LJ Talks at IMEX Frankfurt
The morning of day one featured talks with Steve O’Malley, who introduced the challenges faced by the meetings industry, Christopher Salem, who discussed sustainable success and Shawn M. Sawyer, who talked about events at sea. In the afternoon, Jan and Gorazd were joined by Kadri Karu, who shared CEE insights, and Christopher Kai, an expert in crafting compelling narratives, before wrapping up the programme with Janet Sperstad, discussing the human nature of kindness.
Steve O'Malley
The first guest of day one, Steve O’Malley, explained how the industry is healthy and has returned back to the pre-covid era with a bit lower number of exhibitors, but a healthy dose of visitors to events.
“I think technology, as it gets better, is going to augment the experiences that we have. But, it will never replace the experience that we have face-to-face.”
Christopher Salem
Christopher Salem discussed how sustainable success is about the process and not about the outcome or the goals. It’s about the systems that implement those goals and processes that lead event organisers there.
“One of the things we should stop doing is just assuming and speculating. A lot of times we get caught up in speculating what we think is right. Just allowing things to be what they are and being able to adapt to what is going on is crucial.”
Shawn M. Sawyer
Events at sea have been around for some time, yet remain uncharted waters for many event organisers. Shawn M. Sawyer said it all boils down to creating that magical moment on board, coupled with the beauty of the environment that you’re in to provide something special to the guests.
“You get to go to different countries and different cities every day, and you get to encompass those cities into the program.”
Kadri Karu
Kadri Karu talked about Estonia and the situation in their regional market. She said the COVID pandemic has had a transformative impact on the meetings industry; it accelerated the adoption of diverse formats like a hybrid, digital and even metaverse, especially in Estonia.
“The online format offers incredible possibilities for information sharing, and it is very important to embrace them. However, live meetings will still play a crucial role in our professional lives.”
Christopher Kai
Christopher Kai talked about how to create compelling stories. He also talked about younger generations and how they are not satisfied with only a good salary but seek out purpose and flexible working conditions.
“With someone of that stature [referring to Elon Musk], the most important thing is access. You have to first be in the right place. Sometimes you will pay for it. You can’t hesitate. I have what you call a three-second rule. If you hesitate one, or three seconds, your dream is dead.”
Janet Sperstad
The final talk of the day featured Janet Sperstad, who explained why we have to explore the multi-disciplinary aspects of event planning if we are in the business of humans.
“We have to come back to the people and think outside of ourselves and look at different perspectives. And be more welcoming to all. And that’s where our solutions will come, not from ourselves, but from learning different perspectives.”
