In addition to the new chapters, SITE has also approved name changes for the former SITE UAE, now known as SITE Arabia, and the former SITE South Africa now named SITE Southern Africa.
In support of the association’s goals to grow its global presence and advance the incentive travel industry worldwide, SITE has announced the formation of two new chapters – SITE Midwest USA and SITE Poland. With the addition of these chapters, SITE now has 29 chapters worldwide and over 2,000 members from 90 countries.
SITE President Rhonda Brewer stated, “SITE is pleased to welcome two new chapters to our network – SITE Midwest USA and SITE Poland. We found that many people in the Midwest were not participating in SITE because there was no local chapter in their region. SITE Midwest USA allows us to expand our presence and grow our membership by reaching a group of industry professionals that aren’t geographically aligned with existing chapters in Chicago, Texas or Minnesota.”
“The US Midwest region is home to the national headquarters of thousands of companies who use incentive rewards, including 22 Fortune 500 companies, well known global brands such as Anheuser-Busch, Energizer, and Monsanto, and some of the country’s top incentive planning companies. We felt it was important to establish a SITE chapter to more personally reach and support members’ desire for continuing education opportunities closer to home. We are looking forward to a great year ahead filled with new opportunities for professional growth and networking,” added Erica DeBarr, Sr. Program and Meetings Manager at CenturyLink and nominee for president, SITE Midwest.
As in much of Europe, the needs by country for a chapter vary greatly. Poland is looking to expand its incentive market and establishing a chapter is a great way for SITE Poland to focus on the country’s specific needs while leveraging the extensive support and knowledge of the global SITE community.
“I am very happy that SITE Poland has finally been established. It is the result of the effort of many professionals from the Polish MICE industry. Being affiliated with the global organization, we hope to gain the knowledge that will help us to function better in the Polish market,” shared SITE Poland board member, Krzysztof Michniewicz, CEO/President, ICP Group S.A. “Our membership in SITE will enable us to use the experience of our colleagues from other, more mature markets, as well as promote Poland not only as a destination for the incentive industry but also as an important source of incentive clients for the western markets.”
In addition to the new chapters, SITE has also approved name changes for the former SITE UAE, now known as SITE Arabia, and the former SITE South Africa now named SITE Southern Africa. These changes were made to better reflect the expanding incentive market and growing member base in the regions.
“It has been very encouraging to see MICE development in various African countries during the past few years. New convention centres opened in Nigeria and Rwanda and a few leading South African incentive houses even opened offices in these regions. Zambia has done really well in recent times, and Zimbabwe has been making a marked effort in encouraging MICE business by creating hosted buyer programmes around relevant expo’s,” shared Tes Proos, President Southern Africa and owner, Crystal Events & Incentives, Cape Town, South Africa. “The region has a vast amount to offer and we believe that the only way to develop these opportunities into real business is to work together, train together and thereby encourage faith and investment. We trust this will grow incentive and conference business into Southern Africa, which will create much-needed jobs and business opportunities across the sub-continent.”
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
