April 2007

REVIJA SLOVENSKE INDUSTRIJE SREČANJ • SLOVENIAN MEETINGS INDUSTRY MAGAZINE • ŠTEVILKA 1, APRIL 2007; ISSUE 1, APRIL 2007

PREDSEDOVANJE EU 2008 EU Presidency 2008 PREDSTAVITEV SLOVENSKIH KONGRESNIH PRODUKTOV - MESTA Presentation of Slovenian Congress Products: TOWNS BACKSTAGE - PREDSTAVITEV PRIMEROV DOBRE PRAKSE Backstage: Case Study Presentation

URADNO GLASILO ZAVODA-KONGRESNOTURISTIČNI URAD URADNO GLASILO ZAVODA-KONGRESNOTURISTIČNI URAD • OFFICIAL MAGAZINE OF THE SLOVENIAN CONVENTION BUREAU OFFICIAL MAGAZINE OF THE SLOVENIAN CONVENTION BUREAU

Uvodnik

Prvi številki na pot Na najnovejši lestvici mednarodnega združenja ICCA je Slovenija po številu mednarodnih znanstvenih srečanj na 38. mestu, Ljubljana kot prestolnica pa na 48. mestu. V primerjavi z letom poprej smo na listi držav napredovali za nekaj mest. Tudi to kaže, da je industrija srečanj v Sloveniji v razvojnem zagonu, ki bo vrhunec dosegel v času predsedovanja EU v prvi polovici leta 2008.

Slovenija ima naravne danosti za kongresno dejavnost, intenzivno se razvija kongresna infrastruktura, kadrom se posveča večja pozornost in ponudniki storitev se vedno bolj obračajo na tuji trg. Skupna prizadevanja preko tridesetih soustanoviteljev bodo zaznamovala revijo KONGRES. Dolgo smo razmišljali, kako bi dali reviji ime, ki bi najbolj osmišljalo vsebine, ki se bodo v njej pojavljale. Za KONGRES smo se odločili zaradi tradicije, ki jo ima izraz na slovenskem govornem področju, čeprav bomo vsebinsko teme razširili na vsa področja industrije srečanj. Revija je namenjena vsem, ki vas te teme zanimajo in tudi tistim, ki želite samo kaj zanimivega prebrati. V reviji bo dovolj prostora za kritično razmišljanje in soočenje mnenj med organizatorji dogodkov in ponudniki storitev. Revija bo hkrati izložbeno okno slovenske kongresne ponudbe.

Neskromno si želimo, da bi k nadaljnjemu napredovanju na lestvici ICCA svoj delček prispevali tudi mi.

Revija ne bi mogla nastati brez podpore soustanoviteljev in oglaševalcev, zato se vam zanjo iskreno zahvaljujemo.

Editorial

First issue On the latest league table for scientific meetings from international organisation ICCA, Slovenia is in 38th place, while its capital Ljubljana is 48th. We have moved up a few places on the countries’ list compared to the previous year. This shows that the meeting industry is developing rapidly in Slovenia, with this set to climax with the Presidency of the EU in the first half of 2008.

Slovenia has a natural topicality for congress activities, as our conference infrastructure is developing intensively, greater attention is being paid to it and service providers are turning evermore attention to the foreign market. Congress magazine is coloured by the common aspirations of its 30 or so co-founders. Much time has been spent considering the magazine’s name and what would be the best opinion content to include.

We have chosen the name ‘Congress’ due to the tradition that it has in the Slovenian language although the content is to be expanded to cover the whole field of the meeting industry. The magazine is intended for those who find the meeting industry interesting, as well as people who are simply looking for something interesting to read. There’s going to be plenty of space in the magazine for critical thinking and bringing face-to-face the opinions of event organisers and service providers. At the same time, the magazine is to be a shop window for the Slovenian congressional offer.

A little immodestly, we also hope that the magazine contributes to further advancement on the ICCA league table.

The magazine would be nothing without the support of its co-founders and advertisers, and we’d like to sincerely thank them for their support.

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Gorazd Čad, glavni in odgovorni urednik Editor-in-Chief (Foto/Photo: B. Zupančič)

Kratke novice REVIJA KONGRES – REVIJA SLOVENSKE INDUSTRIJE SREČANJ CONGRESS – SLOVENIAN MEETING INDUSTRY MAGAZINE Glavni in odgovorni urednik / Editor-in-Chief: Gorazd Čad Izvršna urednica / Executive Editor: Jakica Jesih Pomočnica urednika / Assistant to the Editor-in-Chief: Danaja Besnard Uredniški odbor / Editorial Board: Christer Carlsson Tony Carey Gorazd Čad Miha Kovačič Srečo Peterlič Tatjana Radovič Petra Čuk Maja Vidergar Ustanovna podjetja in svet revije / Founding Companies and Magazine Board: Adria Airways, Albatros Bled, Auditoria, Avditorij Portorož, Cankarjev dom, City Hotel, Domina Vacanze, Globtour, Gospodarsko raz stavišče, GO.Mice, Hiša Kulinarike Franc Jezeršek, Intours, Kompas, Liberty Slovenija, Liofetrek, M-hotel, Postojnska jama turizem, Prevajalska agencija Alkemist, RS Klan, Sava Hoteli Bled, Hoteli Bernardin, Terme Čatež, Terme Maribor, Terme Spa Rogaška, Terme Radenci. Vivo Catering, ZavodKongresnoturistični urad Slovenije, Zavod za turizem Ljubljana Oblikovanje / Design: Tatjana Zupan, Propagarna d.o.o.

Tehnični urednik / Technical Editor: Marko Čopi, Grafika Paradoks d.o.o.

Prevod / Translation: Alkemist prevajalska agencija / Alkemist Translation Agency, Alasdair Green Lektoriranje / Proofreading: Simona Kepic, Jakica Jesih, Alasdair Green Tisk / Printing: Collegium Graphicum d.o.o.

Naklada / Circulation: 5.000 izvodov ISSN številka / ISSN Number: 1854-9292 Revija izhaja 4x letno / Quarterly Magazine issued in: april / April; junij/julij / June/July; september / September; november / November Izdajatelj, produkcija in trženje / Publisher, Production and Marketing: GO Mice, Štihova 4 SI-1000 Ljubljana T: +386 (0)1 430 51 03 F: +386 (0)1 430 51 04 E: kongres@go-mice.eu Ponudnikom kongresnih kapacitet se prijazno zahvaljujemo za fotografije iz njihovega arhiva. / We cordially thank to congress venues for their photos.

Za reproduciranje vsebine je potrebno pisno soglasje uredništva. / For the content reproduction it is required to get the written editorial consigment.

Redno srečanje članov Kongresnega urada, Hotel Bellevue, Maribor Za nami je še eno uspešno organizirano letno srečanje zavoda Kongresnoturistični urad, ki je v dveh dneh postregel s številnimi zanimivimi predavanji. Osrednja tema srečanja je bila »Kaj slovensko industrijo srečanj čaka v obdobju predsedovanja EU leta 2008?«.

Odgovore na to vprašanje sta dala g. Franci Kodela, vodja logističnega centra za predsedovanje, in g.

Gregor Krajc, vodja podskupine za odnose z javnostmi in promocijo.

Na formalnem delu srečanja je bila za novo članico sveta zavoda Kongresnoturistični urad izvoljena Renata Balažič iz GH Union, za predsednika strokovnega sveta pa Matjaž Žnidaršič iz GH Bernardin.

Kot vedno doslej je bilo večerno druženje, ki je potekalo v pravem pohorskem vzdušju, prijetnejši del dogodka. Pred večerno zabavo pa so udeležence nasmejale timsko – animacijske igre agencije Koren Sports.

Novi wellness in šport hotel Harmonija, Mengeš Harmonija duha, telesa in doživetij je vodilo in vsebina novega športno-rekreativnega, lepotnega in wellness hotela v Mengšu. Rekreaciji in razvajanju je na voljo 4.500 kvadratnih metrov pokritih površin. Harmonija je prvi sodobni center v Sloveniji, zasnovan po metodi feng shui, v katerem se združujeta najsodobnejša medicinska tehnika in tradicionalna kitajska modrost.

Harmonija šport ponuja 2600 m2 pokritih športnih površin, ki vključujejo tri igrišča za tenis in pet za badminton. V poletnih mesecih sta na voljo dve igrišči za odbojko na mivki in veliko travnato igrišče za

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nogomet. Večnamenska dvorana je na voljo za skupinske vadbe, dvorana za individualne vadbe ponuja program kinesis ter vadbo na napravi power plate. Harmonija wellness center se razprostira na skoraj 600m2 in je razdeljen na tri sklope: svet savn, lepotilni in masažni del ter VIP prostor – prostor za posebne, pravljične rituale.

Hotel Harmonija je prvi hotel v Mengšu. V novih, sodobno opremljenih dvanajstih sobah nudi skupaj trideset ležišč, sobe pa so zasnovane po metodi feng shui, kar izjemno pozitivno vpliva na počutje in razpoloženje gostov. Restavracija Harmonija razvaja goste z zdravim načinom priprave hrane, odlična kuharska zasedba pa skrbi za zadovoljitev vseh vrst okusov za različne priložnosti – vse od dnevnih kosil do hrane po naročil, s čudovitim pogledom na park. Harmonija svoje goste razvaja tudi v osvežilnem baru in na letnem vrtu.

Harmonija ponuja raznolike možnosti za razvoj incentive programov, saj se nahaja sredi čudovite narave pod Mengeško kočo. Dodatne informacije: www.harmonija.eu

Svečana otvoritev dvora Jezeršek Januarja je svoje duri svečano odprl Dvor Jezeršek na Brniku. Srečanja z dobrimi jedmi in ljudmi tako Hiša kulinarike Jezeršek, ki je

Kratke novice

pred 25 leti začela razvijati paleto dejavnosti v Sori pri Medvodah, nadaljuje na Hočevarjevi domačiji.

V okviru dvora deluje hotel z 18 sobami in 40 ležišči, dva apartmaja s stilnim pohištvom, restavracija á la carte za čarobna gastronomska doživetja, gostilna s ponudbo tradicionalnih jedi slovenskih pokrajin, dvorana za srečanja in posvetovanja ter vrsta drugih presenečenj v obnovljeni domačiji iz leta 1768. Dodatne informacije: www.dvor-jezersek.si

Predstavitev slovenske kongresne industrije v Bruslju 16 predstavnikov slovenske kongresne industrije se je predstavilo potencialnim kupcem na delavnici v Bruslju. Udeleženci so sodelovali pri otvoritvi predstavništva STO v Bruslju, ki deluje v prostorih Slovenske hiše in ga vodi Rok Klančnik. Predstavitve Slovenije kot kongresne destinacije in sprejema v Stalni misiji RS pri EU se je udeležilo več kot petdeset gostov. Dogodek je obogatila jazz skupina »Renato Chicco trio«.

Slovenski kongresni katalog

Zavod Kongresnoturistični urad je izdal slovenski kongresni katalog. V katalogu je predstavljena celotna slovenska industrija srečanj. Za naročilo brezplačnega kataloga pišite na elektronski naslov miha.kovacic@slovenia-convention.com

Natečaj za oblikovanje blagovne znamke turistične destinacije Ljubljana Ljubljana se danes kljub zelo pozitivnim trendom rasti povpraševanja in pozitivnim percepcijam obiskovalcev sooča s problemom pomanjkanja jasne identitete in podobe. Zavod za turizem Ljubljana je zato pripravil natečaj za oblikovanje blagovne znamke turistične destinacije Ljubljana. Rok za oddajo predlogov je 1. junij 2007.

MPI 2007 – Proffesional education conference Europe Evropska konferenca MPI, ki je potekala od 18. do 20. marca v Kopenhagnu pod pokroviteljstvom princese Mary, je poleg odlične organizacije prikazala tudi novo strateško usmeritev MPI. V naslednjih letih bo strategija temeljila na naslednjih usmeritvah: • Nove profesionalne konference, med drugim profesionalna konferenca za Bližnji vzhod (PECMiddle East, Dubai); • Več regionalnih uradov MPI (odprtje novega urada v Singapurju); • Zmogljivejši spletni portal; • Organizacija globalnih delavnic.

Rekordni EIBTM Kongresna borza EIBTM 2006 (European Incentive Business Travel and Meetings) je pritegnila največje število obiskovalcev doslej. Po podatkih organizatorjev je borzo obiskalo 6.176 obiskovalcev. Med razstavljavci in vabljenimi gosti je bilo

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opravljenih več kot 34.000 prodajnih sestankov. Borza se je povečala tudi prostorsko za približno 50 novih razstavljavcev. Slovensko kongresno industrijo je predstavljalo 15 ponudnikov. www.eibtm.com

Gostitelj naslednje konference MPI je London Konferenco MPI bo leta 2008 gostil London. Organizatorji so si zadali ambiciozen načrt, da bo to največja in najboljša konferenca MPI v zgodovini. Potekala bo v londonskem kongresnem centru Excel. V času konference bo udeležencem predstavljen projekt urbanistične prenove Londona za potrebe olimpijskih iger 2012. Po zaključku konference bodo udeleženci lahko nadaljevali pot na sejem IMEX v Frankfurt, saj bodo za vse udeležence organizirani posebni leti iz Londona.

Generalna skupščina IAPCO Več kot 70 članov mednarodnega združenja IAPCO se je sestalo na letnem srečanju in skupščini v Sevilli.

IAPCO je že desetletje sinonim za kakovost na področju industrije srečanj. Med mednarodnimi združenji je IAPCO eno od redkih združenj, ki ima zelo stroge kriterije za sprejem novih članov. Članstvo bodo po novem tudi redno preverjali s pomočjo orodij notranje in zunanje presoje neodvisnega odbora za kakovost.

V Sloveniji sta kriterijem IAPCO doslej zadostila: • Auditoria in • Cankarjev dom, kulturni in kongresni center.

Short News

The regular annual meeting of Slovenian Convention bureau members, Hotel Bellevue, Maribor Another well organised annual meeting of the Slovenian Convention Bureau is behind us and, over two days, many interesting lectures were given. The main topic of the meeting was “What awaits the Slovenian meeting industry during the EU Presidency in 2008?”Answers were given by Franci Kodela, Head of the EU Presidency Logistics Centre, and Gregor Krajc, Head of the Public Relations and Promotion Subgroup. During the formal part of the meeting, Renata Balažič of GH Union was newly elected to the Slovenian Convention Bureau Council, while Matjaž Žnidaršič from GH Bernadin was elected Chairman of the Council of Experts. As always, the evening reception, held in an authentic Pohorje atmosphere, was the more enjoyable part of the event.

Participants enjoyed themselves before the evening entertainment, participating in Koren Sports team-activity games.

New wellness and sports hotel, Harmonija, Mengeš ‘The harmony of the soul, body and emotion’ is the guideline and

content of a new sports-recreational, beauty and wellness hotel in Mengeš. Both recreation and indulgence are available in the 4,500 square metre covered areas. Harmonija is the first modern centre in Slovenia based on the feng shui method, in which contemporary medical techniques and traditional Chinese modesty are combined.

Harmonija Šport has 2,600 m2 of covered sporting areas, including three tennis courts and five badminton courts. In summer, two beach volleyball courts and a large grass football pitch are also available. A multi-purpose hall is available for group exercise while an individual exercise hall offers a kinesis program and power plate exercises. The Harmonija Wellness Centre covers 600m2 and is divided into three sections: sauna, beauty and massage sections and a VIP area – an area for special, fairytale-like rituals. The Hotel Harmonija is the first hotel to open in Mengeš. Its 12 new contemporarily equipped rooms have a total of 30 beds and they are designed in line with the feng shui method, which has an extremely positive effect on guests’ wellbeing and mood. The Harmonija resturant indulges its guests with healthy dishes prepared by its excellent cooking staff to satisfy all tastes for various occasions – from daily lunches to meals to order. With a magnificent view of the park, the Harmonija also pampers its guests in the refreshment bar and summer garden.

Harmonija offers a variety of possibilities for developmental incentive programmes, as it is amidst wondrous countryside under Mengeš koča (Mengeš hunting lodge).

Additional information: www.harmonija.eu

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The festive opening of dvor Jezeršek Dvor Jezeršek in Brnik opened in January this year. Gatherings with good food and people were hosted

by Hiša kulinarike Jezeršek, who developed a range of activities in Sora pri Medvodah 25 years ago and continue at the Hočevar Homestead. A hotel with 18 rooms and 40 beds, two apartments with stylish furniture, an á la carte restaurant providing a magical gastronomic experience, an inn showcasing traditional dishes from the Slovenian provinces, a meeting and assembly hall and a variety of other surprises in the renovated 1768 homestead operate within the framework of the court.

Additional information: www.dvor-jezersek.si

Presentation of slovenian meeting industry in Brussels Sixteen representatives of the Slovenian meeting industry outlined their offers to potential customers at workshops in Brussels. Participants attended the opening of the STO office in Brussels, which operates in the

Short News

premises of the Slovenian House and is managed by Rok Klančnik.

The presentation of Slovenia as a meeting destination and a reception at the Permanent Mission of the Republic of Slovenia to the EU was attended by over 50 guests. The event was enriched by the ‘Renato Chicco trio’ jazz group.

The Slovenian meetings catalogue The Slovenian Convention Bureau has published the Slovenian Meetings Catalogue, which outlines the complete Slovenian meetings industry.

To order a free copy of the catalogue please write to: miha.kovacic@sloveniaconvention.com

A competition to design a brand name for Ljubljana as a tourist destination Despite a clearly positive growth trend in inquiries and the positive perceptions of its visitors, Ljubljana today faces a lack of a clear identity and image.

For this reason, Ljubljana Tourist Board has prepared a competition to design a brand name for Ljubljana as a tourist destination.

The deadline for submitting suggestions is 1 June 2007.

London to host the next MPI conference

MPI 2007 - Proffesional education conference, Europe In addition to excellent organisation, the European MPI conference, held between the 18th and 20th of March in Copenhagen under the sponsorship of Princess Mary, also outlined MPI’s new strategic orientation. In the upcoming years the strategy will be based on: • new professional conferences, including a professional conference in the Middle East (PEC-Middle East, Dubai), • more regional MPI bureaus (the opening of a new bureau in Singapore), • a more powerful website, • the organisation of global workshops.

Record EIBTM The European Incentive Business Travel and Meetings (EIBTM) 2006 meetings exchange attracted the most visitors so far. The organisers say the exchange attracted 6,176 visitors. Over 34,000 sales meetings were held between exhibitors and invited guests. The exchange also increased in terms of size, with approximately 50 new exhibitors.

The Slovenian meetings industry showcased 15 providers. www.eibtm.com

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Excel, London, 18 – 20 April 2008 The 2008 MPI Conference is to be hosted by London. Organisers have an ambitious plan to make it the biggest and best MPI conference ever. The conference will be held at the Excel Congress Centre. A project for the urban renewal of London to meet the requirements of the 2012 Olympic Games will be presented to participants. After the conference, participants will be able to go on to the IMEX Fair in Frankfurt, with special flights organised from London for all participants.

IAPCO general assemby Over 70 members of the IAPCO international association met at their annual meeting and general assembly in Seville. For ten years, IAPCO has been synonymous with quality in the meetings industry.

IAPCO is one of the few international associations with extremely strict criteria regarding the acceptance of new members.

Membership will now be reviewed on a regular basis with the aid of the quality council’s internal and external assessment tools.

To date, the following Slovenian venues have satisfied IAPCO criteria: • Auditoria and • Cankarjev dom Cultural & Congress Centre.

Novice soustanoviteljev

Novice iz podjetja Albatros, Bled

V hotelu Park po prenovi uspešni na področju kongresov V blejskem hotelu Park, ki deluje v okviru blagovne znamke Sava Hoteli Bled, so lani zabeležili več kot 20-odstotni dvig števila nočitev, ustvarjenih s strani kongresnih gostov. Porast je rezultat celovite obnove hotela in izgradnje manjšega konferenčnega središča, kjer so na voljo štiri med seboj povezane dvorane, od katerih največja sprejme 120 oseb.

