PCMA conference puts Switzerland back on the map

The SwissTech Convention Center in Lausanne, Switzerland has been hosting a conference, 17-19 October, bringing together 300 event professionals. The annual summit, organised by the Professional Convention Management Association (PCMA), brings together it’s members to exchange ideas, network and discuss the future of business event management. The conference is one of the first face-to-face international events of this kind to be held in Switzerland since the start of the pandemic. The event offers an opportunity to showcase the assets of Lausanne, the canton of Vaud and Switzerland for the organisation of conferences and business events. Switzerland Tourism (ST), represented by the Switzerland Convention and Incentive Bureau (SCIB), the International Olympic Committee, and Lausanne Montreux Congress all worked together on Lausanne’s bid to host the conference. Barbra Albrecht, head of SCIB and a member of the executive board of Switzerland Tourism, said: “The staging of this PCMA event has come at a key moment in terms of boosting the resumption of business events and conferences in Switzerland. For all our Swiss partners and service providers, the event is an excellent opportunity to reconnect with these potential customers in-person and show them the innovations and improvements that have been developed during this unprecedented pandemic period.” Jaimé Bennett, PCMA’s regional director EMEA in Europe, Middle East and Africa, added: “We are particularly pleased with the choice of Lausanne and Switzerland to host our first face-to-face meeting in Europe since 2019. The contacts we’ve made so far enabled us to see how well Swiss providers have prepared for the return of professional events in the current “new normal”, anticipating our new needs in terms of offers, infrastructures and communication technologies, which are now inseparable from our activities.” (Photo: Pixabay)