Sydney number one destination for business events in Australia

Sydney has been ranked Australia’s leading destination for conferences and professional meetings, following the release of the Union of International Associations (UIA) 2014 International Meetings Statistics Report. Stuart Ayres, Minister for Trade, Tourism and Major Events, said the results see Sydney ranked first in Australia and among the top 20 globally.

“This is a tremendous achievement and reinforces Sydney’s appeal as one of the best places in the world to meet. I applaud Business Events Sydney for securing major international events for our city, having delivered over USD 1 billion worth of economic impact for NSW over the past five years. This is just another example of Sydney leading the way for the rest of the nation,” Ayres said.

Lyn Lewis-Smith, CEO, Business Events Sydney, said results complement the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA) rankings, which also placed Sydney as number one in the nation. “These results are just fabulous and better than many might have anticipated or expected. They really are a credit to the city – its can-do and collaborative spirit and reputation as a reliable place to do business,” Lewis-Smith said.

“It just reinforces that the government’s courageous decision to redevelop the city’s convention facilities at Darling Harbour was the right one. We are a city that is open to and embraces big ideas and bold moves,” Lewis-Smith concluded.

Business Events Sydney has secured almost 120 events worth USD 277 million in new money for the NSW economy, including more than 20 events for International Convention Centre Sydney, opening in December 2016.

By TBM Staff | Mumbai

Source: http://www.travelbizmonitor.com/Top-Stories/sydney-number-one-destination-for-business-events-in-australia-27613

Business Event Bid Anouncements August 2011

The Following are the latest Business Event Bid Anouncements for August 2011:

Samsung Life Incentive

Date: September 2011
Delegates: 320 over 5 days
Estimated value: $1.5 million

Samsung was considering Alaska and Sydney as destinations for their 2011 incentive program. The costs for both destinations were similar. BESydney promoted Sydney as a 'status' destination and offered a range of value-added activities that demonstrated the city's ability to deliver a successful program for the Korean group.

The group will be in Sydney in late September/October 2011 and will travel in waves of 100 delegates.

Paran Travel Australia is the appointed inbound tour operator in Sydney.

Woori Bank Korea Staff Award

Date: Starting in September 2011
Delegates: 210 over 5 days
Estimated value: $1 million

Woori Bank has been a client of Business Events Sydney (BESydney) since 2007.

For the 2011 incentive program, the client wanted to go beyond the standard travel itinerary and include an educational component. The client requested assistance in pinpointing banks to visit, and securing relevant speakers to share insights into the Australian banking industry.

The group will travel in four waves of 50 delegates from September to November 2011. They will visit Sydney as well as the Blue Mountians and Port Stephens.

Good Memory Tours is the appointed ground operator in Sydney.

Prudential Indonesia Star Club Incentive

Date: October 2011
Delegates: 170 over 4 days
Estimated value: $678,640

Business Events Sydney (BESydney) met with the client in early 2010 and promoted Sydney as an incentive destination.

BESydney invited the client to be part of the Oprah's Downunder Adventure Shows at the Sydney Opera House and followed this event with a broader Sydney familiarisation. The famil activities included Sailing Regattas, BridgeClimb, a Sydney Opera House Tour and regional experiences such as horse riding, quad biking and various dining experiences throughout New South Wales.

The client was very impressed with Sydney as an incentive destination and will bring 170 delegates to the city later this year.

ADU is the appointed inbound operator.

Amway Philippines Leadership Seminar

Date: November 2011
Delegates: 150 over 4 days
Estimated value: $598,800

The client's inbound operator, Australian Tours and Holidays, contacted Business Events Sydney (BESydney) in March 2011 seeking support to put together a presentation to promote Sydney to Amway Philippines. Their client had heard about the success of other Amway incentive groups that had come to Sydney and was keen to explore this option.

Amway Philippines conducted a site inspection in Sydney with their travel agent, and soon after announced Sydney as the host destination for 2011 incentive.

