New challenges – new opportunities

# tags: Up Partner , Events , Staff

The event industry is recovering from the most existential crisis – those agencies that have used that time to prepare themselves for the future are outgrowing their competitors.

The event industry is recovering from the most existential crisis – those agencies that have used that time to prepare themselves for the future are outgrowing their competitors.

This is the conclusion that we are seeing from our member agencies from all European countries from Scandinavia to the Iberia peninsula and all other pa.s of the continent. Preparing for the future requires agencies – like all other players in business – to find answers to the pressing questions of this day and age: How do we attract and retain talent? How do we leverage the opportunities Artificial Intelligence is offering? How do we design event formats that do not create a negative sustainability impact? How do we manage the ever-increasing time pressures of short term decisions?

Associated with this are even more pressing challenges. The increasingly short time it takes to plan and produce the event, security (especially at mass events), and the dizzying speed with which new technologies and trends emerge. Consumer today is also always anxious for new and immersive experiences. Brands need to create links and stories, quality and price is no longer the key factor. All of this means that agencies today, have to be terribly agile and effective, but at the same time, it means that an event manager today has to master many skills simultaneously.

So how do we face and respond to this “new normal”? One of the answers lies in networking and transparency among peers. Associations, international partnerships and belonging to networks bring obvious advantages. Broadened knowledge and vision, new perspectives and, above all, sharing experiences. The same problem o.en has different solutions depending on the culture of each agency.

For instance, employees in 27Names* member agencies enjoy participating in the group´s Talent X program, a regular 2-day training and workshop format in which professionals experience inspiration, knowledge sharing, and networking on the latest key topics of the industry. These sessions are exclusive to member agencies – feedback from participants and agency leaders suggest they are a great lever in both attracting as well as retaining the best talent for their agencies.

In these challenging times, the purpose of 27Names (To help our members thrive through shared growth and development) is more important than ever. Rui Batista, Live & Digital Events Director at UP Partner in Lisbon has a clear view at the role that this community plays for their local business: “27Names provides us with unique inspirations from the best of the best in the industry. We help each other when other members execute events in Portugal – they can rely on the same high standards that we provide. And of course, the other way around.”

Faced with today’s many challenges, the events industry must move towards a community where all

members are not always competitors, but partners at the same level who believe in the share of knowledge, inclusion and diversity. We shouldn’t want to do everything, but do well what we’re good at. And it’s important that there is a strong union and sense of community among peers, in order to strengthen and create rules that help attract and capture talent.

We live in complex times, with a society that moves at high rates and values. Whether it’s

environmental protection, immersive experiences, or technology. This makes it impossible for industry professionals to assume that they can mastered all the techniques. The best thing is to

analyse the context around us and identify the communities, clients and partnerships we need in order to be successful.

Without ever forgetting three main axes that I think are the most impoant. Capturing and training talent, real sustainability (meaning generating return value in the service chain where we act). And always being on the lookout for new trends, technologies and tools that can help differentiate us. Last and most important, for todays new challenges nobody can expect to survive alone.

Now more than ever cooperation and networking is key.

*27Names. The organization currently includes 25 member agencies from 25 European countries with more than 1,000 talents. The agencies account for more than 1 billion € in revenues.