Kuching! Ever heard of it? It’s in Borneo, Malaysia and is one of only two places in the world where Orangutans hang out. It also recently hosted the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA) World Congress.

I was honoured to be invited as one of 20 Association Executives to attend the congress this year. It was the first time Associations had been purposefully integrated into the event and program so I was keen to understand more about ICCA and their motivation for having us there.

Most membership organisations run meetings, conferences and/or exhibitions. The attendees at the ICCA World Congress are essentially suppliers to the conference and events industry (e.g. convention bureaus, conference facilities and conference organisers). So, getting both parties (Associations and suppliers) into the room resulted in some great discussions and debates. 

“Associations on Fire” was the title of the session I was a panel member for. Our panel of Association Executives received challenging questions from attendees, some of which had clearly had a bad experience with an Association. The key take out from this session was there needs to be better communication between Associations and the event industry to ensure mutually beneficial outcomes. We need to understand their drivers and outcomes, just as much as they need to better understand our challenges, motivations and success factors. It was the start of what I am sure will be an ongoing and beneficial dialogue. Watch a short video here. 

As the Association for conference and congress professionals, you’d think ICCA would know a thing or two about running a good one. They did. And I came away with plenty of insights, ideas and connections which will be infused into our future events. Let me know if you want specifics.

One of the best things about being in Kuching was actually hanging out with Orangutans and getting my hands dirty cleaning cages, preparing food and hand feeding them as part of the Heart to Heart program. It was simply amazing.

                    

Finally, my sincere thanks to everyone who has renewed AuSAE membership for 2017. Your ongoing/support is very much appreciated and every day the AuSAE team strive to deliver value and benefits to our community. Watch out for more great things to come in 2017 as AuSAE goes from strength to strength.

Brendon Ward

Chief Executive Officer

Australasian Society of Association Executives