The Kenes Group Summit 2024 took place on January 22 – 23, and brought their C-Suite together with Managers and Directors from 13 different Operational Units of the Group, joining from nine countries in three different regions of the world.
ATHENS, GREECE – For two days, 23 leaders of the global Professional Conference Organiser (PCO), and Association Management Company (AMC), Kenes Group were immersed in educational activities, discussions, and creative sessions, hosted by the city of Athens.
“We want to thank the Athens Convention Bureau for their wonderful hospitality! At this pivotal time more than ever, it is crucial that our international management team meets in person when it comes to laying down the best possible future for the company”, said Kenes Group CEO Ori Lahav. He added: “Athens is certainly an inspiring city and the solid business relationship that we have with this destination allow us to feel at home and focused on developing the strategy of our organisation”.
Athens CVB and Kenes Group have collaborated on several medical events, including the European Congress of Internal Medicine – ECIM 2023, the European Society of Paediatric and Neonatal Intensive Care – ESPNIC Meeting 2023, the Annual Meeting of the European Society for Paediatric Infectious Diseases – ESPID 2022, and the International Congress on Autoimmunity 2022. “We have a few more major events coming that have already secured Athens as the host city”, added CEO Ori Lahav.
Mayor of Athens Haris Doukas (left) with Kenes Group CEO Ori Lahav.
As part of the agenda, the Mayor of Athens Haris Doukas met Kenes Group CEO Ori Lahav to address the importance of business events and their impact on the city, as well as the future of infrastructure that can support more and bigger events. Regarding this, Ori Lahav commented: “I had the pleasure of meeting the Mayor of Athens and discussing the potential of the growth of this destination in the meetings and events industry, and the huge potential this destination has for more and more events coming.”
Mayor of Athens Haris Doukas said: “It is our great honour to welcome to Athens the top meeting of the global leadership of Kenes. This vote of confidence certainly strengthens the place of Athens as a top destination for professional tourism, hosting a range of international scientific and commercial conferences, incentive trips, exhibitions, seminars, and meetings. Athens has world-class facilities including hotels, state-of-the-art conference halls, and exhibition spaces, as well as high-end travel services that support our commitment to the development of sustainable tourism. Athens will continue to invest in the business tourism sector, attracting major international conferences that strengthen the city’s economy and intellectual capital”.
In the words of Business Development Director Marcel Dekker, who has been working at Kenes Group for 12 years: “The yearly Summit is a good platform for business leaders to meet, network, and get updated on the latest news and trends. The main topic for Business Development was about business models and whether we need to take fewer risks or the opposite. Whether to share risks and share profits is a model to implement, for example.”
Other topics on the agenda were increasing speed and resilience, rising costs, talent management, day-to-day operations, artificial intelligence, meeting design, and more.
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