Posted by
Barry Siskind
UFILive community manager
The exhibition industry’s long term future isn’t about the economy it’s about blood; new blood.
While there are many colleges and universities as well as professional groups who offer specialized educational programs, many successful organizers have entered the industry in a variety of interesting ways. Everyone’s career path takes a different road. For the benefit of anyone who is considering becoming part of the exhibition industry, I thought it might be interesting to begin this discussion:
What prompted you to get into this industry originally?
What attracted you to the industry?
What have you found to be the most gratifying part of the job?
Like most people in our industry, I did not seek it out, it found me. As an unemployed architect, I took on a job as an exhibit designer until I got a real job. Low and behold, the exhibit industry is a real job!
The greatest challenges, and most gratifing thing about our business is the satisfaction of making deadlines. Things happen quick and must be done to make the show- no buying extra time. On to the next project!
As a $100billion industry, ranked 22 in contribution to the GNP, few people are trained to do what we each do. Learning by trial and error cannot continue as the way of the future.
The exposition industry now offers training sessions and certification programs for exhibit managers. As past president of EDPA, I lead a program to develop a masters degree in exhibit design, now offered at NYU at FIT in Manhatten.
The program is in its 8th year, graduating approx 20 students per year. If you really love the business and wish to offer advise to a college graduate seaching for a career, suggest getting a Masters in Exhibit Design.
The courses they offer have been created and endorsed by practicing professionals from our industry. I truely would like to view these trained professionals in exhibit design as the neuro surgeons of the marketing world for the future.
I started in translation of exhibition stuff, but soon was attracted to the core of the story.
Event organizing is a challenging, creative and extremely social career. The best fruit is defintely getting such considerable number of freinds from all over the globe.
[…] February 11, 2010 While there are many colleges and universities as well as professional groups who offer specialized educational programs, many successful organizers have entered the industry in a variety of interesting ways. Continue reading … […]
Originality is key when getting into a new industry. Without it its really hard to justify anything other than second best.
When I started my business in Ukraine in 1992, it was just several months after disappearing of the USSR, which made private entrepreneurship possible. I was a recently graduated software programmer, my partner was a graphic designer. So, what could we do together? We started to serve the young information technology industry with books and magazines, then came to an idea of readers’ conferences, and very soon we came to an idea of exhibitions. We practically reinvented this, because the Soviet “iron curtain” separated us from the western business world, thus, we knew absolutely nothing (just saw some first fairs in Moscow). After first successful trade fairs we decided to leave all other businesses and to concentrate on trade fairs only.
The most gratifying part of the job, as for me, is the unique opportunity to meet national and international business leaders of many industries, which are, in my humble opinion, the most interesting people of our time.
Wonderful story. Thanks to everyone who commented on this issue. Keep your stories coming.