EFAPCO upcoming Congress is to be held in the elegant Spanish resort of Malaga.
EFAPCO’s three-pillared European Observatory research programme has made spectacular progress during its first year of operation. And future development of the project will be tackled in detail at the Federation’s upcoming Congress in the elegant Spanish resort of Malaga (January 18 at the City’s high-tech Trade Fair and Conference Centre).
Update reports will be presented in all three sectors. They tackle a wide spectrum of pan-European issues including: PCOs’ professional standards, research into the teaching of Event Management, the economic impact generated by PCO activity, the creation of PCO qualification systems, the work undertaken within all of EFAPCO’s member countries – and beyond. Discussions will also focus on enhancing the organisation’s reputation among MEPs keen to help the PCO sector to gain greater economic, cultural, professional and political recognition across the EU.
Indeed the three pillars were specially devised to enhance ongoing co-operation with four of the European Commission’s Directorates: Education & Youth, Employment, Internal Market and Regio.
The EUROBS Pillars:
- Lenka Zlebkova from the Czech Republic will present an analysis of how event management in all its respects is taught in European schools, colleges and universities. And EFAPCO’s two student researchers, sponsored by BAPCO (EFAPCO’s Belgian colleagues) – Irina de Formanoir and Mariona Triona Villambrosa – will present in-depth country-by-country reports.
- A panel discussion focusing on Education as the Basis for Creation of Employment will be led by Antonio Guevara Plaza from the University of Malaga, Ricardo Garcia Viana from the International University of Madrid and the University of Belgium and Michael Heslop, Professor of Marketing at the Institut Charles Peguy in Louvain-La-Neuve, Belgium.
- Sissy Lignou, EFAPCO’s Secretary General from Greece, will be reporting on how the Federation’s uniquely-focused statistics-gathering processes will help to illustrate the economic impact generated by the European PCO sector.
- She will be followed by Anne De Smet presenting the new EFAPCO Common Statistics Tool, developed in Belgium by members of BAPCO over recent years.
“Accurate conclusions can only enhance the positive image and impact of the European meetings industry,” she said. “And it is crucial for EFAPCO to be able to observe the business trends developing among its member associations.”
The whole session will be set in context by EUROBS’ creator and architect, Sam van de Kerckhof, also from BAPCO. The project’s co-ordinator said: “Our member associations operate in different ways in all four quarters of Europe. Some have dedicated PCO associations while other countries have large and powerful meetings industry associations.
“As a European federation we have opened our minds to celebrate this tremendous variety but we now need to encourage all member countries to unify their professionals in embracing common ethical and quality standards. Securing respect for a Code of Conduct is a major issue. We must also emphasise the importance of the professional development of education programmes (including masters degrees and baccalaureates) in all member countries, to help enhance recognition within their own economies as well as at pan-European levels.
“We cannot pretend to be a strong and eloquent “voice for the meetings industry” without accurate knowledge about what is going on in our member states, and even in other countries where we hope PCOs will form their own national associations so that they can then join the EFAPCO network and the EUROBS research programme.”
Sam van de Kerckhof’s closing panel session titled “I count therefore I am” will underline how the meetings sector must be able to quantify its true value in order to gain professional respect, globally, and secure future prosperity, professional standards and educational excellence for future generations of PCOs.
Vicky is the co-founder of TravelDailyNews Media Network where she is the Editor-in Chief. She is also responsible for the daily operation and the financial policy. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Tourism Business Administration from the Technical University of Athens and a Master in Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Wales.
She has many years of both academic and industrial experience within the travel industry. She has written/edited numerous articles in various tourism magazines.
