The 24th ECM Summer School was hosted by the city of Tampere, Finland, from 28th August to 1st September 2010.
46 participants made a beeline this year for Tampere to take part in the meetings industry’s leading professional development programme.
The ECM Summer School curriculum is tailor-made to cover all sectors of the conference industry (convention bureaux, tourist offices, congress and convention centres, hotels, airlines, DMCs, PCOs and Meeting Planners). It provides a unique opportunity to meet top industry practitioners and to learn from them – about trends in the marketplace, about the structure of the convention business, and above all about how to win business and pursue a successful career in one of the most dynamic and commercial sectors of the tourist industry.
Christian Mutschlechner, Director of Vienna’s award winning convention bureau homed in on how best to bid for the lucrative and prestigious international meetings which have become the hallmark of the Austrian capital, while Airy Garrigosa, Convention Director of Barcelona Convention Bureau, showed how the structure and functioning of her department had helped to establish Barcelona as one of the world’s premier meetings destinations. Olivier Lépine, ECM Vice – President, drew on his experience in Biarritz to emphasise the need for long-term planning and to woo the local politicians Other speakers gave delegates practical insights and tips on their association and corporate clients, how to make best use of exhibitions and the ICCA data base, and how to work effectively with intermediaries and media.
The scope and content of the ECM Summer School also leads the way in terms of highlighting best practice in green meetings and industry sustainability.
Elisabeth Hansa, Course Director and Director of the Congress Centre Mariazeller Europeum, says: “Our aim is not only to maintain the exceptionally high quality of ECM Summer School but to improve it every year. Each time we bring an innovation. This year, we restructured the educational content in a more interactive manner and also the setup of the presentations was adjusted to this purpose. As far as the speakers are concerned, we had the honour to welcome two new faculty members – Julia Hof, the Editor of CIM magazine, and Luca Favetta, Senior Director of Global Events EMEA SAP SA.”
The next ECM Summer School will take place in Cracow, Poland, from 27th to 31st August 2011.