Kavarna Belvedere spet odprta Znamenita Titova čajnica v parku hotela Vila Bled, kjer od lani deluje kavarna, po zimskem predahu spet odpira svoja vrata. V poletnih mesecih je kavarna primerna za izvedbo stoječih sprejemov in družabnih dogodkov. Za kulinarično ponudbo skrbi kuharska ekipa pod vodstvom Andreja Kuharja, edinega slovenskega kuharja, odlikovanega z Michelinovo zvezdico.

Blejski hotel Golf v vodniku Condé Nast Johansens Založba Condé Nast Johansens, izdajatelj mednarodnih vodnikov luksuznih hotelov, je objavila hotel Golf v vodniku “Recommended Hotels & Spas” za Evropo in Sredozemlje 2007. V vodniku je objavljenih preko 430 hotelov, hotel Golf, ki sicer velja za najpomembnejši kongresni hotel na Bledu, pa je edini iz Slovenije. Objavljeni hoteli so izbrani na podlagi njihove posebne privlačnosti, značaja ter kakovosti ponudbe in storitev.

Najvišji predstavniki držav članic EU na Bledu Slovenija je 15. januarja 2007 slavnostno obeležila prevzem evra. Na povabilo predsednika vlade Janeza Janše so se slovesnosti udeležili najvišji predstavniki držav članic EU in evropskih ustanov. Častni gostje so se med enodnevnim obiskom v Sloveniji mudili tudi na Bledu. Premier Janša je zanje priredil slavnostno kosilo v Grand Hotelu Toplice.

Začetek tretjega desetletja uspešnega delovanja smo izkoristili za manjše organizacijske spremembe v podjetju Albatros. Uveljavljena blagovna znamka Albatros v celoti ostaja in združuje dve pravni obliki organiziranosti: Albatros, kongresno – turistična agencija, Majda Zidanski, s.p., in Albatros, kongresni servis, d.o.o. Dejavnost, cilji in usmeritve ostajajo isti, spremembe so se zgodile samo na organizacijskem in kadrovskem področju znotraj obeh podjetij. Skupaj z njimi se je spremenil tudi logotip za kongresni servis, v katerem se je naši značilni rdeči pridružila še modra barva.

Future Watch »FutureWatch 2007«, tržna raziskava trendov globalne industrije srečanj, ki jo financirata MPI (Meetings Professionals International) in American Express, napoveduje še eno uspešno leto, saj naj bi bil sektor že četrto zaporedno leto v vzponu, kar kaže na zdravo in močno gospodarstvo v širšem smislu.

Glavni trendi, ki jih raziskava napoveduje za leto 2007, so večja centralizacija organizacije srečanj, konsolidacija stroškov ter nadaljnje povečevanje vloge nabavnih oddelkov pri odločitvah za srečanja. Glavni dejavniki, ki bodo v letu 2007 vplivali na industrijo srečanj, pa bodo po pričakovanjih še vedno globalizacija, terorizem ter dvig cen nočitev.

Novosti v Adria Airways Adria Airways leti od 24. marca 2007 dalje po poletnem voznem redu. Ponovno so vzpostavljene redne povezave iz Ljubljane v Barcelono, Rim, Manchester, Bir-

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Novice soustanoviteljev

Kompas za poslovne goste

mingham in Dublin. Redna linija na progi Ljubljana – Kijev, ki so jo uvedli decembra 2006, deluje zelo uspešno, zato so število tedenskih povezav povečali na 3-krat tedensko. Večje število tedenskih povezav so uvedli še na linijah v Amsterdam, Bruselj, Skopje in Zürich. Nov vozni red in aktualna ponudba sta na voljo na spletni strani www.adria-airways.com.

Na kratko iz hotela Domina V hotelu Domina se nam v mesecu aprilu obeta 2. mednarodni salsa festival. Organizatorji festivala »Salsoteka« bodo pripeljali dvajset svetovno priznanih salsa inštruktorjev, ki bodo v treh dneh na šestinpetdesetih delavnicah pripravili največji salsa dogodek v Sloveniji do sedaj. Hotel Domina pa se lahko pohvali še z vrsto pomembnejših dogodkov, ki so se odvili v letu 2007: IBM Slovenija, BMW managerski izzivi, Mednarodna konferenca agencije za kmetijske trge in drugimi.

Turistično podjetje Kompas d.d. uvaja novo blagovno znamko Kompas Corporate, namenjeno poslovnim uporabnikom. Združuje vrsto izkušenih sodelavcev, ki bodo pokrivali storitve najširše turistične ponudbe iz Kompasovega lastnega touoroperatorskega programa (potovanaja, počitnice, izleti), pa do specializiranih storitev, kot so: rezervacija in prodaja letalskih vozovnic ter vseh vrst prevozov (z vlakom, ladjo, najetimi vozili, vozili iz voznega parka Kompasa – osebni avtomobili ter avtobusi), rezervacija namestitev po celem svetu, organizacija potovanj na kongrese in sejme v tujini, organizacija srečanj, konferenc in kongresov doma in v tujini, posredovanje vizumov, organizacija motivacijskih (incentive) in drugih strokovnih potovanj po meri naročnika. Cilj je sistematično pristopiti do kupcev, določiti key account managerje za velike kupce in uvesti CRM na ravni podjetja in novega rezervacijskega sistema SIBOOK, ki ga Kompas razvija v sodelovanju s podjetjem Hermes Softlab.

Več o tem – prihodnjič.

Team building programi v Postojnski jami Programi so namenjeni skupinam, ki jih povezujejo prijateljske, poslovne, izobraževalne ali druge interesne vezi. Team building programi se odvijajo v dvoranah postojnskega jamskega sistema ali v prostorih Predjamskega gradu, izvajajo pa jih strokovnjaki s področja psihologije dela in izkušeni jamski vodniki. Možnosti je več – zabavni team building ali team building akademija. Tovrstni doživljajski ogledi izven utečenih turističnih poti so lahko zelo primeren incentive program.

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Prenovljen grad Mokrice Terme Čatež so s prenovo kompleksa na Mokricah postale še privlačnejša destinacija za poslovni turizem. Obnovljen je bil grajski kompleks, kjer v prenovljenih grajskih kaščah nudimo sodobno opremljeno dvorano Barbara. Gostje lahko bivajo v Hotelu Golf Grad Mokrice ali v novi Depandansi. Za sprostitev se udeleženci lahko odločijo za igro golfa, razvajanje v grajskem masažnem salonu ali v bližnjih Termah Čatež.

125. rojstni dan Term Radenci V Termah Radenci letos praznujemo svoj 125. rojstni dan. Že več desetletij se uspešno ukvarjamo z organizacijo in pripravo kongresov, seminarjev, simpozijev, učnih delavnic, jezikovnih izobraževanj, tiskovnih konferenc ter poslovnih srečanj, in sicer v vlogi hiše gostiteljice, v zadnjem času pa tudi v vlogi soorganizatorja.

Vivo na Viktorjih Ob podelitvi Viktorjev, nagrad za medijske dosežke, je osebje Vivo cateringa iz Gradu Fužin pripravilo izbrano kulinarično »pojedino« in goste vključilo v kulinarično uživanje že pri pripravi jedi.

Co-fonders News

Hotel Park successful in the area of meetings after renovation The Hotel Park in Bled, operating within the scope of the Sava Hotels & Resorts brand name, recorded a rise of over 20 percent in the number of overnight stays of meeting guests last year.

The growth was the result of the complete renovation of the hotel and the construction of a smaller meeting venue consisting of four interlinked halls, the largest of which can accommodate up to 120 persons.

Kavarna Belvedere open again The renowned Titova čajnica (Tito's Teahouse) in the park of the Hotel Villa Bled, where a coffeehouse has been operating since last year, has opened its doors again after a winter break.

During the summer months, the coffeehouse is a suitable place for the implementation of standing receptions and social events. The creative cooking staff, under the leadership of Andrej Kuhar (the only Slovenian chef boasting a Michelin Star) will be in charge of the culinary offer.

The Hotel Golf in Bled wins a place in the Condé guide The Condé Nast Johansens publishing house, publisher of international guides on luxury

hotels, has included Hotel Golf in its "Recommended Hotels & Spas" guide for Europe and the Mediterranean, 2007. The Hotel Golf has earned a place among the more than 430 hotels featured, and it represents the most important congress hotel in Bled and the only one included from Slovenia. The published hotels were selected on the basis of their personal attractiveness, nature and the quality of their offers and services.

The highest representatives of EU Member States in Bled Slovenia festively marked its adoption of the euro on 15 January 2007. At the invitation of Prime Minister Janez Janša, the highest representatives of the EU Member States and European institutions attended the festivities hosted for the occasion. The honorary guests also visited Bled during their one-day visit to Slovenia. A festive lunch was hosted for the dignitaries by Prime Minister Janša at the Grand Hotel Toplice.

News from Albatros, Bled At the start of the 3rd decade of our successful operation, we have taken a chance to make some minor organisational changes at Albatros. ‘Albatros’ as an operational trademark remains in its entirety, while the two legal entities – Albatros, congresstourist agency, Majda Zidanski and Albatros congress services – are united. Our activities, goals and directions stay the same, and the changes only affect the organisational and personnel fields within both companies.

Meanwhile, the logo of our congress service has also been modified, with our characteristic red being joined by blue.

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Future Watch 'Future Watch' 2007, market research into trends in the global meeting industry, financed by MPI (Meetings Professionals International) and American Express, forecasts another successful year. This would make it the fourth consecutive year of growth, pointing towards a strong healthy economy in a broader sense. The main trends forecasted in their research for 2007 are greater centralisation of meeting organisation, cost consolidation and further strengthening of the role of 'fun elements' in decisionmaking about meetings. The main factors expected to impact on the meeting industry in 2007 remain globalisation, terrorism and increase of accommodation costs.

Developments at Adria Airways Adria implemented its summer timetable on 24 March 2007.

Regular connections have been re-established between Ljubljana and Barcelona, Rome, Manchester, Birmingham and Dublin. Scheduled flights between Ljubljana and Kiev which began in December 2006 are running very successfully, such that the number of regular connections has been increased to three a week. A higher number of weekly flights operate on routes to Amsterdam Brussels, Skopje and Zürich. The new timetable and other information are available at www.adria-airways.com.

News in brief from the Hotel Domina We are looking forward to the 2nd International Salsa Festival at the Hotel Domina in April.

The organisers of the ‘Salsoteka’

Co-fonders News

festival is to gather 20 world renowned salsa instructors who will, over a period of three days and 56 workshops, lead the largest salsa event in Slovenia to date. The Hotel Domina can also boast of a number of other important events in 2007, such as IBM Slovenija, the BMW Managerial Challenge, the International Conference of Agricultural Market Agencies and a host of others.

Increasing demand for team-building programmes at Postojna cave These programmes are aimed at groups connected by friendship, business, educational ties or other interests. Team-building programmes take place in the caverns of the Postojna Cave system or at Predjama Castle led by both experts in the field of psychology and experienced cave guides. A number of possibilities exist, such as entertaining team-building programmes or the team-building academy. These adventurous tours, off standard tourist routes, are an extremely good incentive programme. teambuilding@postojnska-jama.si

Kompas Corporate Kompas, Slovenia’s largest tourist company, is introducing a new ‘Kompas Corporate’ brand name intended for business users.

Kompas Corporate will bring together the skills of a variety of experienced colleagues, who will cover the vast line of services ranging from Kompas’ own tour operator programme (travel, holidays and trips) all the way to specialised services such as the reservation and sale of airline tickets and a variety of other transportation (by train, ship,

leased vehicles and vehicles from the Kompas fleet of cars and buses), the reservation of accommodation around the world, the organisation of travel to meetings and fairs abroad, the organisation of meetings, conferences and congresses, both at home and abroad, mediation for visas and the organisation of incentive and other expert travel, all customised to the client’s requirements. The goal is a systematic approach to customers, the assignment of key account managers to large clients, the introduction of CRM at company level and also the new ‘SIBOOK’ reservation system, which Kompas is developing in cooperation with Hermes Softlab.

More information will be published in a later issue.

Mokrice complex renovated The extensive renovation of the Mokrice complex has made Terme Čatež health resort an even more attractive destination for business tourism. The castle complex has been renovated and the newly restored castle granaries now offer the contemporarily equipped Barbara Hall. Guests can stay at the Hotel Golf Grad Mokrice or at the new hotel Depandansi. Those guests seeking to relax can opt for a game of golf, be pampered in the castle massage parlour or relax at the nearby Terme Čatež health resort.

The extensive renovation of the Mokrice complex has made Terme Čatež health resort an even more attractive destination for business tourism. The castle complex has been renovated and the newly restored castle granaries now offer the contemporarily equipped Barbara Hall. Guests can stay at the Hotel Golf Grad Mokrice or at the new Hotel Depandansi.

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The renewal project of the Hotel Golf Grad Mokrice complex is partially financed by EU funds.

Terme Radenci's 125th birthday The 125th birthday of Terme Radenci is celebrated this year.

The spa resort has successfully handled the organisation and preparation of congresses, seminars, symposia, educational workshops, language courses, press conferences and business meetings for many decades, as well as acting as a hospitality centre.

Recently it has also become a co-organiser.

Vivo at the Victor awards ceremony At the Victor awards ceremony, where Victor statues are given for media achievement, the staff of Vivo Catering from Grad Fužine prepared a choice culinary ‘feast’, including the guests in their culinary delights via their inclusion in the making of dishes.

Postojnskajama jevse pogostejetu di mesto, kjer se naravni čari stikajo z zabavo in poslovnimi interesi.

strokovnim vodstvom izkušenih psihoterapevtov vključuje reševanje fizičnih in logičnih nalog. Vse z namenom spodbujanja teamskega delovanja, dvigovanja skupinske motivacije in spoznavanja reakcij v nepričakovanih situacijah.

Zakaj se ljudje v Jamski dvorec tako radi vračajo?

Jamski dvorec je sodobno prireditveno in kongresno središče ter nepozabenkulinarični paradiž,ki leži v osrčju notranjskih gozdov na eni izmed najbolj elitnih lokacij v Sloveniji, tik ob svetovno znani Postojnski jami. Dotik burje in prijazna skrivnost kraškega jamskega sistema poskrbita za prav posebno dobrodošlico.

Jamski dvorec je le nekaj kilometrov oddaljen od edinega ohranjenega jamskega gradu daleč na okoli, Predjamskega gradu. Tam vas lahko pričaka iznajdljivi vitez Erazem Predjamski, ki vas popelje po poteh srednjega veka vse do slavnega

Zakaj se torej ljudje tako radi vračajo Jamski dvorec? Ker jih tam vedno znova pričaka novo doživetje doživetje z obliko, vsebino in okusom. Doživetje, ki je s k r iv n e g a r o va . O b i s ko va l c i sestavljenoiz navdušujočenara ve, radovednega in nemirnega duha se novih spoznanj in dodatnih p o l e g o g l e d a z g o d o v i n s k i h aktivnosti ter odlične kulinarike. znamenitosti lahko odločite za Dobrodošlitudivi! zabavne podzemne pustolovščine; iskanje zaklada, raziskovanje umora in druge podzemne avanture so pravo Informacijeinrezer vacije: doživetje! Lahkopa se podate tudi na Postojnskajama,turizem,d.d. malce bolj resne programe grajenja in Jamskacesta30,6230P ostojna vodenja ekip, na tako imenovani team tel.:057000100;faks:057000130; e-pošta:ev ents@postojnska-jama.si building. Jamski team building je edini .turizem-kras.si w tovrstni team building na svetu, ki pod

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Mi to znamo. Smo mednarodno uveljavljeno podjetje za podroËje svetovanja, trženja in managementa v poslovnem turizmu.

Imamo reπitve za uspeπno trženje kongresnih centrov in destinacij ter komuniciranje vaπih kongresov in poslovnih dogodkov. Pridobivamo in organiziramo mednarodne kongrese, poslovne dogodke, motivacijska sreËanja, razstave in sejemske prireditve, pri Ëemer uporabljamo najsodobnejπa znanja in tehnologije sreËanj.

Pomagamo vam pri upravljanju in vodenju strokovnih in znanstvenih združenj.

Štihova ulica 4,1000 Ljubljana, T+386 (0)1 430 51 03, F +386 (0)1 430 51 04, info@go-mice.eu, www.go-mice.eu

oglas mice.indd 2 Process CyanProcess MagentaProcess YellowProcess Black

3/13/07 3:36:42 PM

Na Gospodarskem razstavišču zaključena prva borza Simex

Postavljeni temelji kongresne borze Na Gospodarskem razstavišču v Ljubljani je konec marca potekala prva slovenska borza kongresnega turizma Simex. Zavod – Kongresnoturistični urad, ki jo je pripravil, je z njeno izvedbo in rezultati zelo zadovoljen.

Gostje prejmejo za razgovor osebni urnik srečanj.

• Guests receive a personal meeting schedule for discussions.

Kongresna borza Simex, ki je na Gospodarskem razstavišču potekala 29. in 30. marca, se je v Sloveniji odvijala prvič. Podobne borze, na katerih se srečujejo najpomembnejši ponudniki poslovnega turizma s tistimi, ki po teh uslugah povprašujejo, pa so ponekod v tujini že uveljavljene prireditve.

Prva borza Simex je na Gospodarsko razstavišče pritegnila 54 razstavljavcev, z njihovo ponudbo pa se je v dveh dneh seznanilo več kot sto gostov. Letos so med gosti prevladovali predstavniki znanstveno-strokovnih združenj, vladnih organizacij ter večjih podjetij.

Organizatorji prve kongresne borze pri nas (poleg Zavoda – Kongresnoturistični urad še Gospodarska zbornica Slovenije, Institut Jožef Stefan, Slovenska turistična organizacija, Slovensko zdravniško društvo, Trgovinska zbornica Slovenije, Zavod za turizem Ljubljana ter gostitelj, Gospodarsko razstavišče) imajo ambiciozne načrte za prihodnost. Borzo bi radi razširili tudi preko meja Slovenije.

Miha Kovačič, direktor Zavoda – Kongresnoturistični urad, pravi, da se je pokazalo, da je nova vrsta organiziranega srečevanja v poslovnem turizmu našla svoje mesto na slovenskem trgu. »Od udeležencev smo prejemali pozitivne komentarje. Navdušilo jih je predvsem dejstvo, da so prvič imeli priložnost na enem mestu spoznati celotno slovensko kongresno ponudbo in govoriti s kakovostnimi in resnimi ponudniki.

Borza Simex je bila pravi naslov za navezovanje stikov in za podroben pregled ponudbe in povpraševanja v kongresni dejavnosti.«

Častni otvoritelj prireditev je bil župan Ljubljane Zoran Janković, ki si je borzo z veseljem ogledal in pozdravil sodelujoče. • The honorary opener of the event was the mayor of Ljubljana, Zoran Janković, whose pleasure it was to visit the exchange and greet participants.

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The first Simex Exchange concludes at Gospodarsko razstavišče

Foundations Laid for the Meetings Exchange The first Slovenian meetings industry exchange, Simex, was held at Gospodarsko razstavišče (the Ljubljana Exhibition and Convention Centre) in Ljubljana at the end of March. The Slovenian Convention Bureau, which organised the exchange, was extremely pleased with its implementation and results.

The Simex exchange that took place at Gospodarsko razstavišče on 29 and 30 March was the first such event held in Slovenia. Similar exchanges held at various locations abroad are already renowned events where the most important business tourism suppliers and those inquiring about services can meet.

The first Simex exchange at Gospodarsko razstavišče attracted 54 exhibitors and they presented their offers to over 100 guests. This year, scientific-expert associations, state organisations and larger companies were prevailing at the event.

Organisers of the first meetings exchange in Slovenia have laid out ambitious plans for the future, along with the Slovenian Convention Bureau, the Slovenian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Jozef Stefan Institute, the Slovenian Tourist Board, the Slovenian Medical Association, the Slovenian Chamber of Trade, the Ljubljana Tourist Board and the host, Gospodarsko razstavišče. They would like to expand the exchange beyond the borders of Slovenia.

