Copenhagen Convention Bureau launches risk assessment project

What are the risks that international associations and local suppliers experience when organising a congress, and how can the global meetings industry move towards a more balanced approach to risk-sharing management? Working with key international and local stakeholders, a new Copenhagen CVB project aims to find some answers and unlock much-needed knowledge about risk in the global meetings industry. Recent years’ global developments and challenges – such as Covid-19 – have uncovered several risk scenarios related to planning and hosting large congresses and events. While international associations and local suppliers are keen to minimise the risks linked to organising events, they are likely to have different views and taxonomy on what the risks are, leading to a challenging business environment. It is to help build the bridge between buyers and suppliers and to better understand the risks that each group experiences, that Copenhagen CVB has launched its new risk assessment project. The project seeks to uncover and map the primary risks related to planning and executing international congresses and meetings, as well as explore best practices, mitigation measures, and recommendations. There will be initial desk research, surveys, and interviews, and Copenhagen CVB will then map the primary risks for each stakeholder group. The main goal is to gain new insight that the CVB can share with stakeholders and partners to improve the overall experience for associations and suppliers in connection with congresses held in Copenhagen. “The urgent need for a better, mutual understanding of what risk is to one another in the international meetings ecosystem will hopefully lead to a stronger two-way communication on the subject and us all doing better business together. We sincerely hope the project will inspire and create awareness of risk on an organisational level as well as generate new thoughts and perspectives that will benefit future industry collaborations,” says Bettina Reventlow-Mourier, deputy director of conventions at Wonderful Copenhagen. Copenhagen CVB is working closely with selected national and international stakeholder groups, including leading industry organisations and associations such as ESAE, ICCA, PCMA, IAPCO, AIPC and more. Consultants Karen Bolinger, Mayvin Global, MI Global Partner, and Danish risk experts are helping conduct the project. The findings will be assembled in a final report, which is expected to be finished in June 2023. Photo: Jesper Rais/Wonderful Copenhagen