SAACI + SAEC

INDUSTRY VIEWS

Data-driven decisionmaking

GLENTON DE KOCK is the CEO of the Southern African Association for the Conference Industry (SAACI).

Making an informed decision

As we carefully #buildback, now is not the time to make any hasty decisions, particularly if you don’t have the information to back up your chosen course of action, writes Glenton de Kock.

Witnessing the gradual #buildback of the business events industry against the backdrop of an increasingly digital age, the question of the future of business travel still needs to be answered.

As we work and live through this uncertain period, we will shape that future of business travel in the post-pandemic era. With our experiences, and as we see the world reopening, one thing is certain – in-person meetings are essential for doing business.

This view is backed by initial research into the impact of business events recently done by the London School of Economics, which has shown that the more a team operates virtually, the less effective it is overall. Add to that screen fatigue and the undeniable fact that there is no replacement for physical presence when it comes to relationship-building, and it is apparent that business travel is not going anywhere.

As a result, data-driven decisions are essential for our understanding of the current behaviour of our industry. How we deal with the current operating environment within our industry has so much to do with a ‘gut feel’ based on experience.

COLLECTIVE EFFORTS

We need a far greater collective effort that provides for the collation and analysing of data so that informed decisions can be made. Our clients use data to inform their decisions when meeting.

The call is simple: we need to share data of the impact a business meeting has, no matter how small. Business events are effective in our society – we need to demonstrate that through data, and get the economist to explain our significant contribution to our country.

South Africa’s economy will not be fully recovered until the tourism industry has recovered, some have been saying.

Business events have a significant role to play in that recovery, so let us play our part and let us tell our stories in numbers and deeds.