Miha Kovačič, the Director of the Slovenian Convention Bureau, says that the new way of organising meetings in business tourism has found a place on the Slovenian market. “We have had positive feedback from participants. They were especially enthusiastic about the fact that they had a chance to become acquainted with the entire Slovenian meetings industry offer in one place for the first time and to speak with professional providers. The Simex exchange is the right place to establish contacts and to take a detailed look at the offers and make inquiries about meetings activities.”

Borza Simex bo tudi prihodnje leto potekala v okviru prireditve Turizem in prosti čas. •The next Simex exchange will be held in the frame of the Tourism and Leisure fair 2008.

Ob poslovnem delu je na razstavišču potekalo tudi bogato spremljevalno dogajanje. Zelo zanimivi so bili primeri dobrih praks. • A rich variety of accompanying events took place alongside the business part of the exchange. Examples of good practices proved particularly interesting.

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Kolumna: Srečo Peterlič

Smo obuti v primerno velike čevlje?

Pred kratkim sem bil v Turčiji. Z letalom sem se peljal iz Linza do Antalye. Ali lahko moje potovanje kakorkoli povežem z bližnjim predsedovanjem Slovenije Evropski uniji? Lahko. Letališče v Linzu ima dnevno manj kot polovico poletov in pristankov kot Aerodrom Ljubljana, je pa po površini, namenjeni potnikom, vsaj enkrat večje.

Antalya ima po uradnih podatkih nekaj več kot pol milijona prebivalcev, po neuradnih pa preko milijon (verjetno štejejo zraven še vse turiste), letališče pa je med najsodobnejšimi in vsaj petkrat večje kot ljubljansko.

V polletnem predsedovanju bo v Sloveniji več kot 150 uradnih srečanj EU s pričakovanimi 25-30 tisoč udeleženci in gosti, ki bodo prihajali kot predstavniki in člani delegacij. Verjetno bodo prihajali v jutranjih urah in odhajali zvečer. Ob teh urah je ljubljansko letališče preobremenjeno že brez teh delegacij. Kje in kako bo poskrbljeno za prihode, sprejem delegacij, VIP osebje, varnost itd.?

Marsikdo me je že vprašal za mnenje o tem, kakšna je slovenska kongresna ponudba v primerjavi s konkurenco. Odgovarjam: kongresne kapacitete in storitve so nadpovprečne, upoštevati pa je potrebno nekatere omejitve, možnosti in dejstva. Glede na velikost dežele in populacijo imamo nadpovprečno število kongresnih dvoran in drugih kapacitet, po številu mednarodnih dogodkov in udeležencev sodimo med države z bistveno večjo populacijo. Toda, kaj to pomeni pri tako velikem zalogaju, ki nas čaka pred vrati?

Trenutno Evropi predseduje Nemčija. Primerjava med Slovenijo in Nemčijo ni smiselna, govorimo seveda o kapacitetah.

Mogoče bi se lahko primerjali s Finci, ki so odlično opravili delo lani.

Zavedali so se svoje relativne majhnosti in so se pravi čas odlično organizirali. Leto dni prej so imeli v najožji projektni skupini za izvedbo srečanj ekipo osemindvajsetih strokovnjakov, v času predsedovanja preko štirideset z nekaj sto stalnimi zunanjimi sodelavci. Ali vemo, kako močna je trenutno slovenska ekipa? Še pred Finci je predsedovanje organizirala Avstrija. Na Dunaju imajo v primernih hotelih na voljo preko 20.000 sob, v Ljubljani jih je manj kot 2000, ki pa so že sedaj nadpovprečno zasedene. Da ne govorimo o dvoranah in ostalih prostorih za družabna srečanja.

Slovenci smo znani kot odlični gostitelji in dobri organizatorji. Verjetno se vsi zavedamo objektivnih danosti in omejitev, v primerjavi z navedenimi deželami. Toda, v zadnjem desetletju smo bili gostitelji lepega števila zelo odmevnih srečanj, kot npr. obiska ameriškega predsednika Clintona, srečanja Bush – Putin, srečanja OVSE, dveh papeževih obiskov … Pričakovano predsedovanje se seveda ne more primerjati z navedenimi dogodki. Niti po obsegu, niti po številu dogodkov, niti po potrebnih kapacitetah, niti po zahtevni logistiki, niti po varnosti in varovanju, niti po potrebni zasedbi in obsegu projektne izvedbene skupine. Je pa pričakovani projekt nadgradnja vseh dosedanjih. Prepričan sem, da smo ga Slovenci sposobni odlično izpeljati. Za začetek ugotovimo, ali smo obuti v primerno velike čevlje, nato pa stopimo skupaj. Slovenski kongresni ponudniki smo pripravljeni. Pri projektu mogoče niti nismo vsi potrebni, upravičeno pa pričakujemo, da bo odlična izvedba posledično za vse nas priložnost za prihodnji razvoj kongresne dejavnosti, kot se je to zgodilo Avstrijcem in Fincem.

Nestrpno pričakujem spletno stran predsedovanja Slovenije, upam, da bo na njej števec dnevov, ki so še na voljo do 1.1.2008.

Srečo Peterlič, direktor kongresne dejavnosti, Auditoria; predsednik sveta Zavod Kongresnoturistični urad

Srečo Peterlič

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Column: Srečo Peterlič

Are we fitted with Shoes of the appropriate Size?

I was in Turkey a short time ago, having travelled by plane from Linz to Antalya.

I wondered whether there was any possibility of linking my travel with the upcoming Slovenian Presidency of the EU? I could. Although there are fewer landings and takeoffs per day at Linz airport than at Aerodrom Ljubljana, it is at least twice as big in terms of the surface area available for passengers.

Then, although Antalya officially has somewhat over half a million inhabitants, unofficially this figure exceeds one million (with tourists included, most likely).

The airport there is one of the most contemporary airports in the world and is at least five times the size of Ljubljana Airport.

Over 150 official EU meetings will be held in Slovenia during the half-year Presidency, with around 25-30,000 participants and guests expected, bringing with them representatives and members of delegations. They will probably arrive in the mornings and leave in the evenings. Currently, Ljubljana Airport is already overburdened at these times, even without these delegations. So where and how will the arrival and reception of delegations, VIPs, security and so on be implemented?

A lot of people have asked me for my opinion regarding the Slovenian offer of meeting services in comparison with that of the competition.

My answer is that while meeting venues and services are above average, several restrictions and facts must be observed. We have an above average number of meeting halls and other venues for the size of the country and the population, and we are a country with an essentially greater number of international events and participants.

So what does this mean with regard to the major challenge awaiting us?

At the moment, Germany holds the European Presidency. Of course, a comparison between Slovenia and Germany would not be sensible.

Perhaps we can compare ourselves to the Finns, however, who performed an excellent job last year. Aware of their relatively small size, they did an excellent job nevertheless and organised themselves at the right time. A year before, they had a team of 28 experts in the narrowest project group, and then over 40 experts and several hundred permanent outworkers during the Presidency. Do we know how strong the Slovenian team is currently?

Austria organised the Presidency before the Finns. Vienna has over 20,000 rooms in appropriate hotels. There are less than 2,000 in Ljubljana, and these are already filled above average, not to mention the meeting halls and other venues for social meetings.

We Slovenes are known as excellent hosts and organisers. We are probably all aware of our objective resources and restrictions in comparison with the above mentioned countries. Nevertheless, we’ve hosted a good number of extremely successful meetings in the last decade, such as President Clinton’s visit, the Bush/Putin meeting, the OVSE meetings, two visits of Pope, etc. The upcoming Presidency, of course, cannot compare to these events in terms of scope, the number of events, the venues required, the necessary logistics, security and protection or in terms of staff – and nor can the scope of the project implementation groups. We can, however expect a project upstaging all previous ones and I am certain that Slovenes are capable of executing it with excellence. Firstly, we all find out if we are fitted with the appropriate size shoes, then we step forward together. We, the Slovenian meeting providers are prepared. Perhaps not all of us will be required for the project, but nevertheless we can rightfully expect that its excellent execution will consequently be an opportunity for the future development of meeting activates for us, as experienced by the Austrians and Finns. I await the website of the Slovenian Presidency with impatience, and I hope it includes a countdown of the number of days left until 1 January 2008.

Srečo Peterlič, Congress Director, Auditoria; Chairman of the Slovenian Convention Bureau Council

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Predsedovanje Evropski uniji 2008

Bomo pripravljeni?

Dodana vrednost predsedovanja je udeleženec, ki se bo vrnil z družino

Slovenija bo v prvi polovici leta 2008 predsedovala Evropski uniji. V tem času bo vodila vse delovne skupine in druga delovna telesa vseh sesMag. Franci Kodela, vodja Logističnega centra tav Sveta EU. Predsedoza predsedovanje Slovenije EU, Vlada RS vanje ima za Slovenijo Evropski skupnosti pomeni, da bomo teh šest mesecev velik promocijski pomen, »Predsedovanje vodili Evropsko skupnost tako, kot naši ministri vodijo svoje posle za veliko si od njega obeta Republiko Slovenijo. Mi vodimo dosjeje, mi vodimo delovne skupine, kar je v tem trenutku za nas res veliko priznanje,« zelo posplošeno in pretudi slovenski turizem. prosto definicijo predsedovanja pove mag. Franci Kodela, namestnik Samo v Sloveniji pričaku- generalnega sekretarja Vlade RS in vodja Logističnega centra za predjemo okoli dvesto priredi- sedovanje Slovenije EU. Kakšen je pomen predsedovanja EU za Slovenijo in slovenski turizem? tev na različnih nivojih.

Predsedovanje ima nedvomno velik pomen tako za Slovenijo kot za saO predsedovanju in poma mesta, kjer se bodo odvijali dogodki. Glavno mesto bo Brdo pri Kranju, pri čemer imam v mislih organizacijo konferenc. Nastanitve in menu za slovenski turispremljevalni programi se bodo odvijali po vsej Sloveniji. Večina udelezem smo se pogovarjali žencev bo sicer spala v Ljubljani in na Bledu, ki sta lokacijsko najbližja z mag. Dimitrijem Picigo, Brdu in letališču, dogodki pa se bodo odvijali tudi v Mariboru, na obali, v Termah Čatež ... tako da računam, da bo pokritost Slovenije s spremdirektorjem Slovenske ljevalnimi dogodki relativno široka in pestra. Strinjam se, da bosta mesti, ki bosta nočili udeležence, imeli največ od dogodka, kar pa ne poturistične organizacije, meni, da ostalih krajev ne bomo promovirali. Manj pomena pripisujemo z Miho Kovačičem, direk- temu, kar bodo udeleženci videli oziroma zapravili v času svojega prvetorjem Zavoda-Kongres- ga obiska pri nas, če ne pridejo nazaj; za nas je dodana vrednost predsedovanja udeleženec, ki se kasneje vrne z družino. Avstrijci so predsenoturistični urad in z dovanju namenili okrog 90 milijonov evrov, po njihovih ocenah so s predsedovanjem zaslužili okoli 200 milijonov. To je lepa številka in izjemag. Francijem Kodelo, men uspeh, vendar verjamem, da to še ni vse, saj morajo kasneje slediki na Vladi RS vodi ti še multiplikativni učinki. Slovenija ponuja veliko naravno in kulturno pestrost ter odlično kulinariko, ki ponavadi navduši. Izredno pomemben Logistični center pa je način predstavitve teh atributov tujcem, zato upam, da jih bomo za predsedovanje znali predstaviti na primeren način.

Slovenije EU.

Pričakujemo predvsem zahtevne goste na najvišjem nivoju. Boste zanje pripravili kaj posebnega, sodelujete s STO-jem?

Naš Urad za komuniciranje seveda tekoče sodeluje s STO-jem, mi pa se zaenkrat še nismo povezovali. Menim, da imamo dovolj dobre informacije, kateri slovenski kraji lahko ponudijo ustrezne kapacitete in storitve, tudi z ozirom na nivo gostov, ki jih pričakujemo. Ne mislim pa s tem na ignoriranje STO-ja, vsekakor nameravamo potem, ko bomo pripravili programe, za mnenje oziroma morebitno pomoč zaprositi tudi njih. S STO-jem pa, kot rečeno, bolj intenzivno sodeluje naš Urad za komuniciranje, ki ima glavno promotivno nalogo v času predsedovanja.

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trebe. Sicer pa je to ena od stvari, ki me v času predsedovanja izjemno skrbi. Tudi zaradi dejstva, da se bo ob uradnih dogodkih odvijala še cela vrsta drugih. Ne smemo pozabiti na spremljevalne programe ostalih ministrstev, dogodke nevladnih organzacij ... in namestitev je eden velikih problemov Ljubljane, Bleda in cele osrednjeslovenske regije.

Kaj pa konferenčne kapacitete?

Nov objekt, ki ga gradijo na Brdu, bo pokril večino velikih dogodkov. Sicer pa Slovenija velike in primerne dvorane za 400-500 udeležencev, s sistemi za zahtevno prevajanje oziroma tolmačenje, nima. Ugtavljamo, da za velike dogodke manjka tudi primernih in dovolj velikih prostorov za gala večerje, kar me je, osebno, zelo presenetilo.

Mag. Franci Kodela

Kdo je pooblaščen za izbiro in rezervacijo kapacitet? Ste se tega lotili sami ali ste ta del obveznosti predali turističnemu gospodarstvu?

V osnovi smo naredili dve vrsti centralizacije. Prva je izbira centralne lokacije JGZ Brdo – kar je najbolj racionalna odločitev, saj ponuja bližino letališča, osebje ima potrebne izkušnje, komunikacijske poti so enake do Ljubljane in do Bleda, kjer bodo udeleženci nastanjeni, hkrati je aktualen tudi racionalni, ekonomski, cenovni razlog, saj bližina in stalna postavitev pomenita prihranke. Drugo centralizacijo pa smo naredili s tem, da je logistični center prevzel odgovornost za vse dogodke, tako na ministrski ravni kot pod njo. To pomeni, da smo mi zadolženi tudi za rezervacijo vseh nastanitvenih kapacitet, kar smo že izvedli skoraj za vse dogodke, vsekakor pa za vse, ki so napovedani v koledarju. Na nedavnem srečanju na Bellevueju smo doživeli kritiko, da smo turističnim operaterjem pobrali preveč nastanitvenih kapacitet, kar pa sem dejansko razumel kot pohvalo, da smo dovolj zgodaj rezervirali po-

Cankarjev dom?

Cankarjev dom je edini, ki ima ta hip ustrezen prostor, ki pa je dejansko preddverje in ne dvorana. Ne želim biti kritičen, vendar namenske dvorane praktično ni. Sicer pa bomo CD dejansko uporabili, tudi zaradi njihovih profesionalnih storitev.

Portorož?

Kar se tiče namestitvenih kapacitet je ena boljših, če ne celo najboljša destinacija, nekoliko šibka pa v kongresnem delu, čeprav ponuja nekaj zanimivih dvoran, ki pa so po velikosti premale. Menim, da bi bilo zelo priporočljivo, če bi Portorož prišel do kakšne večje dvorane. V kolikor se bo tradicija predsedovanja nadaljevala in se bo širil tudi režim tolmačenja, si lahko v prihodnosti tako mi kot ostale države, ki jih predsedovanje še čaka, obetamo resne težave. Upam, da se bodo ostali od nas česa naučili, predvsem smotrnosti centralizacije. Če je na enem mestu velika dvorana in nekaj večnamenskih manjših, skupaj z vso ustrezno infrastrukturo, tudi namestitveno, je zadeva veliko lažja in cenovno ugodnejša. Dosedaj predsedujoče države so pogosto uporabljale tudi svoje razstaviščne kapacitete, ki pa se ne morejo primerjati z našimi.

Kako je potekala komunikacija s hotelskimi ponudniki?

Zelo korektno in brez težav. Tukaj dejansko nimam nikakršnih pripomb. Lahko pohvalim vse glavne hotele, ljubljanske Union, Domino Grand Media in Lev ter verigo hotelov Sava hoteli Bled, in že v tem trenutku se lahko zahvalim za njihovo izjemno kooperativnost in korekten odnos. Zavedamo pa se seveda, da imajo hoteli tudi svoje stalne goste in da bo verjetno z naše strani prihajalo do dodatnih povpraševanj po namestitvi, vendar računam na fleksibilnost in kooperativnost, dokler bodo sobe seveda na voljo. Ob rezervacijah smo si vzeli nekaj rezerve in upam, da bo dovoljšnja. Že obstaja ocena stroškov predsedovanja?

O tem govoriti v tem trenutku je zelo nehvaležno. Prva ocena stroškov slovenskega predsedovanja je bila 13 milijard 600 milijonov nekdanjih slovenskih tolarjev, vendar moram opozoriti, da je bila ta ocena narejena za manj dogodkov z manjšo pestrostjo, saj nismo dovolj pozornosti namenjali vsebini dogodkov. Danes vemo, da dogodki niso samo »matematika«, saj imajo sporočilno noto – »prihajam, da nekaj vidim« - kar je pogosto izražena želja in tradicija ob rednem, plenarnem delu. Dogodki,

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ki se odvijajo v času predsedovanja, imajo poleg formalnega tudi zelo močan neformalni del ter promocijo.

Bo ta dodatni del, turistična promocija Slovenije, organiziran?

Naš logistični center je zadolžen za vso logistiko, tako neformalnega, delovnega dela dogodka, za plenarni del, transporte in tudi za ta drugi, družbeno – socialni del.

Vse to pripravljamo.

Imate za te aktivnosti tudi dovolj ustrezno usposobljenih kadrov?

Na vprašanje, ali imamo v tem trenutku dovolj ljudi, lahko z gotovostjo odgovorim, da ne. Vendar pa sem pripričan, da jih bomo do takrat, ko se bo po njih pokazala dejanska, praktična potreba, imeli. V tem trenutku smo kadrovsko okrnjeni. Moram pa reči, da vse sedanje aktivnosti delamo profesionalno, a tudi zelo entuziastično, da smo vsi, celotna naša ekipa, čustveno povezani s predsedovanjem. Na projekt lahko gledamo z dveh zornih kotov, kot veliko breme ali pa kot osebni izziv, kot ga jemljemo mi. Prepričan sem, da so naše ideje dobre in dejstvo je, da delo poteka skladno s terminskim planom. Nikoli ne bom pozabil besed avstrijskega kolega, ki pravi – predsedovanja se ne da napisati, treba ga je doživeti in čutiti. Verjamem, da bomo s predsedovanjem uspeli predvsem v primeru, če ga bomo Slovencem us-

peli predstaviti kot naš skupen projekt. Da bodo ljudje kakšno za nekaj minut zaprto cesto sprejeli z razumevanjem in ponosom, da se nekaj pomembnega dogaja, namesto z negodovanjem.

Pa se s tem namenom za državljane Slovenije pripravljajo kakšne akcije tovrstnega osveščanja?

Upam, da ja. Jaz kot Franci Kodela bi s tem že začel. Pred dopusti bi morali narediti prvi krog, jeseni pa drugega. To je moje osebno mnenje. Tudi zato, ker se mi pogosto dogaja, da me sicer zelo razgledani ljudje sprašujejo, kaj sploh pomeni naše predsedovanje. Po tem sklepam, da na splošno premalo vemo, kaj nas čaka.

Se nameravate v prihodnosti povezati z domačimi strokovnjaki s področja kongresne dejavnosti?

V tem trenutku še samostojno izvajamo vse priprave za organizacijo in izvedbo dogodkov, tako v njihovem plenarnem kot družabno turističnem delu. Ne izključujemo pa možnosti, da bi v primeru, da bi se pokazala potreba, poiskali pomoč ustrezne agencije.

Jakica Jesih

Predsedovanje je političen projekt Miha Kovačič, predsednik Zavoda – Kongresnoturistični urad Kakšen je pomen predsedovanja EU za Slovenijo in slovenski turizem?

