet exclusive environment for networking and business exchanges.

The event drew registered attendees from over 50 countries that represented several types of event disciplines. 54% of the attendees were from Europe, 37% were from North America, 10% from Central/South America, Asia, Africa and the Middle East, 68% were members of MPI, SITE or both the organizations, and more than 100 attendees were attending either an MPI or SITE conference for the first time.

There were over 30 diverse sessions in the education program, with separate tracks for incentive travel and meeting management professionals as well as concurrent sessions designed for both meeting and incentive professionals. There was a crossover with members of each group attending sessions supported by each organization. The event also included numerous sustainability and corporate social responsibility programs, including working with Food for Good and EquoEvento to donate 390 meals to Voreco Onlus, an organization that provides support to the destitute in Rome.

Addressing the triumph of the first-time event, the boards of both organizations joined together to announce the Treaty of Rome of the Incentive and Meeting Industry, a joint declaration of future collaboration and cooperation signed by Annamaria Ruffini, Hinton and SITE board president, Paul Van De Venter, MPI president and Amanda Armstrong, board chair. The agreement makes the two associations collaborate and work in unison for the future events, mutual education and content delivery, as well as finding out new ways to serve members of both associations around the world.

Annamaria Ruffini, CIS, CMP, president and CEO of Events In & Out S.R.L. was very influential in introducing the event in Rome. She said, “The success of the global forum was due to clear ideas and a willingness to collaborate. The event proved that alliances in the incentive and meeting industry are possible and fruitful. The Treaty of Rome of the Incentive and Meeting Industry, signed by SITE and MPI leaders in front of 600 colleagues, is a simple but powerful beginning of our new commitment to future collaboration that will benefit the global MICE industry. Together we are stronger and will be able to produce real change.”

She also said that the presence and speech of the Italian Ministry of Culture and Tourism at the opening ceremony confirmed the growing importance of the MICE industry to the European economy.

The event began with the introduction of Didier Scaillet as the new SITE CEO effective 1 February. He said that the SITE + MPI Global Forum was a great success on many levels. The level of participation exceeded their expectations with nearly 600 meeting, events, and incentive travel professionals joining together in the city.

SITE also announced it named SoolNua, specialist MICE agency as the new strategic marketing partner of the organization, with Pádraic Gilligan, SoolNua’s managing partner taking on the role of chief marketing officer for both SITE and the SITE Foundation.

In a report on MICE Industry by Event Type (Meetings, Incentives, Conventions, and Exhibitions) added by Research Beam, the market is expected to grow at a considerable rate from 2018 to 2022. The report encompasses the research methodology, market size, market share analysis, market dynamics, market trends, vendor analysis, Porter’s five forces analysis, market forecast, key industry segments, and company profiles.