An overview document describing the rationale & range of activities planned for the Convention 2020 strategic foresight study designed to help all members of the meetings industry prepare for the decade ahead.

1. Convention 2020 –
The Future of Meetings, Venues and Meeting Destinations
A Strategic Foresight Study being Conducted by Fast Future Research
Project Overview
Convention 2020 is a ‘strategic foresight’ study which has been launched with seed funding from the founder
sponsors - ICCA, IMEX and Fast Future Research. The study is designed to help all members of the
meetings industry prepare for the decade ahead and ensure they stay competitive.
This document sets out the project plan.
Background
The challenges created by the economic downturn have highlighted the importance of thinking ahead and
preparing for an uncertain future. We know the industry faces many challenges arising from changing
political attitudes to the meetings sector, technological change, economic power shifts, environmental
pressures and evolving social attitudes. In the face of such pressures, it is important to stand back and use a
range of futures research techniques to take a genuinely forward looking view on how the industry might
evolve and the implications for players across the industry value chain.
Objectives - Why Study the Industry’s Future?
The ultimate aim of the study is to develop rich insights into how the industry’s future may play out in order to
make better decisions today. This means exploring different scenarios for how live meetings might evolve,
considering a range of models of what events could look like and examining the strategic implications for
venues and destinations.
The intention is to create a ‘living and growing’ online body of knowledge, case studies and ideas which will
continue to expand and develop after the study completes in October 2010. A key goal is to use a highly
participative ‘open’ research process to educate and inspire participants. Key questions to be explored in the
study include:
• Design – how is the thinking developing on what constitutes an effective meeting design and how
could live meetings evolve by 2020?
• Participant Experience - What will attendees and exhibitors want – learning, experience, content,
style, ROI, technology and pricing?
• Technology – How will the role of techonlogy evolve in the preparation, delivery and follow up to
events – who might provide and fund these technology solutions?
• Event Owners - What will these needs mean for event owners and managers in terms of the design,
marketing and business models for their meetings?
• Venues - What are the implications for venues in terms of strategy, venue design, services,
technology, marketing, business models and financing?
• Destinations – What are the implications for how destinations promote themselvers and influence
the capabilities of local venues?
• Industry Suppliers – how are the needs of the events indistry likely to evolve, what are the emerging
opportunities, where will suppliers need to rethink their services, strategies and business models?
Approach and Outputs
The study will be conducted in two phases which are summarised below:
• Phase 1 – ‘The Meetings Experience’ - to be completed in May 2010
• Phase 2 – ‘Tomorrow’s Convention Centre’ - to be completed in October 2010
Outputs Phase 1 – The Meetings Experience
• A report on a Global Survey on the Future of the Meetings Experience to be delivered in early
February 2010.

2. • An online ‘trend wiki’, blog and discussion forum on LinkedIn (and other social networks) – collecting
views from around the world on the future of meetings – these will stay live throughout both phases
of the project
• A regular Conventions 2020 newsletter - this will stay live throughout both phases
• A report published at IMEX in May 2010, which will contain the following:
• Analysis of global trends and the implications for the meetings sector
• Key meetings industry trends, issues and challenges
• A ‘Technology Timeline to 2020’ for meetings, exhibitions and events
• Scenarios and models for the design of future meetings, exhibitions and events
• Implications, challenges and opportunities for venues and destinations
• Recommendations for event owners, planners and industry suppliers.
Outputs Phase 2 – Tomorrow’s Convention Centre
• A Final Report published at ICCA’s Annual Congress in Hyderabad in October 2010, which will
contain the following:
• Structured expert interviews on how the industry can respond to the challenges, risks and
opportunities
• Results of a global survey to test responses to the expert ideas
• Case studies on how venues are preparing for the future
• New models and approaches for venue strategies, business models, building design, services and
facilities
• Recommendations for venue owners and managers
• Recommendations for destinations.
The outputs from phases one and two above will feed the educational content at both IMEX in May 2010 and
the ICCA Congress at Hyderabad in October 2010.
Dissemination of Outputs
There will be a regular programme of press releases – initially announcing the launch of the project and then
providing regular updates on findings. ICCA, IMEX and Fast Future press releases generally generate high
levels of global press coverage.
The three project reports will be circulated for free electronically to ICCA’s membership, to the IMEX
database and to Fast Future’s own global database of 20,000 and through various partner and sponsor
networks. Reports will also downloadable from the website.
A number of presentations will be delivered on the report findings at key industry events around the world.
Discussions are currently underway with a number of media partners who would further increase the global
distribution of the study findings.
Experts
A number of industry experts have already agreed to provide inputs to the report including:
• Corbin Ball (technology)
• Martin Vanneste (meetings architecture)
• Jon Bradshaw (learning and the meeting mindset)
• Elling Hamso (business models and ROI)
• Paul Kennedy (meeting strategy)
Other experts are being invited to participate and help ensure every aspect of the industry value chain has
been considered.
Participative Design
Convention 2020 is a highly participative study with a wide range of opportunities for interested parties to get
involved. These include:
• Providing ideas on the design of the study and questions to be explored

3. • Taking part in the two planned surveys
• Taking part in workshops that we’ll be running in key locations around the world
• Contributing to the ‘trend wiki’, blog and social media discussions
• Becoming an expert contributor
• Submitting articles and case studies
• Joining the open sessions at IMEX
• Following progress on the study website
• Creating local dialogues at ICCA Chapters, colleges and other forums and adding the outputs to the
website
• Writing essays, creating videos and producing other materials that help stimulate thinking about the
future of meetings, venues and destinations.
Educational Grant
A goal of the study is to help develop the thinking of students entering the sector. As such an essay
competition will be run in each study phase. The phase 1 winner will get a free place at IMEX and the phase
2 winner will get a free place at the ICCA Congress. A contribution of 5% of all sponsorship income will be
made to fund these prizes.
Next Steps
If you would like to discuss the project in more detail, please contact either:
Rohit Talwar
CEO
Fast Future Research
Phone +44 20 8830 0766
Mobile +44 7973 405145
Web: http://www.fastfuture.com
Email: rohit@fastfuture.com
Martin Sirk
CEO
ICCA - International Congress and Convention Association
Phone: +31 20 398 1919
Fax: +31 20 699 0781
Email: m.sirk@icca.nl