Kai Hattendorf, Author at UFI Blog

From West World to the exhibition world
From West World to the exhibition world

From West World to the exhibition world

Kai Hattendorf, UFI Managing Director / CEO One of the hottest tickets at the South by Southwest (SXSW) festival in Austin last month was for the chance to step into and experience the saloon from the TV series “West World” – a show based on the story that humanoid robots in a “wild west” amusement park “awaken” from their programming, driven by artificial intelligence. In Austin, it took organisers four months to prepare this two-hour experience for ticket holders. Over 440 pages of script we [...]

By Kai Hattendorf| 2018-04-26T15:22:23+00:00 April 26th, 2018|All, Exhibition Industry, UFI News, UFI Updates|0 Comments

Stable growth through new business models
Stable growth through new business models

Stable growth through new business models

The exhibition industry is enjoying solid, stable growth on the global scale - this is one of the core results of the 20th edition of our UFI Global Exhibition Barometer, released at the end of January. To honour the jubilee edition we added something special to the global research - and looked for a measure that describes how the business model of exhibitions is changing. The answers are encouraging, as they show that, all around the world, the exhibition industry is investing into new opportun [...]

By Kai Hattendorf| 2018-02-07T15:28:02+00:00 February 7th, 2018|All, Digital Innovation, Exhibition Industry Research|0 Comments

Exhibition Industry: consolidation at the very top
Exhibition Industry: consolidation at the very top

Exhibition Industry: consolidation at the very top

A huge deal has taken shape in the exhibition industry as Informa has concluded talks to acquire UBM. According to a Reuters report, both companies have agreed a deal on Wednesday which would see Informa acquiring UBM for 5.2 billion US Dollar in cash and stock. Informa now has until February 13 to make a firm offer. If the deal goes through, it will be by far the largest M&A activity ever seen in the exhibition industry. Informa's Chief Executive Stephen A. Carter will be chief executive of [...]

By Kai Hattendorf| 2018-01-22T16:12:59+00:00 January 19th, 2018|All, Americas, Europe, Exhibition Industry, Management|0 Comments

UFI’s 5 trends to watch in 2018
UFI’s 5 trends to watch in 2018

UFI’s 5 trends to watch in 2018

This is traditionally the time of the year for reviewing the developments over the past months and taking stock. At UFI, we did this in early November, during the General Assembly at our Global Congress in Johannesburg. Thank you again for all the feedback you gave the UFI team on our ongoing initiatives, activities and projects. As in previous years, we also used the time around the Congress to identify the core themes that the UFI team feels will impact the global exhibition industry in 2018. [...]

By Kai Hattendorf| 2018-01-22T17:15:22+00:00 December 11th, 2017|All, Digital Innovation, Exhibition Industry, Human Resources, Management, Operations & Services, Topics, UFI News|0 Comments

5 trends to watch in 2017
5 trends to watch in 2017

5 trends to watch in 2017

Blogger: Kai Hattendorf, UFI Managing Director As in previous years, we used the time around the UFI Global Congress to identify the core themes that the UFI team feels will impact the global exhibition industry in 2017. So today, let me share with you “UFI’s 5 trends to watch in 2017”: 1. Growing uncertainties In recent months, we have seen a UK vote on Brexit, a failed coup in Turkey, growing tensions between Russia and the West, and a US presidential election that shows a deeply divided count [...]

By Kai Hattendorf| 2017-12-08T09:59:26+00:00 December 7th, 2016|All, Digital Innovation, Exhibition Industry, Operations & Services, UFI Updates|0 Comments

Sharing knowledge across platforms for the exhibition industry
Sharing knowledge across platforms for the exhibition industry

Sharing knowledge across platforms for the exhibition industry

Blogger: Kai Hattendorf, UFI Managing Director When we meet at the UFI Global Congress in Shanghai, we will discuss the trends and developments that create ripples of change in our industry. One of these is the way that digital media and marketing channels impact the way we reach out and interact with our customers and business prospects. The same is true, in many ways, for the way we at UFI are reaching out to you, our members. Technically a company, or an association, is signed up as a UFI mem [...]

By Kai Hattendorf| 2017-12-08T10:06:13+00:00 October 5th, 2016|All, Human Resources, UFI News|0 Comments

The Value Of Global Exhibition Industry Research
The Value Of Global Exhibition Industry Research

The Value Of Global Exhibition Industry Research

Blogger: Kai Hattendorf, UFI Managing Director Vacation time has ended, and the global trade show calendar shows the beginning of another busy season. Despite difficult times in a number of markets, our industry is growing globally, proving the resilience of the trade show business model. But UFI’s latest Global Barometer also proves once more one of the most common sayings in our industry – that trade show performance follows the developments of the markets they serve. If we’re looking for grow [...]

By Kai Hattendorf| 2018-01-16T13:31:23+00:00 September 7th, 2016|All, Exhibition Industry, Exhibition Industry Research|0 Comments

Ripples
Ripples

Ripples

Blogger: Kai Hattendorf, UFI Managing Director. These are momentous times. On top of all that is driving our industry’s agenda, from digitalisation to transformation, now comes the result of the British referendum where the majority of voters stated their desire for the United Kingdom to leave the European Union. Our industry media is full of reports, comments, and speculations about what might come next – and you’ll find UFI’s position, published hours after the results were known, on this Blog [...]

By Kai Hattendorf| 2018-01-16T13:30:44+00:00 July 6th, 2016|All, Exhibition Industry, UFI Updates|0 Comments

The exhibition industry and the Microsoft/LinkedIn deal – prepare for impact!
The exhibition industry and the Microsoft/LinkedIn deal – prepare for impact!

The exhibition industry and the Microsoft/LinkedIn deal – prepare for impact!

Blogger: Kai Hattendorf, UFI Managing Director Today, Microsoft announced that it will take over LinkedIn – the biggest acquisition yet by current Microsoft CEO Satja Nadella. What implications may this have for the exhibition industry? Announcing the deal to Microsoft employees, Nadella said that “this deal brings together the world's leading professional cloud with the world's leading professional network.” With reportedly 433 million professional profiles on the LinkedIn platform, the deal cl [...]

By Kai Hattendorf| 2018-01-16T13:30:39+00:00 June 14th, 2016|All, Exhibition Industry, UFI Updates|0 Comments

Our industry is evolving

Blogger: Kai Hattendorf, UFI Managing Director Exhibitions are changing, and the ConFex model – a blend of exhibition and congress – is on the rise. Some months ago, at our UFI Congress in Milan, this was one of the core findings of a survey among UFI’s members, carried out by jwc. Also, the latest UFI Global Barometer shows digitalisation has now become one of the most important issues for organisers and venues globally. Digitalisation is changing organisers’ space requirements. Demand for mult [...]

By Kai Hattendorf| 2018-01-16T13:14:16+00:00 May 9th, 2016|All, Exhibition Industry, UFI Updates|0 Comments

About Kai Hattendorf