Kot predstavnik Kongresnoturističnega urada se zavedam, da je predsedovanje EU političen projekt. Iniciator je politika, udeleženci so politiki, ne pa gospodarstveniki ali strokovna združenja, zato so tudi dogodki organizirani v tem smislu. Predsedovanje bo za seboj zagotovo potegnilo druge dogodke, ki pa bodo lahko tudi gospodarskega značaja. Nad slednjimi sploh še nimamo pregleda, glede prvih pa smo od predstavnika vlade dobili informacijo o načrtu, številu dogodkov ter poteku dogajanja. Z vidika slovenske kongresne industrije predsedovanje EU pomeni promocijo, saj se bo odvijalo več dogodkov kot doslej; na letnem nivoju je v Sloveniji približno 7.000 dogodkov, predsedovanje jih bo pripeljalo

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kov. Treba pa je opozoriti tudi na to, da je pri njih siceršnji obseg dogodkov bistveno večji. V Sloveniji je težava, ker so omejene predvsem hotelske kapacitete, in če pride k nam kakšen večji dogodek, se to nekako dotakne celotne slovenske turistične scene.

Miha Kovačič

dodatnih 300 novih, kar ne predstavlja velikega dodatnega obsega.

Dejstvo pa je, da se bodo odvijali v kratkem časovnem obdobju, ko utegne škripati pri prostih kapacitetah. Ponudniki kongresnih storitev se veselijo predsedovanja, ker bodo dobili posel, tudi hotel Kokra oziroma Brdo pri Kranju, ki pridobiva novo kapaciteto, bo dobro zaseden. Tudi ostali ponudniki – člani Kongresnega urada – bodo zasedli svoje kapacitete, kar jim bo prineslo nekaj več posla, da pa bi predsedovanje pomenilo veliko promocijo na mednarodnem nivoju, sem rahlo skeptičen. Ne verjamem, da bo obseg promocije takšen, kot se je vsi nadejamo. Kot je povedal g. Krajc, večina ljudi v Evropi, vključno s Slovenci, ne ve, kdo trenutno predseduje Evropski skupnosti. Gre za povsem političen projekt in velikega števila ljudi politika ne zanima. Bo pa predsedovanje zagotovo dobra izkušnja za ponudnike storitev, ki bodo organizirali nov tip dogodkov in se tudi na ta način na novo pozicionirali na evropskem tržišču. Morda bodo tako pridobili tudi nove dogodke.

Imate informacije, v kolikšni meri je predsedovanje vplivalo na turistične tokove v kateri od držav, ki so že predsedovale EU? Ko sem se na Dunaju pogovarjal s predsednikom njihovega mestnega kongresnega urada o vplivu predsedovanja na zasedenost kongresnih kapacitet, mi je presenetljivo odgovoril, da skoraj niso zabeležili višjega obsega dogod-

Kako ocenjujete količino in kakovost naših hotelskih in kongresnih kapacitet?

Vlada je zelo hitro ugotovila, da so naše kongresne kapacitete omejene, zato se je odločila za gradnjo novega kongresnega centra na Brdu, kar pozdravljamo. Da pa bo ta center zares zaživel tudi po koncu predsedovanja, potrebuje v neposredni bližini tudi namestitvene kapacitete.

Zaenkrat kapaciteta kongresnega centra in razpoložljivih namestitvenih kapacitet nista v sorazmerju, kar pomeni, da bi na Brdu morali zgraditi še hotel z nekaj sto sobami. Šele tako bi ta center dolgoročno lahko postal zanimiv za mednarodne dogodke, ki edini lahko napolnijo tolikšne kapacitete. Za udeležence dogodkov je nesprejemljivo, da se od letališča do odličnega kongresnega centra peljejo deset minut, zvečer, po koncu napornega dneva, pa se morajo na nočitev odpraviti v pol ure oddaljeno mesto. S takšno ponudbo na mednarodnem trgu enostavno ne bomo konkurenčni. Drugače je seveda s političnimi dogodki, ki so večinoma enodnevni, ljudje zjutraj priletijo in se zvečer vračajo, a žal teh na mednarodnem nivoju ni dovolj. Veliko več pa je mednarodnih korporacijskih dogodkov in dogodkov strokovnih združenj, ki jih bo center na Brdu prav tako primoran pridobivati, in kjer igra pomembno vlogo druženje, zato običajno vključujejo vsaj eno nočitev. V tem primeru se bo omenjena pomanjkljivost zagotovo zelo izrazito pojavljala. Seveda pa je vprašanje, če se bo center na Brdu v prihodnosti sploh tržil na takšen način.

Se z namenom zagotovitve kapacitet v času predsedovanja gradijo še kakšne dodatne kapacitete?

O tem nimam informacij, se pa občuti pospešeno vlaganje v investicije v kongresne in hotelske kapacitete v zadnjih letih tudi zaradi predsedovanja. Večino hotelov in kongresnih centrov so zato pravočasno obnovili, če izpostavim samo Cankarjev dom in Gospodarsko razstavišče, pospešeno se obnavlja tudi na obali. Verjetno bo temu obdobju sledilo manjše zatišje. Ugotavljamo 10% porast dogodkov pri ključnih akterjih, kar je nad slovenskim povprečjem; čim bo zasedenost namestitvenih kapacitet v ključnih destinacijah dosegla mednarodni nivo, lahko pričakujemo vstop tujih hotelskih verig in tujih ponudnikov, kar z vidika povečanja kapacitet pozdravljamo.

Se lahko slovenska kongresna ponudba po kakovosti meri s ponudbo v državah, ki so že predsedovale EU? Slovenija ima na področju organizacije kongresov, tudi najbolj zahtevnih, izkušnje že preko 20 let. Tudi iz lastnih izkušenj lahko povem, da smo bili Slovenci vedno vrhunski gostitelji. Če bodo v organizacijo predsedovanja EU vključeni pravi akterji, bomo dokazali, da je Slovenija sposobna organizirati tudi dogodke najvišjega nivoja, hkrati pa lahko ponudi še lepote in zanimivosti kot turistična destinacija. Prepričan sem, da se bo ob množici udeležencev, ki nas bodo v tem času obiskali, našlo določeno število takih, ki se bodo vračali, bodisi iz poslovnih ali osebnih interesov, česar si dejansko vsi želimo.

Ali menite, da bi morala vlada pri organizaciji aktivnosti tesneje sodelovati s strokovnjaki s področja kongresne dejavnosti?

Vlada bi se morala pri pripravi na predsedovanje povezati s strokovnjaki s področja kongresne dejavnosti. Izvedba srečanj ni samo organizacija prevoza, najem dvoran in rezervacije hotelske namestitve ter mogoče še kakšne večerje, ampak še veliko več. Zavod-Kongresnoturistični urad bi kot neprofitna organizacija, ki nudi strokovne in nepristranske informacije o destinacijah, krajih dogodkov in ponudnikih dogodkov

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lahko ponudil ustrezno pomoÄ?.

Obenem Urad deluje kot profesionalni posrednik med organizatorji dogodkov, ponudniki storitev in podpornimi organizacijami, katerim skupni cilj je najti Ä?imbolj ustrezno reĹĄitev za organizacijo in izvedbo dogodka.

Med naĹĄimi 54 Ä?lani so kongresni centri in hoteli, profesionalni kongresni organizatorji (t.i. PCO) in strokovne kongresne turistiÄ?ne agencije (t.i. DMC), Zavod za turizem Ljubljana ter drugi ponudniki storitev. Povedano drugaÄ?e - vsi, ki se profesionalno ukvarjajo s kongresno dejavnostjo.

Za primer lahko navedemo Finsko, kjer so skoraj eno leto pred zaÄ?etkom predsedovanja v ekipo za priprave na predsedovanje vkljuÄ?ili predstavnico enega od kongresnih uradov.

Jakica Jesih

Evropa med Portugalsko in Slovenijo Mag. Dimitrij Piciga, direktor STO KakĹĄen je pomen predsedovanja EU za slovenski turizem?

Predsedovanje Sloveniji Evropski uniji je za slovenski turizem velikega pomena, saj je prav turistiÄ?na dejavnost tista, ki bo imela od predsedovanja najveÄ?je neposredne in posredne uÄ?inke. Ocenjujemo, da bo Slovenijo v Ä?asu njenega predsedovanja EU obiskalo med 15.000 in 20.000 tujih gostov, diplomatov, gospodarstvenikov in drugih gostov zgolj v okviru predvidenih uradnih programov. Ne smemo pozabiti tudi potovanj Slovencev po Evropi v Ä?asu predsedovanja, saj gre za segment turizma, ki ga premalo poudarjamo. Na drugi strani predsedovanje predstavlja priloĹžnost, da se Slovenija tuji javnosti predstavi kot drĹžava z vsebinskimi tematikami, ki bodo imele velik pomen za prihodnost Evrope.

Za Slovensko turistiÄ?no organizacijo se predsedovanje zaÄ?enja Ĺže v letoĹĄnjem letu, saj v naĹĄe aktivnosti intenzivno vkljuÄ?ujemo tematiko predsedovanja ter promocije Ljubljane kot prestolnice Evrope leta 2008. Leta 2008, v samem letu predsedovanja, STO naÄ?rtuje tudi vrsto predstavitevenih aktivnosti naĹĄe deĹžele na vseh evropskih trgih, ter vrsto promocijskih dogodkov, kar se bo zgodilo prviÄ?. Te predstavitve bodo ob rednih naÄ?rtovanih predstavitvah Slovenije predstavljale dodano vrednost v promociji naĹĄe drĹžave.

Katere aktivnosti naÄ?rtuje STO v Ä?asu pred in katere med predsedovanjem?

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nja Slovenije uniji bomo izkoristili za promocijo naše države tako, da bomo z aktivnostmi na nekatrih trgih opozarjali, da Slovenija obstaja – seveda na trgih, kjer je prepoznavnost nizka, na drugih trgih pa bomo ciljano sporočali, kaj Slovenija ponuja. Dogodki promocije bodo tako pisani na kožo posameznih državam oz. določenemu ciljnemu trgu.

Mag. Dimitrij Piciga

Celoten projekt promocije Slovenije ob predsedovanju EU je v fazi zaključnega usklajevanja. Brez dvoma bo STO skupaj z Uradom vlade RS za komuniciranje pri tem prevzela pomembno vlogo koordinatorja promocijskih aktivnosti v tujini. V Sloveniji bo STO deloval kot ”servis” in osrednji partner pri promociji, za samo logistiko pa bo pristojen Logistični center vlade RS. Gre za celovit marketinški projekt, ki bo razširjen na vse države članice EU. Prav ta široka dimenzija je tisto, kar ocenjujemo za slovenski turizem kot največjo dodano vrednost ob priložnosti predsedovanja uniji. Naj poudarim, da tudi nastop oz. predstavitev Slovenije na manjših trgih ocenjujemo kot zelo pomemben, in te trge temu ustrezno vključujemo v program promocijskih aktivnosti.

Več o celotnem programu promocije bo znanega po 1. maju. Omenim naj, da bo v projekt intenzivno vključeno celotno turistično gospodarstvo po formuli partnerskega sodelovanja. Promocija v tujini bo temeljila na nekaj deset nosilnih dogodkih in paleti manjših spremljevalnih dogodkih. Na projektu že od septembra 2006 intenzivno dela koordinacijska skupina Urada vlade za komuniciranje in STO s ciljem privabiti v Slovenijo čim več tujih turistov, predstavnikov strokovnih javnosti ter gospodarstvenikov. Naj poudarim, da je promocija predsedovanja v tujini enako pomembna kot izvedba samega predsedovanja v Bruslju in Sloveniji. Priložnost predsedova-

Ali so znane informacije, koliko je s turističnega vidika v času predsedovanja iztržila Avstrija?

Sodelovanje z avstrijsko nacionalno turistično organizacijo je odlično in vodstvo nam je posredovalo naslednje ocene rezultatov predsedovanja: • blizu 35 miljonov obiskovalcev je obiskalo spletni portal www.eu2006.at, ki ga je Avstrija pripravila prav za namen predsedovanja EU, • podokence aktualno na portalu Europa on-line je vsebovalo več kot 3000 dokumentov, • potekalo je 513 uradno evidentiranih dogodkov, • organizatorji so poslali preko 2250 newslettrov, • 24 največjih dogodkov so spremljale tiskovne konference, • 75000 oseb se je poskusilo v e-kvizu; podobnega pripravljamo tudi v Sloveniji kot nadgradnjo kviza “chat & play“, • Avstrija je imela po neuradnih ocenah hotelirjev 50.000 gostov.

Menim, da bo Slovenija po številu dogodkov, vezanih na predsedovanje, zelo blizu Avstriji. Neposredno zaradi predsedovanja uniji se bo v Sloveniji po naši oceni mudilo med 15.000 – 20.000 obiskovalcev. Že sedaj je jasno, da bo turistično leto 2008, kljub eventuelnim klimatskim spremembam, ki vplivajo na turistični obisk Slovenije, uspešno.

Sama velikost države ni soodvisna z vsebino promocije, zato lahko avstrijske uspehe vzamemo kot osnovo za primerjavo za Slovenijo, prepričan pa sem, da lahko Avstrijo na področju promocije v tujini celo prekosimo.

Primernejša je po mojem mnenju na tem področju primerjava Slovenije s Finsko in Portugalsko. Drugega januarja 2008 pripravljamo simbolično primopredajo predsedovanja. Portugalci se bodo predstavili na sejmu turistizma v Ljubljani in obratno. S tem bomo tudi simbolično udejanili slogan “Evropa – dežela med Portugalsko in Slovenijo”.

Kateri segmenti slovenskega turizma bodo vključeni v projekt predsedovanja?

STO je neposredno vsebinsko vključena v promocijo na tujih trgih, sodelujemo pa tudi pri izvedbi aktivnostih v Sloveniji. V aktivnostih, vezanih na predsedovanje, bo vključeno celotno turistično gospodarstvo. V vseh projektih bodo sodelovali naši stalni partnerji, v določenih aktivnostih pa bodo sodelovala druga slovenska podjetja. Podrobnosti glede nekaterih aktivnosti so še v fazi usklajevanja. Ne smemo pozabiti, da bo STO razen teh aktivnosti izvajal tudi redne, pri katerih sodelujejo naši partnerji in te bodo še dodatno razširjene na promocijo države. Na drugi strani bo STO aktivna tudi pri soorganizaciji dogodkov, ki niso striktno povezani s turizmom (koncerti, drugi dogodki) v državah, ki niso na seznamu naših ključnih turističnih emitivnih trgov. Pri tem bomo sodelovali s partnerji, ki do sedaj niso bili tako intenzivno povezani z STO. Politika partenstva torej ostaja prioriteta delovanja. Neposredno v izvedbo dogodkov v Sloveniji bodo vključeni tudi prevozniki, hotelirji in ponudniki drugih turističnih storitev, predvsem v Ljubljani in na Bledu, za vzporedne dogodke pa tudi v drugih turističnih središčih. Pogosto namreč pozabljamo na tiste, ki se bodo dogajali ob predsedovanju. V času predsedovanja bodo Slovenijo obiskale številne gospodarske delegacije, pri čemer so za organizacijo teh dogodkov odgovorna posamezna ministrstva. Kot enega od dogodkov, ki bodo potekali v tem času in kjer je STO organizator, naj navedemo srečanje predstavnikov European Travel Comission, aprila 2008 na Bledu.

Ob tako številnih dogodkih je velikega pomena ažurna uskladitev koledarja vseh dogodkov. Seveda se bodo ob dogodkih, vezanih na

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predsedovanje, odvijali tudi drugi, za katere pa kapacitete na Brdu ne bodo zadostovale.

Ali STO sodeluje z logističnim centrom na Vladi glede organizacije srečanj in glede ostalih dodatnih turističnih aktivnosti in kako?

STO je seznanjena z vsemi aktivnostmi in pripravami na predsedovanje. Neposredno je STO koordinator promocije predsedovanja uniji v tujini, pri čemer dnevno sodelujemo z Uradom Vlade za komuniciranje. Neposrednega sodelovanja z logističnim centrom v tem trenutku še ni. Če pa bo potrebno, bo STO zagotovil potrebno podporo tudi na tem področju.

Kako komentirate, da imamo komaj zadosti primerno kakovostnih kapacitet za namestitev prijavljenih udeležencev in kakšno rešitev predlagate v primeru dodatnih rezervacij?

Kar se tiče Ljubljane, je kar nekaj novih hotelskih projektov pred zaključkom izvedbe. Kar nekaj je hotelov, ki so razširili svoje kapacitete. Zagotovo so meseci, ko kapacitete ne zadostujejo povpraševanju, so pa tudi poletni meseci, ko so kapacitete zelo slabo zasedene.

Graditi nove hotelske kapacitete samo zaradi predsedovanja EU je po mojem mnenju vprašljivo. Pomembno je, da so obstoječe kapacitete tudi ustrezno zasedene, da so lahko komercialno uspešne. Z vidika lastnikov kapacitet veliko vlogo namreč igra doseženi dobiček na vložena investicijska sredstva. Ocenjujem, da bi se v primeru hudega pomanjkanja kapacitet že našli investitorji v njihovo razširitev. To pomeni, da bi morali biti hoteli na letni ravni zasedeni vsaj 70 %. Na letni osnovi pa v Ljubljani zaenkrat še ni takšnega pomanjkanja nastanitvenih kapacitet.

Razen pozitivnih vplivov predsedovanja velja izpostaviti tudi negativne učinke, ki jih posebej izpostavljajo turistične agencije. Hotelirji večinoma skušajo stalnim partnerjem zagotoviti minimalne nastanitvene kapacitete, kadar pa to ni mogoče, lahko predstavlja priložnosti za druge kraje, da pridobijo goste in dogodke, ki so se do sedaj odvijali v Ljubljani. Pomembno je najti odgovor na vprašanje, kako ob vrsti dogodkov ob predsedovanju zagotoviti ustrezne kapacitete tudi za tiste dogodke, ki se tradicionalno odvijajo ter zagotoviti ustezno namestitev gostom, ki v Slovenijo ne pridejo zgolj zaradi predsedovanja uniji. To pomeni, da se bodo hoteli prihodnje leto soočili z novo situacijo glede obvladovanja “hotelskega yielda“.

Ali načrtujete kakšne aktivnosti za osveščanje javnosti v smislu “turizem smo ljudje”, saj bomo prav vsi v tem obdobju živeli s predsedovanjem in bomo na nek način “turistični delavci“?

Posebna akcija v tem kontekstu ni načrtovana. Načrtovana pa je močna promocijsjka akcija na domačem trgu pod sloganom “I feel Slovenia“, v okviru katere se bo napovedalo predsedovanje in drugi z njim povezani projekti. Predsedovanje je za slovenski turizem pomembna priložnost, ne bo pa temeljito spremenilo slovenskega turizma. To priložnost lahko izkoristimo, in na njeni osnovi beležimo pozitivne rezultate, pri čemer pa je pomembno, da bodo vsi gostje, ki bodo obiskali Slovenijo, zadovoljni in se tudi domov vrnili kot ambasadorji ter tako v tujino ponesli dober glas o Sloveniji. Ne pozabimo, da moramo ustrezno pozornost nameniti tudi 2,5 miljijonom gostov, ki letno obiščejo Slovenijo. Novo znamko, na kateri bo temeljila promocija naše države, pa bo potrebno najprej sprejeti doma, da bi jo lahko ustrezno komunicirali tudi na tujih trgih. Predsedovanje je lahko dobra priložnost, da se Slovenci identificiramo z novo tržno znamko države.

Kako se bo v aktivnosti vključila Ljubljana kot prestolnica Evrope?

Ljubljana se že v letošnjem letu predstavlja kot prestolnica Evrope. V okviru te predstavitve potekajo številni promocijski projekti. Pri izvajanju promocijskih aktivnosti sodeluje kot strateški partner Zavod za turizem Ljubljana, ki je po strokovnosti in številu največji slovenska lokalna turistična organizacija. Sodelovanje med obema inštitucijama je zgledno in v takšnem partnerstvu se rojevajo številne zanimive turistične ideje.

