Travel professionals who want to learn and network with leaders of the association community can look forward to participating in the second instalment of the successful Association Day at ITB Asia.
Held on October 20, this year’s diverse and topical programme will be presented by over 10 industry leaders promises to once again provide association executives with unrivalled insight in a day of intensive learning and networking experience. Designed for association executives who want to explore and exchange new ideas in association management; and to attract and better service their association events, the first Association Day held alongside ITB Asia 2010 attracted over 100 attendees from 18 different countries.
“Recognizing the importance and resilience of the Association industry, we sought to build a first-of-its-kind platform dedicated to understanding and growing the association meeting sector in
“This year, the team has worked even harder to ensure that participants’ experience at Association Day is as productive and enjoyable as possible. Association Day is now a recognised highlight of ITB Asia and we’re confident that this year’s programme will again deliver a unique networking opportunity for association members to learn and meet with hundreds of industry professionals from around the world,” added Gruettke.
“Upon collating the feedback from participants of Association Day 2010, we have specially shortened Association Day 2011 to a one-day comprehensive programme to suit the needs of our participants. Furthermore, the content committee has carefully deliberated over the multiple diverse topics as well as the format of presentations to deliver a programme that stays interesting while maintaining relevance to benefit all participants,” said Nancy Tan, managing director of ACE: Daytons Direct
“Following positive response from the year before, Association Day 2011 will continue to host round table discussions that have been shown to encourage strong direct participation from all participants. This not only presents an opportunity for both speakers and participants to learn from each other but also to bond with like-minded association executives to form lasting relationships,” added Tan.
Melissa Ow, assistant chief executive of Singapore Tourism Board, will kick-start the day with opening remarks at the Business Travel Plenary Session - Why Business Travel Matters More Than Ever in
In the second session moderated by Greta Kotler, chief global development officer at ASAE: The Center for Association Leadership, professional panellists including Steven Yeo, vice president of HIMSS Asia & Middle East and Ajay Kakar, secretary treasurer of the International Academy of Periodontology and VP of The Indian Academy of Aesthetic and Cosmetic Dentistry, will look at the overview of association management in the Asia Pacific region and examine how best to communicate value, drive up membership while increasing loyalty.
This year’s education programme will also include best practice case studies practical tip sessions and thought-provoking discussions moderated by Shannon Sweeney, managing director and co-founder of Be Communications Asia.
Closing on a high note under the title ‘Looking into the crystal ball: Association meetings in the next 5 to 10 years’, participants will get to explore what does the future hold for associations from two of the distinguished speakers; Noor Ahmad Hamid regional director, Asia Pacific of International Congress & Convention Association (ICCA) and Monimita Sarkar, managing director of KW Conferences Pvt Ltd. As the industry faces new challenges and opportunities, association executives must consider a range of scenarios that will influence and change current business practices.