New moves to expand partnership between EIBTM and top UK academic

EIBTM, established as a leading global event for the industry and Rob Davidson, the UK's foremost academic specialising in conference, exhibitions and incentive travel, have agreed to build on the success of their 3-year partnership. Rob Davidson has accepted a wider role in providing valuable up-to-the-minute information on the European business tourism market, on behalf of Reed Travel Exhibitions, the organisers of the event.

Senior Lecturer in Business Travel and Tourism at the University of Westminster, Rob was first commissioned by EIBTM in 2001 to undertake research into trends in the European meetings, exhibitions and incentive travel sectors. The results of that research were published in a report which he wrote with Philip Alford of Luton University and which was launched at last year’s EIBTM in Geneva. Since then, the relationship between him and RTE has grown from strength to strength. Rob Davidson recently accepted the new role of initialising and managing debates on topical business tourism issues on the EIBTM e-Forum section of the EIBTM's website.

Rob Davidson believes the EIBTM e-forum will become an invaluable reference point for those looking for up-to-the-minute views on industry trends, as well as for business travel and tourism students keen to stay informed on the key issues of the day: “In these uncertain and fast-changing times, the e-Forum is a timely response to the urgent need for an on-line platform where topical issues can be debated and examples of good practice shared in the meetings, exhibitions and incentives industry. Forthcoming topics include: `Are we doing enough to ensure the safety and security of our participants/delegates?', `Return on investment in conference and incentive travel: how can we demonstrate that this is money well spent?' and `If we go to war, what lessons can the business tourism industry learn from the last conflict in the Gulf?”, commented Rob Davidson.

Some of the views expressed in the e-Forum will be published in this year's much-awaited The EIBTM 2003 Industry Trends & Market Share Report, which Rob Davidson is currently compiling and which will be launched at EIBTM in Geneva on the 20-22 May 2003. This year's report will be even more comprehensive and informative than last year's, which was overwhelmingly welcomed by buyers and suppliers of meetings, exhibitions and incentive travel services all over Europe and beyond.

Rob Davidson gave an insight in to his findings: “Through carrying out this exclusive research for EIBTM I have noticed that despite the hard economic climate, people in the industry remain remarkably positive and willing to face the challenges ahead. For every piece of bad news – such as the German economy facing imminent recession – there are even more good-news stories coming through, with dynamic destinations such as Spain and Portugal vastly expanding their involvement in the conference and incentive market this year. 

Such countries are well-placed to take advantage of a new and fast-growing trend identified in my research: convention bureaux as well as meetings and exhibition organisers are pulling out all the stops to use destinations’ leisure and cultural attractions to boost attendance at their events and to tempt business visitors to extend their trips by a few days, for fun. The Spanish economy remains among the ‘Europe’s best performers, expanding substantially faster than the average growth rate for the Europe.

 "For me, this is an extremely exciting time to be associated with EIBTM. Our unique, win-win partnership provides me with the opportunity to complement my academic activities by conducting up-to-date and practical research which will be of direct benefit to those buying and selling services in the conference, exhibition and incentive market.”

Debbie Jackson, Exhibition Director for EIBTM said, “We are very excited to be working with Rob Davidson and are looking forward to presenting his research findings to the industry at EIBTM 2003. This is the most insightful research ever undertaken into the European market and together with the EIBTM e-Forum cements our exclusive relationship with Rob.”

Rob's commitment to EIBTM also prompted him to feature an in-depth case-study of the event in his newly-published book, `Business Travel: Conferences, Incentive Travel, Exhibitions, Corporate Hospitality and Corporate Travel' (Pearson Education, 2003). This book, aimed at students and practitioners alike, is the latest publication in his series of research reports, academic articles and textbooks on the business tourism industry.