Ali bodo sejemski in borzni nastopi v letošnjem letu obarvani v duhu predsedovanja?

Borzni nastopi bodo izvajani z novo stojnico in novo celostno podobo in v skladu s strategijo trženja, ki poudarja lokalne posebnosti.

Kakšna je vloga Kongresnega urada Slovenije?

Kongresni urad se bo v juniju združil s kongresnim oddelkom STO. Vse trženjske aktivnosti za ta segment, ki so bile doslej razbite na več oddelkov, se združijo v en oddelek. Ta bo sodeloval ali vodil vse ključne dogodke STO-ja v Sloveniji. To je priložnost tudi za vse obstoječe člane Kongresnega urada.

Gorazd Čad

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The 2008 EU Presidency

Will we be Ready?

The added value of the Presidency is those participants who return later with their Families

Slovenia is to preside over the EU in 2008.

At that time, it will lead all the working groups and other working bodies of the Council of the Franci Kodela, MSc, Head of the Slovenian EU Presidency Logistics Centre European Union.

The Presidency has great “Simply said, the EU Presidency means that we will lead the European for these six months in the same way as our ministries manage promotional significance Union the affairs of the Republic of Slovenia. We will manage the dossiers and for Slovenia and it also working groups, which is a great sigh of recognition for us at this moment.” This was the very simple definition of the Presidency given to holds great promise us by Franci Kodela, MSc, Deputy General Secretary of the Government for Slovenian tourism. of the Republic of Slovenia and Head of the Slovenian EU Presidency Logistics Centre.

Around two hundred What does the EU Presidency mean for Slovenia and Slovenian events are expected at various levels in Slovenia tourism?

The EU Presidency is undoubtedly very significant for both Slovenia and the locations where events go on. The main location for the alone. We've discussed of conferences is to be Brdo near Kranj, though the the EU Presidency and its organisation accommodation and accompanying programmes will be held all over importance for Slovenian Slovenia. Most participants will stay in Ljubljana and at Bled, which are closest to Brdo and the airport, while the events will also take place in tourism with Dimitrij Maribor, on the coast and at Terme Čatež Health Resort. I estimate that the coverage of Slovenia will be relatively wide and varied in terms of Piciga, MSc, Director accompanying events. I agree that places where participants stay of the Slovenian Tourist should have the greatest concentration of events, but this does not mean that we will not promote other cities and towns. We ascribe Board, Miha Kovačič, lesser significance to what participants see, or how they spend time Director of the Slovenian during their first visit to Slovenia if they do not return, but the added value of the Presidency is the participants who return later with their Convention Bureau and families. Austria put around €90 million into the Presidency and earned Franci Kodela, MSc, an estimated €200 million from it. This is a tidy sum that shows exemDeputy General Secretary plary success; nevertheless I believe that this is not all, for cumulative effects must follow later. of the Government of Slovenia has a wide variety of natural and cultural features and the Republic of Slovenia. excellent and highly esteemed cuisine. What’s most important is how to present these qualities to foreigners, and I hope that we know how to present them in the right way.

We are especially awaiting the demanding guests of the ‘highest level’. Are you going to do anything special for them and are you working with the Slovenian Tourist Board?

Naturally our Government Communication Office works with the Slovenian Tourist Board on an ongoing basis – however at this time we are not affiliated with them. I think that we have enough quality information available with which Slovenian areas can offer appropriate

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venues and services – including for the level of guests we are expecting. But I don't mean to ignore the STB, and we intend to ask for their opinion and eventual help once the programmes have been prepared. Our Government Communication Office, which is to play the main promotional role during the EU Presidency, co-operates more intensively with the STB. Who is in charge of choosing and reserving venues? Are you doing this yourself or handing over this part of the obligations to the tourist sector?

In general, we’ve created two forms of centralisation. The first was the choice of the central location at Brdo – the most rational decision – which offers short distance to the airport and staff who have the required experience – and where communication routes are identical for both Ljubljana and Bled where the participants are to stay. At the same time, it’s also sensible for rational, economic and cost reasons, as its proximity and permanent set up mean savings. The other centralisation scenario that was set up was the Logistics Centre taking over responsibility for all events, both at ministerial level and below. This means that we’re also responsible for the reservation of all accommodation, which we’d already executed previously for nearly all events and by all means for everything on the calendar. At a recent meeting at Bellevue, we got some criticism that we’ve taken too much accommodation space from tourist operators, but I actually saw this as a compliment, in that that we’d booked accommodation early enough.

Of course, this is one of the things which really concern me during the Presidency.

Also in the sense that a whole range of other events will go on alongside the official events ... and accommodation is one of the bigger problems, for Ljubljana, Bled and for all of central Slovenia.

What about conference venues?

The new facility being built ay Brdo will cover most of the big events.

However, Slovenia doesn't have adequate halls, large enough to take 400-500 participants with the systems required for translation or interpretation. We are facing a shortage of adequate sized areas suitable for gala dinners and larger events, which personally quite surprised me.

Cankarjev dom?

Cankarjev dom is the only facility currently big enough but it’s, in fact, a vestibule and not a hall. I don't want to come across as critical, but practically no dedicated halls exist. We will however also utilise Cankarjev dom for its professional services.

Portorož?

In terms of accommodation, Portorož is one of the better, if not the best destination. It’s a bit weak on the convention side though it’s got several interesting halls, which are nevertheless too small. I believe it would be very advisable, if Portorož could somehow get some bigger halls. If the traditional type of Presidency continues, with evermore interpretation, we face serious problems in the future, as will other nations awaiting the Presidency. I hope that others learn something from us, especially about the benefits of centralisation. If a large hall and several multi-purpose smaller halls exist in one location, together with all the right infrastructure and accommodation, the matter is much easier and better in terms of price. Previous presiding nations frequently used their fair premises as well, which ours can’t compare with.

How was communication carried out with the hotel providers?

Totally correctly and with no problems. I’ve really got no complaints here. I can praise all the main hotels, Ljubljana's Union, the Domina Grand Media and the Lev, and the Sava Hotels Bled group, and I’d like to take a moment to thank them for their immense co-operation and good attitude. Nevertheless, we do realise that hotels also have permanent guests and that, on our part, we’ll probably need additional accommodation. However, I am counting on their flexibility and cooperation as long, of course, as rooms are available. We’ve secured some extra rooms with the reservations and I hope they will suffice.

Does a cost estimate already exist for the Presidency?

To speak of this now is quite a thankless task. The initial cost estimate for the Slovenian Presidency was about SIT 13.6 billion, however I must caution that this estimation was made for fewer events and with less variety, as we hadn’t paid enough attention to event content. Today we know that events do not merely encompass ‘mathematics’, they carry a message – “I'm coming to see something” – which is a frequently expressed wish and tradition alongside the regular plenary work.

Events happening during the Presidency have an extremely strong informal and promotional part, in addition to a formal portion.

Will this additional part, the promotion of Slovenian tourism, be organised?

Our Logistics Centre is responsible for all logistics, both for the formal and informal parts of events – for the plenary parts, transportation and other social parts. We’ll prepare for all this.

Do you have enough qualified staff for these activities?

Regarding the question of whether we now have enough people, I can say with certainty that no, we don't. However, I am sure that we will have by the time an actual and practical need arises. At the moment we are short of staff. I must say, however, that all current activities are being

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performed professionally and quite enthusiastically and our whole team is emotionally involved in the Presidency. We can look at the project from two angles, either as a large burden or as a personal challenge, which is how we see it.

I’m sure our ideas are good and the fact is that our work is being done in line with the time plan.

I will never forget the words of an Austrian colleague who said that the Presidency can’t be ‘described’, one must experience it and feel it. I think it’ll be a successful Presidency, especially if we manage to successfully present it as our joint project to the Slovenian people, so people accept a road being closed for a few minutes with understanding and with pride that something important is going on, rather than with complaints.

Are any promotional campaigns being prepared to inform the people of Slovenia?

I hope so, yes. I, Franci Kodela as a person, would certainly start with that. We should implement a first round before the holidays and then a second in the autumn. That's my personal opinion, because it often happens that highly educated people and experts ask me what our Presidency even means.

This makes me think that we really know too little about what awaits us.

The Finnish government employed convention experts for almost a year to help prepare for the Presidency. Are you planning anything similar?

Currently, we’re still making all the preparations for the organisation and implementation of events independently, both at plenary level and the social and tourist levels. However, we don’t rule out the possibility of seeking the help of the appropriate agencies if the need arises.

Jakica Jesih

The EU Presidency is a political project Miha Kovačič, President of the Slovenian Convention Bureau What does the EU Presidency mean for Slovenian tourism?

As a representative of the Slovenian Convention Bureau, I’m aware that the EU Presidency is a political project. The initiator is politics and the participants are politicians, not economists or expert associations, thus events are also organised in this sense. The Presidency will certainly bring with it other events which may also be of an economic nature.

As yet, we don’t have a view of the latter, but with regard to the first, we’ve obtained information about the plan, number of and course of the events from government representatives. From the viewpoint of the Slovenian meetings industry, the EU Presidency means promotion, as more events will be carried out then; about 7,000 events are held in Slovenia annually, while the Presidency will add a further 300, which isn’t a considerable extra scope. The fact is that they’ll happen in a short time period, which could lead to a shortage of space.

Meeting service providers are eagerly awaiting the Presidency as they’ll get business, as will the Hotel Kokra and Brdo near Kranj which with its new capacity will certainly be fully occupied.

Other providers – members of the Slovenian Convention Bureau – will fill their capacities, getting somewhat more business. I’m a bit sceptical that the Presidency will involve a great promotion on the international level. I don’t think that promotion will be to the extent

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we all hope. As Mr Krajc says, most Europeans, including Slovenes, don’t know which Member State currently holds the EU Presidency. This is particularly a political project and a lot of people aren’t interested in politics.

The Presidency will however, certainly be a good experience for service providers, who will organise new forms of events and reposition themselves in the European market. Perhaps they may in this way also get new events.

Do you know how much effect the Presidency’s had on tourist points in any of the countries who’ve already presided over the EU? When I spoke to a representative of the Vienna conference bureau regarding the effect of the Presidency on the occupancy of meeting capacities, he surprised me by saying that they’d really seen a higher number of events.

I should also point out that the scope of events in Vienna is much larger. The problem in Slovenia is mainly that hotel capacities are limited and if a larger event is held here, this has an effect on the whole Slovenian tourist scene.

How do you assess the quantity and quality of our hotel and meeting facilities?

The government quickly saw that our meeting capacities were limited, thus it decided to build a new congress centre in Brdo, something we welcome. For this centre to really thrive after the Presidency as well, it also needs accommodation capacity nearby.

Right now the congress centre’s capacity and accommodation available aren’t proportionate, meaning that another hotel with a few hundred rooms has to be built in Brdo. That’s the only way the centre can be a candidate for international events in the long-term, the only type which could fill such capacities. For event participants it’s unacceptable that it only takes ten minutes to get to an excellent congress centre from the airport, but in the evening at the end of a

trying day, they have a half-hour drive to their hotel. We simply can’t compete if that’s our offer on the international market. Political events are different of course, as they’re usually one-day events where people come in the morning and leave in the evening. Unfortunately there aren’t enough of these on the international level. There are many more international corporate events and expert association events which the centre in Brdo will be able to get, playing an important role in meetings that usually include at least one overnight stay. In this case, the capacity shortage would certainly stand out. Of course, there’s a question about whether the centre in Brdo will even market itself in such a way in the future.

Is any additional capacity being built to ensure there’s enough during the Presidency?

I don't have any information on this, but it can be seen in the accelerated investment in meeting and hotel capacity in recent years, also due to the Presidency. Most hotels and meeting venues have thus been promptly renovated, Cankarjev dom and Gospodarsko razstavišče to name but two, while renovations are also being speeded up on the coast. A short period of calm will probably follow this. We have seen 10% growth in key players’ events which is above the Slovenian average. Once hotel occupancy in key destinations reaches international levels, we can also expect the arrival of foreign hotel chains and service providers, which we welcome in the sense of increased capacities.

Can the Slovenian meeting offer measure up in terms of quality with offers in countries that have already presided over the EU? Slovenia has over 20 years’ experience in the area of meeting organisation, even the most demanding ones. In my experience, I can tell you that we Slovenes’ve always been superior hosts. If the right players are included in the organisation of the EU Presidency, we will show the world that Slovenia is also able to organise events at the highest level, while at the same time offering beauty and tourist destinations. I’m sure that given the number of people who will visit us in this period, there will be a certain number who return either on business or from personal interest, something that all of us want.

Do you think the government should co-operate more closely with meeting activity experts when organising activities?

To prepare for the Presidency, the government should form a close association with meeting activity experts. The implementation of meetings isn’t just the organisation of transport, the hire of halls, hotel reservations and perhaps a dinner or so, but a great deal more.

The Slovenian Convention Bureau could offer suitable help as a non-profit organisation that also provides expert and impartial information on destinations, event venues and event providers.

At the same time, the Bureau operates as a professional intermediary between event organisers, service providers and supporting organisations whose common objective is finding suitable solutions for the organisation and execution of events.

The fifty-four members include meeting venues and hotels, professional congress organisers (PCOs) and destination management companies (DMCs), the Ljubljana Tourist Board and other service providers. In other words, all those professionally involved in meeting activities.

Finland is a case where the representative office of the Convention Bureau was in the team preparing for the Presidency nearly a year in advance.

Jakica Jesih

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Europe: a land between Portugal and Slovenia Dimitrij Piciga, MSc. Director of the Slovenian Tourist Board How do you assess what the EU Presidency means for Slovenian tourism?

Slovenia’s Presidency of the EU is highly important for Slovenian tourism. The tourist sector will experience both direct and indirect effects from the Presidency. We estimate that 15,000 to 20,000 foreign guests, diplomats, economists and other guests will visit Slovenia just within the scope of the Presidency’s official programmes.

Also, we shouldn’t forget the Slovenes travelling throughout Europe during the Presidency, who make up a tourist segment that is sometimes underemphasised.

On the other hand, the Presidency is a chance for Slovenia to showcase itself as one of the countries bringing up topics that have great significance in the future of Europe.

For the Slovenian Tourist Board, the Presidency starts this year with the promotion of Ljubljana as the European Capital 2008. The STB is planning to carry out activities in all European markets in 2008 involving smaller promotional events that weren’t usual before, and these have added promotional value.

What activities is the Slovenian Tourist Board planning in the time preceding the Presidency and during it?

The entire project is in the final reconciliation phase and the STB, with the Government Communication Office, will certainly take on the important role of promotional coordinator abroad. In Slovenia, the STB will act as a service and the main partner in promotions, while the Slovenian Government Logistics Centre will be in charge of logistics.

This will be a complete marketing project, which we’ll extend to all the EU Member States. We think this part has the greatest added value for tourism. We also estimate that entry into the smaller markets is really important, as otherwise these markets would not be in the programme of activities. There’ll be more information on the entire programme after 1 May, while the entire tourist economy will be included intensively in the project according to the partnership formula, namely co-operation. Promotion abroad is based on some ten fundamental events and smaller accompanying ones. The co-ordination teams of the Government Communication Office and the STB have been working on the project intensively since September 2006 aiming to attract as many foreign tourists, members of the expert public and economists to Slovenia as possible. Let me emphasise that promotion abroad is as important as the execution of the Presidency in Brussels and Slovenia.

Through these activities, we inform the individual markets that Slovenia exists and communicate what Slovenia has to offer in a focused manner. Events will be tailored to individual countries.

Is information already available regarding, for example, what Austria gained during its EU Presidency from a tourism viewpoint?

Co-operation with the Austrian national tourist association is excellent and the management has sent an assessment on the results of the Presidency to us: • 35 million guests visited the website; • sub-menus under ‘current events’ on the Europa website contained over 3000 documents; • 513 officially recorded events were carried out; • organisers sent out over 2250 newsletters; • 24 of the largest events were accompanied by press conferences; • 75,000 people tried the e-quiz. Slovenia is preparing a similar quiz in the form of a prize-winning chat & play quiz; • according to estimates, Austrian hotels accommodated 50,000 guests.

I believe that Slovenia will closely match Austria in terms of the number of events. We think Slovenia will welcome 15,000 to 20,000 visitors as a direct result of the EU Presidency.

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It is already clear that the 2008 tourist year will not be threatened, despite climatic changes. The size of the country is not related to its content, so can Austria be comparable to Slovenia and I’m sure we can surpass Austria regarding promotions abroad.

Nevertheless, I feel it would be more suitable to compare ourselves to the Finns or the Portuguese. We are most comparable to Portugal and they will be an orientation point for us. We are also preparing a symbolic handover on 2 January 2008, in which the Portuguese will be present at a tourist fair in Ljubljana and vice versa. This act will symbolically implement the European slogan – a land between Portugal and Slovenia.

Which segments of Slovenian tourism will be included in the Presidency project?

The STB is both directly and contextually involved in promotion outside Slovenia, and we’ll also lend support to activities within the country. The entire tourist economy will be included in these activities.

Our usual partners will participate in all the projects, while specific activities will involve other Slovenian companies. Not all the details’ve been negotiated yet. The STB will also carry out classical activities, in which all partners will participate, expanded to make up promotion of the country. On the

other hand, the STB will take on the co-organisation of events that are not strictly connected to tourism (concerts and other events) in countries of less interest to tourists. Partners who’ve not previously been closely connected to the STB will co-operate in these efforts. The policy of partnership thus remains. Transport companies, hoteliers and other tourist service providers in Ljubljana and Bled will be included directly in events in Slovenia and in events scheduled in other tourist centres. We often forget events taking place alongside the Presidency. Numerous economic delegations will also visit Slovenia. Individual ministries are responsible for these events where, for example, the STB will act as organiser of the European Travel Commission in April 2008, with accommodation in Bled. What’s important is quick reconciliation of the events’ calendar and separation of the Presidency events and remaining events according to the unofficial rule on EU events. There is not enough space for such events at Brdo.

Is the Slovenian Tourist Board co-operating with the Slovenian Government Logistics Centre in terms of organising meetings and other tourist activities? If so, in what way?

The STB is fully aware of all the activities and preparations for the Presidency. It’s directly co-ordinating promotions abroad, and we cooperate with the Government Communication Office on a daily basis.

Right now, there’s no direct co-operation with the Logistics Centre.

If required, however, the STB will certainly ensure adequate support.

Are you aware that we barely have enough quality accommodation prepared for participants and how do you intend to resolve additional reservations if they arise?

As far as Ljubljana is concerned, quite a few new hotel projects are close to realisation. Several hotels have expanded their capacities. There are months when space is short, certainly, but there are also summer months when capacities are poorly filled. Construction of new hotels just for the EU Presidency is questionable, in my opinion. What’s important is that existing venues are commercially successful. This is an important gain from the viewpoint of the owners. I think that investors could be found in the case of an extreme shortage of space. This means that hotels would be at least 70% occupied on an annual level. On an annual basis, Ljubljana has not yet experienced such a deficiency.

In addition to the positive effects, we should also point out negative effects of the Presidency, especially highlighted by the tourist agencies. The majority of hoteliers try to understand that it’s necessary to ensure a minimum space for permanent partners and, when this isn’t possible, they

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offer other locations a chance to acquire business that was previously in Ljubljana.

The important question of how to maintain regular business remains open. Hotels will be faced with a new situation regarding the management of ‘hotel yield’.

What is the role of the Slovenian Convention Bureau?

The Slovenian Convention Bureau will join forces with the STB’s meetings department in June. All marketing activities for this segment, which were dispersed among a number of departments until now, will be combined into one department. It will manage and co-operate in all the key events of the STB in Slovenia. This will be an opportunity for all existing members of the Slovenian Convention Bureau.

Gorazd Čad

Are you planning any public awareness activities along the lines of ‘people are tourism’, for all of us will live with the Presidency in this period and will we all be ‘tourist workers’ in some way?

