This is a trend that has already been identified for several months, and which American Express GBT is shedding new light on this issue: the attitudes generated by the health crisis are prompting companies to bring their staff together more frequently. And the trend is set to continue next year, according to forecasts from the "Global Meetings & Events Forecast 2024 unveiled in mid-October.
" With workforce more dispersed than evercompanies are re-evaluating the importance of internal interactions for the cohesion teams, the productivitythe creativity, l'commitment and the well-being employees"says Gerardo Tejado. The Executive Vice President of Professional Services at Amex GBT continues: "It's clearer than ever that meetings and face-to-face interaction are irreplaceable, with face-to-face interaction and relationship-building the cornerstones of personal and professional success. Our forecasts indicate that 2024 will be a dynamic year - not only are budgets and the number of participants on the rise, but we are also seeing a spectacular acceleration in the adoption of technology ".
Specifically, the TMC notes that 67 % of the people questioned said Meetings & Events budgets on the rise. Meeting professionals expect internal meetings to experience the strongest growth of all types of meetings. Half of those surveyed (48 %) expect the number of attendees to increase next year. The authors of the Global Meetings & Events Forecast 2024 report estimate that internal meetings and customer advisory boards will see the biggest increase (42 %), ahead of incentive meetings (38 %), regular and small meetings, product launches and executive meetings (37 % each). Conferences with (35 %) or without trade shows (30 %) come last.
And what about the environment? According to Amex GBT, "most meeting organisation professionals (78 %) said that their organisations would have net zero emissions targets by the end of 2024". But a number of difficulties were highlighted, starting with budgetary constraints (35 %), identifying certified suppliers (39 %), and finding venues that limit travel as much as possible (28 %). What's more, despite the many initiatives that have sprung up in the MICE sector, professionals still struggle to calculate CO2 emissions after the event (32 %), and deplore a lack of skills, resources and knowledge (23 %).