Tencent Inc. Overseas Incentive

Date: September 2011
Delegates: 100 over 4 days
Estimated value: $399,200

Tencent Inc., is one of the largest and most used internet, mobile and telecommunication services in China.

Business Events Sydney (BESydney) worked closely with travel industry partners to support Tencent Inc. in bringing their business to Sydney.

The client sought assistance on program, venue and accommodation suggestions. The bid proposal included Sydney city tours, BridgeClimb package, Sailing Regatta, a Sydney Opera House tour, and day trips to the Blue Mountains and the Hunter Valley.

Sydney won this incentive bid because of its destination appeal and the unique, flexible program.

Equity Travel is the appointed handling tour operator for this group.

How can my business benefit?

• To get involved with these events, contact the Stakeholder Relationships team
• For more information, visit the Bid Wins Calendar

New Boss for Business Events Sydney

Ms. Lyn-Lewis-Smith has been appointed as acting chief executive officer of Business Events Sydney, taking over the reins from long-term CEO, Jon Hutchison.

Ms Lewis-Smith takes on this role, in addition to her responsibilities as COO, after more than eight years at BESydney.

She is chair of the Future Convention Cities Initiative and Marketing Group for the Australian Association of Convention Bureaux. She also sits on the steering committee for the Australian Association Project and is part of The Incentive Association Committee of Management.

Two Large Business events come to Sydney

Recent Major Sydney Event Bid wins:

Sydney International Breast Cancer Congress (SIBCC)

Date: October 2012
Delegates: 1,400 delegates over 4 days
Estimated value: $3.7 million

The Westmead Breast Cancer Institute, headed by a Business Events Sydney (BESydney) Ambassador, will host this event.

This lead came as a result of discussions with a BESydney Ambassador in 2010. The discussions identified a need to create a World Cancer Forum. The aim was to create an umbrella event that would include different cancer-related conference, and engage a number of different Australasian and International Groups working in the field.

BESydney investigated conferences that could be combined or be held concurrently, and facilitated introductions that brought several potential interest groups to the table.

The SIBCC will be a multidisciplinary conference bringing together Australian health professionals and international registrants. Groups that have shown interest in the 2012 event include: BreastSurg ANZ, the Australasian Society for Breast Disease, the Australian New Zealand Breast Cancer Trials Group, the National Breast Cancer Foundation, the National Breast and Ovarian Cancer Centre, Cancer Australia, the Cancer Nurses Society of Australia and the McGrath Foundation.

The SIBCC has also successfully attracted the 8th International Cancer Screening Network (ICSN), a conference held since 1997 and coordinated by the US National Cancer Institute (NCI). Day two of the conference will be planned with the ICSN and is to include the issues of epidemiology, screening and the world burden of breast disease. NCI is interested in Australia as a platform for engaging Asian countries.

In addition, Breast Cancer Network Australia (a consumer focus group) will be holding a concurrent consumer conference on the last two days of the congress, with one combined plenary session on Friday afternoon, 26 October.

The congress will be held during Breast Cancer Awareness Month from Tuesday 23 to Friday 26 October 2012 at the Sydney Convention and Exhibition Centre.

BESydney will continue to assist arinex, the PCO, to maximise exposure of the event.

24th International Conference on Arabidopsis Research (ICAR) 2013

Date: 2013
Delegates: 800 delegates over 3 days
Estimated value: $2.2 million

Arabidopsis is a small plant that belongs to the Brassicaceae (mustard or crucifer) family. This plant, due to its small size, rapid life cycle, small simple genome, prolific seed production and the availability of numerous mutations, has become the focus of a genome project to understand the biology of a flowering plant at the molecular level.

The client advised in 2009 that the event was scheduled for Australia in 2013, with the host city yet to be confirmed.

In early 2010, Business Events Sydney (BESydney) identified an academic based in the University of Sydney who communicated to the local committee that she is supportive of the event coming to Sydney.