No special promotion is planned in this sense. A strong promotional campaign is planned on the domestic market, utilizing the ‘I feel Slovenia’ slogan though, and the Presidency and other associated projects will be announced within this scope. Although the Presidency is important, it won’t essentially change Slovenian tourism. We can exploit it and get a great deal from it, but what’s most important is that all our guests are happy and go home pleased, promoting Slovenia’s good reputation. Additionally, we also have to take care of the 2.5 million regular guests. The new brand name must first be accepted at home. This will be easier because of the Presidency.

How will Ljubljana, as the European Capital, be incorporated in these activities?

Ljubljana is already being showcased as a European Capital this year. A number of promotional projects are being carried out in this area. Our strategic partner, the Ljubljana Tourist Board, which is the largest Slovenian local tourist organization in terms of size and expertise, is co-operating in their implementation. Co-operation is exemplary with numerous interesting tourism ideas born out of such a partnership.

Will fairs and exchanges be flavoured with the spirit of the Presidency this year?

Exchanges will be carried out at a new stall, with a new image and in accordance with the marketing strategy, emphasising local particularities.

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Predsedovanje EU - Finska

Oh, kakšen cirkus …

Ste se kdaj spraševali, kako je sodelovati pri organizaciji srečanj, ko vaša država predseduje EU? Leena Sipilä je menila, da ve o tem vse, dokler ni prevzela organizacije srečanj ob šestmesečnem finskem predsedovanju.

težko se je bilo spopasti s hierarhijo, točno določenimi vzorci vedenja, z akreditacijo (nikoli registracijo) delegatov, s sistemom priponk, z zahtevami glede hotelov in izbiro prizorišč ter s tem, da je bilo treba na vsakem sestanku posneti zbirko »gasilskih fotografij«. »Mislim, da poznam vse dimenzije vseh sejnih površin v državi,« se nasmeje. »Konferenčnih in športnih dvoran, starih tovarn … Bili smo v enaindvajsetih različnih mestih na Finskem, ker se je hotel vsak minister, ki je bil gostitelj sestanka, pohvaliti z rojstnim krajem. Bili smo kot velik potujoči cirkus. Nekateri hoteli so se morali posodobiti ali pripeljati dodatno pohištvo, ali pa smo morali hotelsko osebje naučiti različnih stvari, kot je na primer 24-urna sobna postrežba. Nekatere delegacije iz držav izven EU in nekateri vodje vlad so imeli glavne kuharje, ki so vse pripeljali z zasebnim letalom, ki je moralo nekje pristati, šele potem so lahko prevzeli kuhinje.«

Leena Sipilä, ki zdaj spet sedi za svojo mizo v Kongresnem uradu Helsinki, si je petindvajset let nabirala izkušnje v kongresni industriji, preden so jo povabili, da se pridruži sekretariatu, ki je bil zadolžen za tehnične priprave sestankov za finsko predsedovanje EU. To je pomenilo, da se je morala septembra 2005 preseliti v pisarno predsednika vlade, da bi načrtovala 140 uradnih sestankov, ki jih je Finska gostila v času predsedovanja. »Mislila sem, da vem vse o organizaciji konferenc in dogodkov,« je povedala nekdanja direktorica Kongresnega centra Marina v Helsinkih, ki je bila, preden se je pridružila Kongresnemu uradu Helsinki, vodja PCO-ja in kongresnega oddelka v centru Tampere. »Toda zelo sem bila presenečena, ko sem odkrila, da so vladna srečanja tako drugačna in tako zapletena. Bila sem vzhičena in hkrati nisem mogla verjeti!«

Ustvarjen dohodek »Varnostnikov je bilo ogromno. Vsakega delegata je na vsakem prizorišču preverila policija. Mi smo prav tako imeli svoje varnostnike, tako kot tisti, ki so pripotovali z ministri, in vsi materiali so bili označeni za zaupne – nekaterih dokumentov nismo mogli poslati po elektronski pošti, zato smo jih morali pošiljati po staromodnih slih.

Celo kupovanje daril ni bilo vedno preprosto, ker smo morali vsaki državi članici EU poslati javni razpis za zbiranje ponudb, večinoma po Uradnem listu Evropske komisije, da smo lahko zagotovili lojalno konkurenco med vsemi dobavitelji. Prav tako smo imeli jasna merila o vrednosti daril glede na sestanek. Davkoplačevalci države gostiteljice so seveda plačali račun in to je draga stvar. Dobra stran pa je bila, da smo pri pripravi končnega poročila zbrali statistiko o ustvarjenem dohodku – glede na število prenočitev v šestih mesecih za 23.000 delegatov in druge prihodke – kar je vsekakor dobro za državo.«

21 različnih mest Kot vodja organizacije sestankov je bila del ekipe, ki je štela osemindvajset ljudi, med predsedovanjem EU pa je ta številka narasla celo na štirideset. Vedela je, da bo protokol pomemben, varovanje pa sploh. Še posebej

Helsinško sejmišče, pripravljeno na ASEM 6 • Helsinki Fair Centre ready for ASEM 6

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Preglavice Nepredvidljivost je bil še en dejavnik, ki se ga je gospa Sipilä morala navaditi. »Do zadnje minute nismo vedeli, kako velika bo delegacija, niti imen delegatov. Ministri nikoli ne potujejo sami, in če jih je bilo dvajset, jih je zelo verjetno spremljalo še dodatnih sto oseb članov kabineta, sekretarjev, uradnikov za zvezo, asistentov, da ne omenjam medijev. Tudi za hotelirje je bil to čas nervoze, kadar nismo dobili seznamov prej kot štiri ali pet dni pred prihodom.« Število delegatov, ki so smeli na sestanke in so jih predhodno najavili po vrstnem redu sedežev, je bilo strogo omejeno, toda običajno se jih je hotelo pomembnih sestankov udeležiti še več.

Zato so bile izdane priponke rdeče, modre ali rumene barve, ki jih je uradnik za zvezo odnesel in razdelil med svoje delegate. »Še posebej pri plenarnih sestankih nismo nikoli natančno vedeli, kakšen bo program,« pojasnjuje gospa Sipilä. »Vedno smo morali biti pripravljeni za vrati, če bi najavili nenačrtovan odmor za kavo, medtem ko so popravljali dokumente, kar se je lahko zavleklo na dve uri. Včasih sestanka sploh niso nadaljevali!« Obroki so jim prav tako povzročali preglavice, celo kadar je šlo za delovna kosila in večerje, ko so po mizah ležali papirji in mikrofoni, toda, kot poudarja gospa Sipilä, prekaljenih delegatov navidezni kaos ni preveč motil.

Generalni direktorat Evropske komisije za tolmačenje v Bruslju s svojo ekipo dobro izurjenih tolmačev ima natančno določena pravila glede vedenja do svojih ljudi in specifikacije za kabine za simultano prevajanje. »Če so bile stalno postavljene kabine na določenih prizoriščih samo za nekaj centimetrov premajhne, smo morali pripeljati izposojene, ki so bile usklajene z njihovimi standardi,« komentira gospa Sipilä. Pri bilateralnih sestankih so uporabljali šepetano tolmačenje.

Najpomembnejši sestanki, ki jih je organizirala gospa Sipilä, so bili del septembrskega vrha ASEM 6, ki se je odvijal na helsinškem sejmišču in se ga je udeležilo 1500 delegatov iz Evrope in Azije ter spremljevalni sestanek zunanjih ministrov v okviru barcelonskega procesa (EUROMED) in se je odvijal novembra v Tampereju. Pomagala je tudi pri organizaciji sestanka predsednikov držav in vlad, ki se je odvijal oktobra v Lahtiju, in pri devetih ministrskih sestankih, ki so se uradno imenovali »neuradni«, medtem ko je skupno 68 sestankov organizirala za različne ministre. Treba je povedati, da se je na Finskem odvijal samo majhen del od 3300 sestankov EU, ki so jih izvedli v tistih šestih mesecih.

Zdaj, po zelo zasluženem počitku, Leena Sipilä pravi, da je srečna, ker je dobila svoje življenje nazaj. »Morala sem celo izstopiti iz članstva v organizaciji Meeting Professionals International, da sem lahko ostala nevtralna, ko sem izbirala dobavitelje. Kljub temu je bilo vse skupaj čudovita izkušnja, ki je ne bi zamudila za nič na svetu.«

»Bila sem zelo presenečena, ko sem ugotovila, da so vladna srečanja tako drugačna in tako zapletena.«

Angela Antrobus, povzeto po reviji Quality in Meetings; foto: Kabinet predsednika vlade, Lehtikuva

Bilateralni sestanki Gospa Sipilä pravi, da so bilateralni sestanki, ko se predstavniki dveh držav sestanejo na samem, vedno popularnejši. Zato je bilo treba pripraviti dodatne sobe.

Sledilo je vprašanje tolmačev.

Finska ljudska glasba na uvodni slovesnosti za ASEM 6 • Finnish folk music at the ASEM 6 opening ceremony

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EU Presidency - Finland

Oh, what a Circus …

Ever wondered what it’s like to organise the meetings when you country holds the EU presidency? Leena Sipilä thought she knew all there was to know about conferences until she took on the job for Finland’s six months in the hot seat.

Leena Sipilä, now back at her desk at the Helsinki City Tourist & Convention Bureau, had spent 25 years in meetings management before she was invited to join the secretariat responsible for the technical meeting preparations for Finland’s EU presidency. This involved moving to the prime minister’s office in September 2005 to plan the 140 official meetings Finland would host during the second half of last year.

“I thought I knew everything about conference and event organisation,” says the former conference director at the Marina Congress Centre in Helsinki, head of the congress department at Tampere Hall and PCO before joining the convention bureau.

“But I was very surprised to discover that governmental meetings were so different and so complex. I was excited but incredulous at the same time!”

particularly so, but it was another thing getting to grips with the hierarchies, the fixed behavioural patterns, the accreditation (never registration) of delegates, the badging system, the demands made of hotels and the requisites for selecting venues, even down to ensuring the set-piece “family photo” was taken at every meeting.

“I feel I know the dimensions of every flat floor space in the country,” she laughs. “Conference halls, sports halls, old factories…We used 21 different cities in Finland because every minister hosting a meeting wanted to show off his home town. It was like a huge travelling circus.

Some hotels had to be upgraded or bring in extra furniture or we had to train them in things like 24-hour room service. There were also delegations from countries outside the EU and some heads of government had their own chefs who brought everything in by private plane, which had to land somewhere, and then took over kitchens.

Generated revenue “The security was massive. Everybody in every venue was checked by the police, we had our own security people as well as those who travelled with ministers and all material was security classified – certain documents couldn’t be sent by email so we had to use old-fashioned messengers.

“Even sourcing gifts wasn’t always straightforward as public tenders had to be put out to every EU country, mainly through the European Commission official newspaper, to ensure fair competition among all suppliers. There were also clear criteria about the value of the gifts depending on the meeting. The tax payers of the host country foot the bill, of course, and it’s an expensive business. On the plus side, while making our final report, we collected statistics on the revenue generated - based on the number of overnights during the six months for 23,000 delegates and other income - which was certainly good for the country.”

21 different cities As head of meeting arrangements, she was part of a team of 28 people which grew to 40 during the presidency. She knew protocol would be important and security

Delovna večerja v Lahtiju. • Working dinner in Lahti.

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Headaches Unpredictability was another factor Sipilä had to get used to.

“We never knew the size of delegations until the last minute and certainly not the names.

Ministers never travel alone so if there were 20 of them there could easily be an extra 100 people by way of cabinet members, secretaries, liaison officers, assistants. Not to mention the media. It was a nervous time for the hotels, too, if we didn’t get the lists until four or five days beforehand.”

There was a strict limit on the number of delegates allowed into the meeting room, announced in advance, as was the seating order. Colour coded badges were issued, red, blue and yellow, which the liaison officers took away to allocate among their own delegates. But inevitably more tried to squeeze in if it was a major meeting. “Also, especially with plenaries, we could never be sure of the programme,” explains Sipilä. “We had to be on our toes behind the door in case an unscheduled coffee break was announced while papers were rewritten, which could go on for two hours. Or the meeting may never resume at all!”

Mealtimes were another headache, especially working lunches and dinners when tables were strewn with papers and microphones but, as Sipilä remarks, seasoned delegates seemed to cope with the apparent chaos.

So additional rooms must be available. Then there was the question of interpretation. As well as its own host of highly trained interpreters, the EC Directorate General for Interpretation in Brussels has definitive rules on the treatment of its people and the specification of simultaneous interpretation booths. “If a venue’s permanent booths were even a few centimetres too small, we had to bring in rented booths which met the standard,” Sipilä comments. Whispered interpretation was used in bilateral meetings.

The most important meetings she handled were the ASEM 6 Summit in September in the Helsinki Fair Centre, attended by 1,500 delegates from Europe and Asia, and the Foreign Ministers’ follow-up meeting of the Barcelona Process (EUROMED) in November in Tampere. She also assisted with the Heads of State or Government meeting in October in Lahti and nine ministerial meetings officially termed as “informal”, while a total of 68 meetings were organised for different government ministers. And it needs to be borne in mind that what was going on in Finland was only a small proportion of 3,300 EU meetings held during that six months.

Now, after a well earned rest, Leena Sipilä says she is happy to have her life back.

“I even had to resign from Meeting Professionals International in order to remain neutral when selecting suppliers. But the whole thing was an experience I would not have missed for the world.”

Angela Antrobus, Quality in Meetings; Photos: Prime Minister’s Office, Lehtikuva

"I was very surprised to discover that governmental meetings were so different and so complex"

Bilateral meetings She says bilateral meetings are growing increasingly popular, when representatives of two countries meet in private.

»Gasilska fotografija« z EUROMED-a. • EUROMED “family photo”.

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Kolumna: Matjaž Kek

Kdo potrebuje koga?

Kot se je z leti spreminjala ponudba profesionalne kongresne dejavnosti, se je spreminjal tudi obseg in značaj sodelovanja organov državne uprave s ponudniki tovrstnih storitev.

Matjaž Kek

S ponudbo kongresnih storitev imam v mislih celovite storitve, potrebne za izvedbo (praviloma) mednarodnega dogodka, ki zajema vse od prevozov in namestitev pa do cateringa in kulturnega programa (seveda z vsem organizacijskim in tehnološkim potencialom, ki je bistven za uspešno izveden dogodek). Z dogodki, ki so jih pripravljali državni organi, pa lahko svojo osebno izkušnjo omejim predvsem na velike mednarodne dogodke (kjer sem sodeloval pri pripravi press centrov in prireditev v počastitev državnih praznikov).

Neposredno po osamosvojitvi Slovenije so bile v »kongresnem biznisu« le kake tri organizacije, ki so se s tovrstno organizacijo ukvarjale že prej. Sama kongresna dejavnost je bila v prvi polovici devetdesetih tudi pri tistih, ki smo bili zadolženi za »promocijo države in dežele« sprejemana z naklonjenostjo in filozofijo, da naj tujci svojo »izkušnjo« Slovenije doživijo kar najbolj neposredno – v Sloveniji! Zato smo pridobivanje mednarodnih konferenc, s čimer so se ukvarjali tako profesionalni ponudniki storitev kot strokovna združenja, podprli tako finančno kot tudi s promocijskimi gradivi.

Kar pa se tiče naših izkušenj z organizacijo tovrstnih prireditev, so bile te nikakršne in smo se od ponudnikov storitev učili tako »obrti« kot tudi sodelovanja z zunanjimi izvajalci.

Do danes so se zadeve na obeh straneh kar precej spremenile. Na strani ponudnikov je število specializiranih organizacij zelo naraslo, pojavile so se nove vrste storitev, ki jih te organizacije ponujajo, dobili smo neke vrste nacionalnega koordinatorja in promotorja teh storitev in celo prvo poslovno borzo. V državni upravi pa smo se tudi okrepili s službami in oddelki, ki se ukvarjajo z odnosi z javnostjo in v okviru tega tudi z organizacijo dogodkov, kar nekaj ministrstev in služb ima oddelke za protokol, pripravljamo pa seveda veliko več dogodkov in z vstopom v EU tudi še več mednarodnih dogodkov (posebej v času slovenskega predsedovanja EU).

Kateri so tisti dejavniki na obeh straneh, ki vplivajo na obseg in kakovost našega sodelovanja?

Naše izkušnje s ponudniki so vsaj pri projektih, kjer sem sodeloval, v osnovi dobre. Posebej na začetku, ker sami nismo imeli dosti znanj in vedenj, pa tudi zato, ker so ponudniki v želji, da bi si zagotovili dolgoročnejše sodelovanje, vlagali več svoje kreativnosti v zasnovo in izpeljavo dogodka. Mi pa smo imeli tudi manj težav pri spoštovanju pravil javnega naročanja (ki so zdaj bolj kompleksna in zahtevna).

No, nekaj slabših izkušenj tudi lahko navedem. Posebej takrat, ko je ponudnik »lokacije« dogodka ponujal tudi agencijske storitve, se je pri večjih mednarodnih dogodkih zgodilo tudi, da se ni zavedal kompleksnosti projekta in v začetku ni pravilno ocenil, koliko zunanjih podizvajalcev bo potreboval, zaradi česar je prihajalo tudi do zamud pri izvedbi.

Današnji čas na strani ponudnikov vzpodbuja nekakšen način ponujanja storitev (ki pa je nasploh značilen za celotno storitveno industrijo), ki obljublja uresničitev vseh možnih želja potencialnega naročnika. Hkrati pa seveda ne upošteva omejevalnega dejavnika – razpoložljivega časa in denarja, ki včasih izvedbe »sanjskega« projekta ne omogočata.

Ena od značilnosti ponudnikov, ki jim uspe razviti dober model zasnove in izpeljave dogodka za korporativnega naročnika, je včasih ta, da potencialnemu naročniku iz državne uprave ponujajo kot zveličaven recept

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taisti »model«, ki pa ne more dobro delovati, ker so nekatere organizacijske značilnosti v državni upravi ali pa specifičnosti mednarodnega protokola in drugih javnofinančnih pravil take, da oboje ne gre dobro skupaj.

Zadnje čase v državni upravi svoje odnose s ponudniki teh storitev osredotočamo predvsem na dva tipa naročanja: ali iščemo ozko specializirano storitev, ki je zgolj majhen del celotne organizacije dogodka, ki ga sicer izpeljemo sami, ali pa želimo cel dogodek izpeljati z najboljšim ponudnikom po načelu »na ključ« (teh je manj).

Omejevalen dejavnik pri iskanju storitev zunanjih ponudnikov je tudi včasih prisotno zmotno prepričanje, da bomo prihranili, če bomo dogodek izpeljali kar sami (in potem včasih zadnji hip iščemo pomoč).

Službe, ki se v okviru državne uprave ukvarjajo z načrtovanjem in organizacijo dogodkov – bodisi mednarodnih konferenc, proslav in slovesnosti bodisi motivacijskih srečanj ali česa drugega –, morajo najprej vedeti, kakšna ponudba obstaja na trgu (še posebej, ker te storitve opravlja precej novih ljudi), ter se naučiti, kako se dela z zunanjo agencijo. Ponudniki pa morajo bolje spoznati značilnosti državne uprave in osnovna načela javnega naročanja.

Gotovo je tudi v interesu ponudnikov, da na različne načine bolje promovirajo svoje storitve, tudi z nadaljnjimi kongresnimi borzami.

Po koncu predsedovanja v drugi polovici leta 2008 bomo tudi v državni upravi imeli več izkušenj in časa, da se bolj načrtno lotimo izboljšanja medsebojnega sodelovanja in nadaljnjega skupnega nastopa v tujini!

Matjaž Kek, sekretar na Uradu vlade za komuniciranje

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Column: Matjaž Kek

Who needs who?

The offer of professional meeting facilities has changed over the years and the scope and nature of the co-operation of state administration bodies with the providers of such services has changed with it.

When talking of the meeting services offer, I refer to complete services such as those required, as a rule, for the execution of an international event, encompassing everything from transport and guest accommodation through to catering and the cultural programme (of course, including all the organisational and technological potential required for a successfully implemented event). In terms of events prepared by state bodies, I can mention large international events from my own personal experience where I’ve participated in the preparation of press centres and events to mark state holidays.

