Posted by

Barry Siskind

Community manager

 

Hakan Gershagen Senior Advisor and  easyFairs Board Member is Moderator of the  panel called “Business Events in the Future”, which promises to be a dynamic and thought provoking addition to UFI’s 78th Congress on November 9-11 in Valencia.  I posed four questions to Hakan.

 

Barry: In your opinion what are the key obstacles organizers will face in the future as they adapt to the changes in their businesses?

 

Hakan: There is an internal reluctance to change and uncertainty as to what the future will demand. Organizers are sitting with a business model of the past which is very difficult to change. It’s easier for new-comers without the baggage, as in other industries such as airlines and telecoms.

 

Barry: Will the current economic uncertainties slow the process of change or act as a motivator to make changes happen faster?

 

Hakan: It puts pressure on business to make changes faster, no doubt.

 

Barry: Is the process of change a result of demographics or are there other variables to consider?

 

Hakan: I don’t believe so, however the younger generation has other habits and demands on both our hardware, hi-tech support/solutions and our business models.

 

Barry: What are the key steps the industry should consider when adapting to changes?

 

Hakan: Too broad to be able to answer, really. There is not one solution that fits all. There are geographical/market differences, hardware and software differences, B2B and B2C differences etc. etc.