BESydney met with the client in Canberra putting Sydney's case forward, detailing the destination benefits such as attracting international delegates, direct flights and a range of venue options. This information was provided to the client for deliberation at their committee meeting.

Sally Jay, the appointed PCO announced that the Conference will be held in Sydney at the Sydney Convention and Exhibition Centre.

If you are seeking accommodation for either of the two above business events, Metro Hotels offer various nearby accommodation options.

Business Events Sydney Ambassador Program Achieves the Next Milestone

Business Events Sydney (BESydney) Ambassador Program reaches another milestone, now with 52 Ambassadors onboard. Launched in September 2009 with 22 Ambassadors, the program brings together a group of prominent people from a range of fields, who are passionate about promoting Sydney to the rest of the world.

At the annual dinner event held on Tuesday at the Sydney Convention and Exhibition Centre, BESydney officially welcomed 16 new Ambassadors to the program. The BESydney Ambassador Program is endorsed and supported by the NSW Government. .

"BESydney recognises the instrumental role that our Ambassadors play in attracting business events to Sydney and New South Wales. This program is aimed at galvanising the professional expertise and networks of our Ambassadors to unearth and attract world leading business events to the State," said Mr Jon Hutchison, Chief Executive Officer of BESydney.

The annual recognition event was also attended by key government representatives and industry leaders.

In his address to the dinner audience, Dr Richard Sheldrake, Director General of Industry & Investment NSW said, "Business events play an important role to support the government's strategies to drive economic growth through alignment with NSW industry sector capabilities and expertise."

He added, "You as the Ambassadors of the business events industry in Sydney play a significant part in the growth of the business events industry, providing the crucial connections and intelligence between government, the business events industry and your respective professional networks."

Professor Alan Cooper OAM from the Royal North Shore Hospital, honoured on Tuesday night said that hosting a major specialised event "Can bring substantial benefits to your organisation, one of which is to put your work on the world stage to demonstrate the stature of your profession and in the process generate greater awareness within your industry and from government."

Professor Cooper went on to say that with the right level of support and good delegate marketing a conference can yield significant returns.

"The financial legacy from the World Congress on Dermatology held in Sydney in 1997 enabled us to set up a Foundation which continues to support dermatology research, distributing up to $300,000 a year."

The BESydney Ambassador Program extends beyond the shores of Australia to include 6 professionals from overseas - 3 from Asia, 2 from Europe and 1 from North America.

"We expect to grow our international network of Ambassadors to broaden our reach to harness greater opportunities for the State," said Mr Hutchison.

Still four months to go to the end of the financial year, BESydney has secured 49 national and international business events, expected to generate $125.3 million to the economy in the future. This is a significant 78% increase from the same time last year.

BESydney recently announced over $7 billion in infrastructure spending has been committed for Sydney in the next five years. These new developments will be the catalyst to a new level of collaboration, focused on bringing new business, new people and new ideas to the gateway of the Asia Pacific region, Sydney.

"With 52 high profile and dedicated Ambassadors working alongside us, we will be aiming to reach even greater heights. To date, we have a robust pipeline of 111 events lined up till 2017, expected to produce $427 million economic value," added Mr Hutchison.

BESydney Ambassadors are opinion leaders in their fields, recognised for their professional achievements and enthusiasm in their support for Sydney as a business events destination.

Mr Hutchison said the benefits from business events extend beyond tourism contribution of room nights and immediate expenditure.

"Business events bring influential thought leaders together to discuss and share ideas, stimulating knowledge expansion and investment opportunities. These are the perfect platforms to showcase Sydney's physical assets, support trade, drive innovation, and enhance Sydney's profile in the business, professional and scientific world."

View the profiles of BESydney Ambassadors and photos of Tuesday's dinner event.
High resolution of photos can be downloaded here.
View "A Scoping Study of Business Events - Beyond Tourism Benefits"

Get Sydney Accommodation at Metro Hotels
 
(Source: TravMedia.com 3rd March 2011)