Only three organisations in the ‘meetings business’ were involved in such things directly following Slovenia's independence. In the first half of the 1990s, meeting activities were adopted with the conviction and philosophy that foreigners should ‘experience’ Slovenia as directly as possible – in Slovenia! As it was for those responsible for the ‘promotion of the country and provinces’. Thus, we supported the acquisition of international conferences, with professional service providers and expert associations, both financially and through promotional materials.

Our experience in organising such events was basically nil and we learned both the ‘craft’ and how to co-operate with external contractors from service providers.

Matters on both sides have changed considerably since then.

The number of specialised providers’ organisations has grown considerably, as well as the new types of services these organisations offer. We now have several types of promoters and national service co-ordinators, and even the first business exchange. We’ve also fortified our ranks in the state administration, with new offices and departments involved in public relations and, within this scope, also event organisation. Quite a number of ministries and offices also possess protocol departments. Of course, we are also preparing for many more events following Slovenia's entry into the EU, including more international events, especially during Slovenia's EU Presidency.

What are the factors, on both sides, that affect the scope and quality of our co-operation?

Our experience with providers – in the projects I have participated in – has been good in essence. This was especially true at the beginning, where we did not possess adequate knowledge or skills. This was also because providers wanted to ensure long-term co-operation and invested more of their creativity into the design and execution of an event. We also encountered fewer problems in following public tender rules, which are now more complex and demanding.

However, I can also list a few bad experiences, especially where the provider also offered agency services to the event ‘venue’ and, with regard to larger international events, did not realise the complexity of the project, failing to assess initially that it would require numerous external sub-contractors, ultimately leading to delays in execution.

These days, some type of services from providers are encouraged (which is, as a rule, characteristic of the entire service industry), promising realisation of all a potential subscriber’s possible wishes.

In short, this fails to observe the restricting factor of available time and money, which sometimes prevents the execution of a ‘dream’ project.

One of the characteristics of providers who succeed in developing good

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conceptual models and executing events for corporate clients, is to sometimes offer a potential client from the state administration a generic recipe in this same ‘model’ that cannot function well, since several organisational characteristics in the state administration or, specifically, those of international protocol and other public financial rules, do not fit together well.

Lately, the state administration has particularly focussed on two types of orders in its relationships with the providers of such services – the search for narrowly specialised services that are merely a small part of the entire event, which it organises itself – or the implementation of an entire event using the best provider according to the ‘turnkey’ principle (of which there are only a few).

Another restricting factor in the search for services from external providers is a false conviction that we will save money if we implement the event ourselves (then sometimes seeking help at the last minute).

Officials within the framework of the state administration involved in event planning and organisation – whether they are international conferences, celebrations and festivities or motivational meetings or other events – must first know offers that exist on the market (especially as there are so many new people in this field) and then learn how to work with an external agency. Providers must become better acquainted with the characteristics of the state administration and the basic principles of public procurement.

It is certainly in the interest of providers that they promote their services in a variety of ways – including through continued meeting exchanges. Following

the conclusion of the EU Presidency in the second half of 2008, we at the state administration will also have more experience and time to tackle the improvement of our mutual co-operation and the continued joint approach abroad in a more planned way.

Matjaž Kek, Secretary at the Government Communication Office

Kompas Corporate KONGRESI, POSLOVNA POTOVANJA, LETALSKE VOZOVNICE

Kompas Corporate je Kompasova blagovna znamka za vrhunske celostne storitve za vse poslovne uporabnike – podjetja, razli~ne ustanove in vladne institucije iz Slovenije in tujine.

Ne glede na to, kaj želite – letalsko vozovnico ali celotno organizacijo konference kjerkoli na svetu – je Kompas Corporate tu zato, da poskrbi za vse.

telefon: 01 2006 151 • congressesakompas.si • www.kompas.si 39

Kongresna mesta pod žarometom

Malo doma in malo preko naših meja bitve za mesta, ki se spuščajo v tekmovalno okolje svetovnega trga. Ko »Zamisel o kongresnem se potegujejo za pozornost potencialnih organizatorjev srečanj, se štecentru je ukoreninjena v vilne destinacije pri lastnem trženju lahko pohvalijo z novo ali posodobljeno / povečano kongresno infrastrukturo. Realizirane investicije v paradoksu poznega nova kongresna središča ali napovedi bodočih so se v zadnjem desetledvajsetega stoletja. Po tju razmahnile v skorajda svetovno pandemijo, posebej pa moramo biti eni strani lahko ugotovi- pozorni na razvoj v Aziji. Kljub temu, da v Evropi že nekaj let zaznavamo rahel upad skupnega deleža mednarodnih kongresnih prireditev, tudi mo, da možnosti elekstara celina ne miruje. Prav blizu nas so v središču Salzburga pred netronske izmenjave infor- kaj leti odprli nov, srednje velik kongresni center, v Zagrebu in Budimpešti pa v bližnji bodočnosti načrtujejo gradnjo kongresnih centrov vemacij že postavljajo pod čjih kapacitet. vprašaj tradicionalne V iskanju definicije »kongresnega mesta«. vzorce dela, hkrati pa kaj je pravzaprav »kongresno mesto«? Ali lahko nekaj tako komplekzaznavamo rast global- In snega, kot je »kongresno mesto«, preprosto vznikne? Spomnila sem se, nih prireditev, ki združu- da mi lahko eno možnih definicij ponudi Evropska federacija kongresnih – EFCT, ki se je nedavno spojila z Združenjem evropskih mestnih jejo ljudi zaradi njihove- mest turističnih uradov v novo organizacijo z imenom European Cities Markega skupnega zanimanja ting. EFCT je ob svojem nastanku pred dobrimi štiridesetimi leti pogoječlanstvo s tem, da mora mesto nuditi ustrezne kongresne zmogljivoali stroke. Z družbenega vala sti za najmanj 300 oseb v kino postavitvi, bodisi v kongresnem centru ali vidika je potreba po sre- hotelu. Prav tako naj bi imelo kakovostne prenočitvene zmogljivosti za isto minimalno število udeležencev, dobro prometno dostopnost, izkušnje čanjih in neposrednih v segmentu poslovnega turizma, vključno z referencami vsaj petih izvedenih mednarodnih srečanj, ter svoboden prestop meja države. stikih videti večja kot Če se dotaknem zgodovine specializiranih »podpornih organizacij« za kdajkoli prej.« trženje kongresne ponudbe mest, saj so te nastale prej na lokalni kot Sir Norman Foster, sloviti britanski arhitekt; studio Foster & Partners je med drugim ustvaril projekta kongresnega centra v Valenciji in Scottish Exhibition and Convention Centre v Glasgowu.

na državni ravni, naj kot zanimivost navedem, da je bil prvi kongresni urad na svetu ustanovljen v Detroitu davnega leta 1896, ko je skupina

Dogaja se tudi čisto blizu nas Ob tem, da nas sodobna komunikacijska tehnologija vse bolj usmerja v delo v izolaciji je, skoraj v nasprotju s tem trendom, povpraševanje po novih prizoriščih za neposredne diskusije »iz oči v oči« vse močnejše. Konference in strokovna srečanja danes predstavljajo mednarodno industrijo, in kongresni centri so pomembne prido-

Avtorica članka Tatjana Radovič na obrežju Ljubljanice. • The author Tatjana Radovič on the shore of Ljubljanica river.

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lokalnih poslovnežev ugotovila, kako donosna so organizirana srečanja skupin za njihov kraj.

ZDA so za kar nekaj desetletij prehitevale Evropo, ki se je začela prebujati šele v šestdesetih letih prejšnjega stoletja, najprej skozi investicije v infrastrukturo.

Med najstarejše kongresne urade se sicer uvrščata finski (izvorno Helsinki – Finland, 1974) in londonski (1980), v Sloveniji pa se je na tem področju začelo premikati dosti kasneje - v Ljubljani pred dobrim desetletjem, na nacionalni ravni pa efektivno šele pred tremi leti.

Google je zakon!

Ko sem razmišljala, kje najti razlago, kaj »kongresno mesto« je, sem iz radovednosti v Google vtipkala »city for congresses«, »city for conferences« ter »city for meetings«. Če se omejim na Evropo, se je pojavila vrsta zelo podobnih uvodnih opisov številnih destinacij z vsemi njihovimi odlikami – v primeru dveh mest skoraj dobesedno enakih.

Tako ali drugače zasledimo izraze kot »idealno, prvovrstno, odlično... mesto za konference / kongrese / srečanja,« ki ponujajo sodobne in večnamenske lokacije za raznovrstne dogodke, pa tudi širok izbor namestitev v kategoriji od treh do petih zvezdic, kulturna doživetja, kulinarično pestrost, lahko prometno dostopnost – tudi iz tujine, izkušene kongresne organizatorje, zanimive nakupe in dobro zabavo, in še zmerne cene za povrhu. Za opisi vsaj dela naštetih karakteristik najdemo mesta kot npr. Amsterdam, Bergen, Trondheim, den Haag, Valencio, Leipzig, Goeteborg, Glasgow, Torino, Basel, Helsinki, Bilbao, Reykjavik ali Ženevo … v to zgodbo pa bi lahko umestili tudi Ljubljano.

Bežen pogled na kongresna mesta v Sloveniji – nekoč in danes Naše glavno mesto uvrščamo med tri pionirje slovenskega kongresnega turizma, v družbi Bleda in Portoroža. Ljubljana ima sicer med njimi status veterana, saj je bil prvi pomemben dogodek, ki ga je mesto gostilo, ljubljanski kongres Sv. Alianse davnega leta 1821, ko so pomembni evropski vladarji krojili njeno politično ureditev po porazu Napoleona I., tudi s ciljem preprečitve širjenja idej francoske revolucije. Zanimivost dogodka je, da je trajal kar štiri mesece in pol, udeležili pa so se ga predstavniki desetih držav. Takega kongresa se še danes ne bi nihče branil, za seboj pa ni pustil zgolj političnih dogovorov, temveč tudi imena ulice, večjega trga in gostilne – slednja v spomin na carsko ljubezen … Če se ozrem na kontinentalna mesta v Sloveniji, ker bo o Obali in Alpah govora v prihodnjih številkah revije, kot kongresne destinacije pravzaprav izstopajo samo tri: ob že večkrat omenjeni Ljubljani (ne morem si pomagati, imam jo v krvi) še drugo največje mesto v Sloveniji – Maribor, in cvetoče mesto ob italijanski meji, nastalo po 2. svetovni vojni – Nova Gorica, ki jo v šali, zaradi močno razvite igralniške in zabaviščne dejavnosti, lahko imenujemo tudi slovenski Las Vegas.

Zadetek v bistvo?

Ni moj namen, da bi v prispevku podrobno naštevala vse konferenčne zmogljivosti, adute ali pomanjkljivosti zgoraj omenjenih mest, saj ima vsako od njih svoje danosti in posebnosti. V mednarodnem prostoru je zagotovo najbolj uveljavljena Ljubljana, ki je z gradnjo Cankarjevega doma kot osrednjega kulturnega in kongresnega centra stopila v areno le-

Foto: Zavod za turizem Ljubljana • Photo: Ljubljana Tourist Board

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ta 1981. V tem obdobju, z delno prekinitvijo v prvih letih po osamosvojitvi Slovenije, si je uspela ustvariti zelo soliden imidž kot destinacija za mednarodna znanstvena in strokovna združenja, in se z dogodki leta 2004 uspela prvič doslej prebiti med 50 »top svetovnih mest« v statistikah mednarodnih kongresnih združenj ICCA in UIA. Z gradnjo novejših hotelskih konferenčnih zmogljivosti je ponudba postala zanimiva tudi za vse številnejše podjetniške dogodke, trženjsko pozicioniranje prenovljenega Gospodarskega razstavišča pa mestu prinaša še en kongresni center z drugačno funkcionalnostjo, primerno tudi za večje medvladne dogodke, kot jo ima Cankarjev dom, ki se je sicer tudi delno »pomladil«.

Ljubljana je doslej gostila mednarodne kongrese s preko 2.000 udeleženci, kar nekako postavljamo kot njeno zgornjo mejo, vendar lažje diha, če jih je dejansko nekaj sto manj. Ko bo nekoč v mestu, čim bližje središča, več hotelov – med njimi s tremi zvezdicami, morda en de luxe, pa tudi katera od močnih mednarodnih verig, še več direktnih letalskih povezav, vključno z nizkocenovnimi, in nenazadnje tudi večje letališče, bodo naši izgledi v ostri mednarodni konkurenci še boljši. Sama turistična ponudba se je v preteklih letih znatno izboljšala, nastajajo novi produkti, ambicij in načrtov nikakor ne zmanjka, prav tako ne raznovrstnih prireditev. Bližina številnih atraktivnih krajev, ki so lahko prizorišča spremljevalnih družabnih dogodkov ob kongresnih prireditvah, ali pa številnih aktivnosti na prostem, je vsekakor dodana vrednost sami ponudbi mesta, ki ga številni tuji obiskovalci radi označijo s pridevnikom »cosy«.

Maribor se je kot kongresno mesto začelo uveljavljati predvsem s pomočjo iniciative privatnega sektorja v turizmu, saj je investicija družbe Terme Maribor v izgradnjo sodobnega kongresnega centra v Hotelu Habakuk ter manjših konferenčnih zmogljivosti v njenih drugih poslovnih enotah dala možnost za pravi razvoj te dejavnosti.

Največja dvorana v omenjenem

centru, ki je po svoji zasnovi zelo funkcionalen, lahko sprejme do 430 udeležencev. Manjše zmogljivosti na določenih fakultetah, v nekaterih mestnih hotelih in podjetjih ter v Narodnem domu, ki je prvenstveno prizorišče kulturnih prireditev, zaokrožijo podobo. Reaktiviranje mariborskega letališča z rednimi povezavami do določenih evropskih mest, kakor tudi bližina letališča onstran avstrijske meje, v Gradcu, vse bolj odpirajo ta prostor tudi tujim naročnikom. Preplet zgodovine v ohranjenem starem mestnem jedru ob reki Dravi, vrhunske kulture, atraktivnih zimskih športov in zelenega pohorskega zaledja, odličnega termalnega in wellness produkta, enogastronomija – s poudarkom na vinskih cestah, zavito v kompaktnost kraja, lahko izpostavimo kot nekatere izmed odlik štajerske metropole.

Svojstvena je tudi Nova Gorica – mlado mesto, ki v grbu nosi vrtnico in premore resnično veliko cvetočih površin, in kjer je glavni generator turističnega razvoja skupina HIT, ki sodi med največje evropske ponudnike zabave. HIT je kompleksna igralniško-turistična skupina, ki je dejavna v številnih krajih po Sloveniji, eno njenih vodil pa je ustvariti visoko kakovost ponudbe za preživljanje prostega časa svojih gostov, kjer z inovativnim pristopom v evropskem prostoru zapolnjuje pomemben del trga igralništva, zabave in turizma. V njihovem hotelu in konferenčnem centru Perla, kjer sta največji plenarni zmogljivosti za 280 in 350 oseb, ob tem pa je še nekaj manjših, se je zrvstilo že mnogo poslovnih dogodkov tako domačih kot tujih naročnikov, med katerimi prevladujejo Italijani. Bližina reke Soče z neštetimi možnostmi vodnih športov, zgodovina teh krajev iz obdobja prve svetovne vojne, kratka razdalja do slikovitega Krasa ter enogastronomija, s poudarkom na odličnih vinarjih v Goriških Brdih, izvrstno dopolnjujejo ponudbo mesta, ki je z bolj oddaljenimi kraji najbolje povezano preko tržaškega letališča Ronchi.

Manjša mesta v senci metropol?

In kako se lahko relativno majhna mesta – v primerjavi s svetovnimi kongresnimi metropolami (ali tudi celotna država), ki jih naročniki srečanj radi spregledajo, uveljavijo v krogu ostre konkurence? Najprej mora v mestu in med njegovimi prebivalci obstajati želja, da ne ustvarijo samo potrebne infrastrukture, temveč tudi živahen utrip in prijetno življensko okolje na katerega so sami ponosni, obiskovalci pa ga želijo doživeti. Naravne lepote ali kulturna dediščina predstavljajo prednost, vendar je nujna tudi lokalna avtentičnost. Nenazadnje pa tudi zelo dobro razmerje med ceno in kakovostjo, kar nam v Sloveniji tuji organizatorji radi pripišejo.

Ko infrastruktura že obstaja, je pomemben tudi uglašen pristop do trženja tako kongresne, kot tudi splošne turistične ponudbe mesta. Uravnotežen razvoj ponudbe, od nastanitvenih zmogljivosti pa vse do prometnih (letalskih) povezav, zvišuje konkurenčnost posameznih mest na mednarodnem trgu. Med zmagovalce prištevamo tista, ki so bila sposobna ubrati holističen pristop pri razvoju destinacije.

Ta stavek je lahko popotnica za tiste kraje v Sloveniji, kjer napovedujejo vlaganja v novo kongresno infrastrukturo. Zavedati se moramo tudi dejstva, da je domači trg za ponudnike zelo pomemben, vendar ni neomejeno močan, pot do tujih naročnikov pa je bolj težavna in dolgotrajna. V tem pogledu se ne moremo primerjati z večjimi državami, kjer nacionalni kongres specialistične medicinske stroke po številu udeležencev pogosto presega evropski kongres istega združenja.

Kot že mnogokrat rečeno, pa se možnosti Slovenije in s tem tudi njenih kongresnih mest kažejo v tem, da tuji naročniki dogodkov stalno iščejo nove kraje, pogosto manj stresne od velemest – skratka, bolj prijazne, obvladljive in intimne urbane prostore, ki med drugim lahko ponudijo tudi zmernejše cene in bolj pristna doživetja kraja. In vse to mi zagotovo imamo!

Tatjana Radovič, vodja kongresne dejavnosti, Zavod za turizem Ljubljana

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Conference Towns in the Spotlight

Some at Home and some just over our Border The concept of the conference centre is rooted in a paradox of the late twentieth century. On one hand, we can see that the possibilities of the electronic exchange of information have already called the traditional pattern of work into question but, at the same time, we can see growth of global events that bring people together due to their common knowledge or professions. From a social viewpoint, the need for meetings and direct contact is greater than ever before.

Sir Norman Foster, a renowned British architect from the Foster & Partners studio, created, among other things, a meetings venue project in Valencia and the Scottish Exhibition and Convention Centre in Glasgow.

This is also happening in our region Contemporary communication technology is leading us more and more towards work in isolation but, contrary to this, inquiries for new venues for direct ‘faceto-face’ discussions are getting much stronger. Conferences and

expert meetings are today an international industry and meeting venues are an important acquisition for places entering the competitive environment of the global market. As they vie for the attention of potential meeting planners, numerous destinations can boast new or improved/expanded meeting infrastructure. Investment into new meeting venues or proposals for future ones have resulted in an almost world-wide pandemonium in the last decade and we should be especially aware of its development in Asia. The old continent is not static however, despite the fact that we have seen a slight decline for some years in the total share of international meeting events. Quite close to us, a new medium-sized meeting venue opened in the centre of Salzburg a few years ago, while the construction of larger meeting venues is planned in the near future in Zagreb and Budapest.

The search for the definition of a ‘conference town’ And what exactly is a ‘conference town’? Can something as complex as a ‘conference town’ simply appear? I remembered that the European Federation of Conference Towns (EFCT), which recently merged with European Cities Tourism (ECT) and now bears the name of European Cities Marketing, could offer me a possible definition. Upon its establishment a good sixty years ago, the EFCT set up a conditional membership prescribing that a city must offer appropriate meeting space for at least 300 people set up theatre-style, either in a meeting venue or hotel. It should also have high quality overnight accom modation for the same minimum number of participants, good traffic access, experience in the area of business tourism, the liberal ability to cross a national border and should include references of at least five implemented international meetings.

