AIPC CEO Sven Bossu (pictured below) looks to Amsterdam to see how some AIPC future talent is shaping
AI Amsterdam, a longstanding member of AIPC, the International Association of Convention Centres, is the exclusive sponsor of the 2022-2023 edition of Future Shapers, the AIPC talent programme. The RAI is a role model when it comes to attracting and fostering talents, both by promoting a career in the event industry at high-schools and universities and by offering a wide range of professional trainings to its staff.
COO at the RAI, Maurits van der Sluis, recently explained that the management of his organisation firmly believes in investing in talent. In that sense, supporting the AIPC talent programme was a logical step.
Recognising that there is a war for talent at the moment, the RAI applies a “bring the outside in” policy, actively scouting for talent at high-schools and universities. To that purpose, partnerships have been set up with institutions such as Hotelschool The Hague, HL Stenden, BUAS, Windesheim and ROCvA in order to highlight the importance of the events industry, to collaborate on projects and to attract young professionals.
Attracting talent is one thing, retaining and growing these talents a completely different one. Van der Sluis insists there is no ‘one size fits all’, as needs and expectations from individuals can be profoundly different. Therefore, the HR department of the RAI has developed a range of programmes, from the more ‘classic’ internal training, to tailor-made programmes for high-potentials. Such partnerships bring great value as they provide the RAI with ‘insider’ insights on the type of education offered and the value it can bring.
As a result of these efforts, the RAI is very successful in attracting and retaining talent.
Coming back to AIPC’s Future Shapers, van der Sluis said he was impressed by both the quality of the lectures and the level of ambition when it comes to addressing event industry challenges. “The presentations given by the Future Shapers at the AIPC Annual Conference in Budapest (last July) were extremely professional and relevant – for a moment I thought these were existing companies pitching their products. Instead, these were two teams consisting of convention centre talents, who met face-to-face for the first time two days before their performance.”
As part of the Future Shapers programme, the participants are asked to come up with an idea which could (re-) shape the future of convention centres. Not only do they need to explain the concept they have in mind, they also need to articulate the value it will bring and do an impact estimate in terms of time and budget. The entire Future Shapers Task Force – which coordinates and supports the programme – was surprised (amazed might be a better word) by the quality and level of innovation of the ideas put forward for this year’s edition.
While the ideas touched upon very different areas – from sustainability to catering and technology – they all had one common denominator: to drastically improve the value offered to customers by convention centres. It clearly demonstrates what this industry is really about: providing the best possible experience.
Unfortunately, only two ideas could make it to the next stage, which is about transforming the concept into a business proposal to be presented by these talents at the 2023 AIPC Annual Conference in Luxembourg. We will not disclose the winners yet, but you might want to know that both concepts of the previous edition have been/are being transformed into real products, so watch this space!