If I touch on the history of specialist ‘auxiliary organisations’ for marketing the meetings facilities of cities, which originated at local level before national level, I should mention as a point of interest that the first convention bureau in the world was set up in Detroit back in 1896 when a group of local businessmen realised how profitable organised group meetings were for their region. The United States surpassed Europe in this activity for several decades, with Europe finally awakening in the 1960’s, initially through investment in infrastructure. The Finnish (originally Helsinki – Finland, 1974) and London (1980) convention bureaus are among the oldest and things got moving a lot later in Slovenia – in Ljubljana, just over a decade ago but with effects only felt at national level three years ago.

Google rules!

As I was pondering where to find a definition of a ‘conference town’, I typed the terms ‘city for congresses’, ‘city for conferences’ and ‘city for meetings’ into Google, merely out of curiosity. Limiting the search to Europe, a slew of quite similar introductory descriptions of numerous destinations appeared, describing all their distinctions, with almost identical descriptions in the case of two cities.

In any case, we see expressions such as ‘ideal, first-rate, excellent... city for conferences / congresses / meetings’, which offers

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contemporary and versatile venues for a variety of events and a wide selection of three to five star accommodation, a cultural experience, varied cuisine, easy access – including from abroad, experienced meeting planners, interesting shopping possibilities and good entertainment, all for a reasonable price... Among cities possessing at least a few of these characteristics we find such names as Amsterdam, Bergen, Trondheim, the Hague, Valencia, Leipzig, Gothenborg, Glasgow, Turin, Basel, Helsinki, Bilbao, Reykjavik, Geneva … and Ljubljana.

A quick look at conference towns in Slovenia – in the past and today We put our capital among the three pioneers of Slovenian conference tourism, with Bled and Portorož. Ljubljana, of course, has the status of veteran, for the first important event the city hosted was the Ljubljana Congress of the Holly Alliance back in 1821, when key European leaders made their political settlement after the defeat of Napoleon I, aiming to

prevent the expansion of the ideas of the French Revolution. The interesting aspect of the event was that it lasted four and a half months, with representatives of ten nations attending it. Nobody would object to such a congress even today, for it not only left political agreements in its wake, but also a number of streets, larger squares and inns bearing its name – the latter in memory of the emperor’s love.

To focus on central towns in Slovenia, while future issues of the magazine will focus on the coast and the Alps, only three meeting destinations really stand out. In addition to Ljubljana (I can't help myself, the city is in my blood), there is also Maribor, the second largest city in Slovenia, and booming Nova Gorica near the Italian border, arising after World War II and which could in jest be called the Slovenian Las Vegas for its strongly developed casino and entertainment activities.

A strike into the essence?

It is not my intention to list all the conference facilities, advantages or deficiencies of these places in detail for each has its own attributes and features. Ljubljana is certainly the most recognised internationally, which entered the arena in 1981 with the construction of Cankarjev dom as its central cultural and meeting venue. In this period it managed to create a very solid image for itself as a destination for international scientific and expert meetings, though with a partial halt in the years after Slovenian independence. Through events in 2004, it managed to win a place for the first time among the 50 ‘top international cities’ in the lists of the ICCA and UIA international congress associations. The construction of newer hotel conference venues has made the offer inviting for an increasing number of corporate meetings. The market positioning of the renovated Gospodarsko razstavišče (Ljubljana Exhibition and Convention Centre) has given the city another meeting venue with a different functionality also suitable for larger inter-governmental events such as those hosted by Cankarjev dom, which has also been partially ‘rejuvenated’.

Slovenia has so far hosted international congresses with over 2,000 participants, which about represents its upper limit and it breathes

Globtour je podjetje za destinacijski management in »incentive« agencija, ki ima več kot osemintridesetletne izkušnje v turizmu. Visoko strokovno in inovativno osebje prijazno pomaga in strokovno usmerja vsak segment dogodka.

Kontakt: Matjaž Triplat Globtour Bled (04) 574 18 21 E-mail: globtour.bled@globtour.si 45

easier if there are actually several hundred fewer. Once there are a greater number of hotels in the city, as close to the centre as possible – including three star hotels, perhaps one deluxe hotel and perhaps also a strong international hotel chain – an increased number of direct flight connections, inclusive of discount fares, and a larger airport, our chances against our strong international competition will improve considerably. The tourist offer itself has improved over the years, with new products initiated, and no lack of plans and ambitions or a varied menu of events. The number of open-air activities and the close proximity of numerous attractive areas that could be the scene of social events accompanying meetings only add to the value of the city, which numerous foreign visitors like to describe as ‘cosy’.

Maribor began especially to prove itself as a conference town with the help of initiatives from the private sector of tourism. Terme Maribor’s investment in the construction of a contemporary conference centre in the Hotel Habakuk and smaller conference capacities in its other properties has given it an opportunity to really develop these activities.

The largest hall in this centre is extremely functional and can accommodate up to 430 participants. Smaller facilities, in specific faculties, smaller city

Foto: Zavod za turizem Ljubljana Photo: Ljubljana Tourist Board

hotels, companies and the Narodni dom (a first-rate venue for cultural events) round off the offer. The revival of Maribor airport with regular connections to European cities, as well as its proximity to the airport across the Slovenian-Austrian border in Graz, is also increasingly opening this area up to foreign clients. The intertwined history in the preserved old city centre along the Drava River, its superior culture, attractive winter sports venues and the green Pohorje, the excellent thermal and wellbeing products, the food and drink (with emphasis on the wine roads) – all enclosed in a compact region – can be seen as several of the distinctive features of this Styrian metropolis.

Nova Gorica is another distinctive town – a young place that bears a rose in its coat-of-arms and has extensive flowery areas where the main engine of tourist development is the HIT Group, one of the largest European entertainment providers. HIT is an entertainment-tourism group present in numerous areas around Slovenia. One of their guidelines is to create a high quality offer for its guests’ leisure time and, through an innovative approach in Europe, supplement a significant share of the gaming, entertainment and tourist markets.

In its hotel and Perla conference centre, with the largest plenary facility offering capacities for 280 to 350 people, it has already hosted numerous corporate meetings for both domestic and foreign clients, with Italians prevailing. The numerous water sports possibilities of the nearby Soča River, the World War I history of these areas, the short distance to the picturesque Karst region and the culinary and wine offer with emphasis on the excellent Goriška Brda wine-producers, wonderfully supplement the city's offer, which is well-connected to more distant areas via Ronchi Airport near Trieste.

Smaller towns in the shadow of the big cities So how can relatively small towns, or even entire countries, that clients of meetings often overlook, prove themselves in the sphere of sharp competition from global meeting centres? First, there must exist in a place and its inhabitants not only the desire to set up the infrastructure necessary, but also a lively pulse and pleasant ambience of which they are proud and that visitors wish to experience. Natural beauty or cultural heritage are advantages, but local authenticity is also a necessity. Finally, there should also be a good balance between price and quality, which planners gladly ascribe to us in Slovenia.

Once the infrastructure exists, a solid approach to marketing both meetings and the basic tourism offers of the city or town is required.

A balanced development of offers, from accommodation to traffic (airport) connections, increases an individual place’s competitiveness on the international market. We consider those able to make a holistic approach as winners in the development of the destination.

This serves only as a guide to those areas in Slovenia forecasting investments in new conference infrastructure. We should also be aware that the domestic market is very important for meeting planners and, while that is limited, the route to foreign clients is more difficult and takes longer. In this sense, we cannot compare ourselves to larger countries, where national congresses of specialised medical professions often exceed the European congress of the same association in the number of participants.

As often mentioned, the chances for Slovenia and its conference towns are reflected in foreign clients’ persistent searches for new locations, often those less stressful than large cities. In short, more friendly, manageable and intimate urban spaces that can offer, among other things, a better price and a more genuine experience of the area, things that we certainly possess.

Tatjana Radovič, Congress Manager, Ljubljana Tourist Board

46

Mi to znamo. Smo mednarodno uveljavljeno podjetje za podroËje svetovanja, trženja in managementa v poslovnem turizmu.

Imamo reπitve za uspeπno trženje kongresnih centrov in destinacij ter komuniciranje vaπih kongresov in poslovnih dogodkov. Pridobivamo in organiziramo mednarodne kongrese, poslovne dogodke, motivacijska sreËanja, razstave in sejemske prireditve, pri Ëemer uporabljamo najsodobnejπa znanja in tehnologije sreËanj.

Pomagamo vam pri upravljanju in vodenju strokovnih in znanstvenih združenj.

Štihova ulica 4,1000 Ljubljana, T+386 (0)1 430 51 03, F +386 (0)1 430 51 04, info@go-mice.eu, www.go-mice.eu

Zavod – Kongresnoturistični urad

Kongresna Slovenija Zavod – Kongresnoturistični urad deluje kot profesionalni posrednik med organizatorji dogodkov in ponudniki storitev ter podpornimi organizacijami, katerim skupni cilj je najti čim ustreznejšo rešitev za organizacijo in izvedbo dogodka.

Urad je neprofitna organizacija, ki zainteresirani javnosti brezplačno nudi strokovne in nepristranske informacije o možnih krajih dogodkov in ponudnikih storitev. Med našimi dvainpetdesetimi člani so kongresni centri in hoteli, profesionalni kongresni organizatorji (t.i. PCO) in strokovne kongresne turistične agencije (t.i. DMC), Zavod za turizem Ljubljana ter drugi ponudniki storitev. Slovenska turistična organizacija je naš strateški partner.

Slovenija ima na področju kongresne dejavnosti raznolike možnosti za izvedbo dogodkov. Naše prednosti so lahka dostopnost, geografska raznovrstnost in bogata kulturna dediščina, odlična ponudba kongresnih zmogljivosti, okusna kulinarika, podprta z vrhunsko ponudbo vin, pristna gostoljubnost in dobro razmerje med kvaliteto in ceno.

Ponudnike kongresnih zmogljivosti (kongresni centri, hoteli s konferenčnimi zmogljivostmi in prizorišča za posebne dogodke) razvrščamo v naslednje geografsko – vsebinske sklope: • srečanja v mestih, • srečanja na obali in krasu, • srečanja v alpskem svetu in • srečanja v termalnih centrih.

Ponudniki kongresnih storitev (PCO, DMC, Event agencije, prevozniki, ponudniki tehnične opreme, catering in drugih storitev) so zelo pomemben člen pri planiranju dogodka. Vabimo vas, da si ogledate našo spletno stran in se obrnete direktno na ponudnike storitev. Če bo odločitev pretežka, vam bomo z veseljem svetovali.

Za vprašanja nam pošljite e-mail na info@slovenia-convention.com Podrobnejše informacije lahko najdete na www.slovenia-convention.com Miha Kovačič, direktor Zavoda – Kongresnoturistični urad

Terme Olimia

48

Slovenian Convention Bureau

Congress Slovenia The Slovenian Convention Bureau is a professional intermediary between event organisers and service providers, as well as is supporting organisations whose common objective is to find the most appropriate solution for organising and implementing events.

The Bureau is a non-profit organisation offering expert and impartial information to the interested public free of charge regarding event venues and service providers. Our fifty-two members include meeting venues and hotels, professional conference organisers (PCO's) and destination management companies (DMCs), the Ljubljana Tourist Board and other service providers. The Slovenian Tourist Board is our strategic partner.

In the field of meeting activities, Slovenia has a range of opportunities to implement events. Our advantages are accessibility, diverse geography and rich cultural heritage, our excellent offer of meeting venues, our savoury cuisine supported by a superior offer of wine, our sincere hospitality and a good relationship between quality and price.

Meeting venue providers (meeting venues, hotels with conference capabilities and venues for special events) can be classified into the following geographical-contextual groups: • meetings in cities, • meetings at the coast and in the Karst region, • meetings in the Alpine area and, • meetings at thermal resort centres.

Meeting services providers (PCOs, DMCs, event agencies, transport companies and suppliers of technical equipment, catering and other services) are an important link in the planning of events.

We cordially invite you to take a look at our website or to contact one of the service providers directly. We will be happy to help you with a difficult decision. For further information, please send an email with your inquiry to: info@slovenia-convention.com.

More information is available at: www.slovenia-convention.com.

Miha Kovačič, Director of the Slovenian Convention Bureau

Brdo pri Kranju

49

Kolumna: Tony Carey

Dokažite svojo strokovnost Ena izmed najtežjih nalog, s katero se sooča organizator konference, je, kako izmeriti vrednost sestanka. Običajno se uspeh meri glede na govorice in (pogosto pristransko) mnenje: »Ljudje so rekli, da so uživali.« ali »Predsednik je bil zadovoljen.«

Vendar izvršni direktorji vse pogosteje zahtevajo oprijemljive dokaze, da je dogodek zagotovil dobro donosnost naložbe, in prav načrtovalec sestanka je tisti, ki mora upravičiti čas in denar, ki ju je porabil.

Na srečo so zdaj na voljo sistemi za ocenjevanje dogodka, ki načrtovalcem pomagajo dokazati njihovo

strokovnost in izmeriti donosnost naložbe. Kot mnogi vidiki vodenja konferenc zajema postopek več logičnih korakov, ki se začnejo že v zgodnjih fazah priprav in se lahko nadaljujejo več tednov po zaključku dogodka. Količinska opredelitev donosnosti naložbe bi zato morala biti vključena že v proces načrtovanja.

Prva naloga je opredeliti deležnike sestanka; to so tisti, ki jim je v interesu rezultat sestanka. Ker so to organizacije in ljudje, ki so investirali svoj čas, denar ali ugled, si želijo, da bi imelo njihovo prizadevanje nek donos. Deležniki so lahko različni, toda med njimi so vedno organizacija stranke, pokrovitelji in prisotni – poleg organizatorja, seveda. Če je dogodek v Sloveniji, želijo biti vsi – tako ponudnik kraja kot vsi dobavitelji, povezani z uspehom, vendar iz različnih razlogov.

Zadovoljiti toliko različnih interesov je lahko težko, ker samo deležniki vedo, kaj želijo doseči. Torej jih je treba v drugi fazi to vprašati. V prijavnico za predstavnike lahko vključite ankete, govornikom lahko pošljete vprašalnike, se srečate s pokrovitelji, da odkrijete, kaj pričakujejo od dogodka. Prisotni so se dogodka udeležili morda zato, da bi pridobili informacije ali vzpostavili poslovne odnose; govorniki želijo morda predstaviti nove ideje ali srečati potencialne stranke; organizacija želi morda motivirati, izobraževati ali nagrajevati; manj znano mesto, kot je na primer Maribor, želi morda izboljšati svoj ugled. Zaslužek je včasih drugotnega pomena.

Ko razumemo potrebe deležnikov, je naslednji logičen korak oblikovanje dogodka, katerega cilj je zadovoljitev deležnikov. V ta namen se kot potrebne lahko pokažejo spremembe zastavljenega programa, na primer obisk veličastne Postojnske jame, kjer bodo vsi skupaj, namesto nakupovalnega popoldneva v Ljubljani, kjer se bodo vsi razkropili. Poleg tega pa je treba vzpostaviti tudi sisteme merjenja. Za pokrovitelje to lahko pomeni ugotavljanje, v kolikšni meri so predstavniki osveščeni o izdelku, in sicer med dogodkom in po njem. Na primer, za mnenje o Sloveniji se jih lahko vpraša, preden prispejo, in ponovno ob odhodu.

Raziskava lahko poteka v več oblikah: med sestankom je mogoče izvesti merjenje na podlagi odziva občinstva ali s pomočjo študentov z vprašalniki. Koristno mnenje podajo tudi fokusne skupine. Povratne informacije dobimo z naknadnimi anketami.

V primeru uvedbe izdelkov in prodajnih konferenc so lahko oprijemljivi rezultati izraženi na osnovi naknadnih prodajnih rezultatov, ki pa morajo biti izmerjeni in nato tudi posredovani načrtovalcu sestanka. Na koncu pa je treba vse te informacije analizirati in obdelati, da so podane v smiselnem poročilu. Vse to predstavlja dodatno delo za organizatorja konference, toda prav on je tisti, ki ima največ koristi od merjenja donosnosti naložbe. Zmožnost, da stranki ali šefu posreduje tiskano poročilo, v katerem navede, kateri cilji so bili doseženi, koliko denarja je bilo prihranjenega in kako je bila izboljšana celostna podoba, je znak za pravega strokovnjaka, ki si zasluži povišek ... ali pa vsaj nekaj dni dopusta ob magičnem Blejskem jezeru!

Tony Carey je učitelj, govornik in svetovalec na področju mednarodnih konferenc. Dosegljiv je na elektronskem naslovu tonycarey@psilink.co.je ali na spletni strani www.tonycarey.info Tony Carey

50

By Tony Carey, CMP, CMM

Proving your Professionalism One of the most difficult tasks facing a conference organiser is how to measure the value of a meeting. Traditionally, success has been based on hearsay and (often biased) opinion: “People said they enjoyed it.” or “The chairman was pleased.”

But, increasingly, CEOs are demanding tangible proof that an event achieved a good return on investment (ROI) - and it is the meeting planner who must justify the time and the money he or she has spent.

Fortunately, there are now systems for evaluating an event, which help planners prove their professionalism and measure ROI Like many aspects of conference management, the procedure involves a series of logical steps

that start in the early stages of preparation and may continue for weeks after the event is over. The quantifying of ROI is something that should be threaded into the tapestry of planning.

The first task is to identify the stakeholders in the meeting; those who have an interest in its outcome. This is due to the fact that these are the organisations and people who have invested time, money or reputation and wish to see a return on this commitment.

Stakeholders may vary but will always include the client organisation, the sponsors and the attendees, as well as, of course, the organiser.

And for an event in Slovenia, the town or city, the venue and all the suppliers will want to be associated with its success, but for varying reasons.

Satisfying such a range of interests can be difficult because only the stakeholders know what they hope to achieve.

Thus stage two is to ask them.

You can incorporate surveys into the delegate registration form, send questionnaires to speakers and meet with sponsors to discover what each expects from the event. Attendees may be seeking information or business relationships, speakers may wish to present new ideas or meet potential clients, the organisation may wish to motivate, educate or reward; a less well-known city, such as Maribor, may wish to enhance its reputation. Sometimes, making a profit is a secondary motive.

Once the needs of the stakeholders are understood, it is a logical step to design an event that aims to satisfy them. This may involve changes to the planned programme, such as for example a visit to the awesome Postojna Caves where everyone will be together, instead of a shopping afternoon in Ljubljana where they all split up. And systems of measurement should be put into place.

On behalf of sponsors, this may mean researching the delegates for product awareness before, during and after the event. For example, they can be asked their opinions on Slovenia before they arrive and after they depart.

Research can take many forms. During the meeting measurement may be made via audience response systems or by students with questionnaires. Focus groups will also furnish useful opinion.

Follow-up surveys provide feedback.

For product launches and sales conferences, tangible results may be expressed through the subsequent sales figures, but these must be measured - and conveyed to the meeting planner. Finally, all this information should be analysed and processed into a digestible report.

All this is extra work for the conference organiser, but it is he or she who stands to benefit most from measuring ROI. To be able to present a client or a boss with a printed report which shows that objectives were achieved, money saved and the corporate image enhanced is the mark of a true professional deserving of a pay rise, or at least a few days holiday at magical Lake Bled!

Tony Carey is a trainer, presenter and consultant to the international conference industry. He can be reached at tonycarey@psilink.co.je. or via www.tonycarey.info

51

Primeri dobre prakse

Kako nam lahko vabilo pripelje več udeležencev?

Naslov dogodka: SOA event 2006 Avtorji: Klemen Dragar, IBM; Irena Jelen, Boris Vrhovec, Auditoria Naročnik: IBM Slovenija Izvajalec: Auditoria El. naslov nosilca: boris.vrhovec@auditoria.si Ključne besede: SOA, event, dogodek, IBM, Auditoria Najprej izberemo pravo ciljno skupino glede na vsebino dogodka.

Nato pripravimo kreativno in domiselno vabilo, ki vzpodbudi dodatno zanimanje za dogodek. Na dogodku poskušamo rdečo nit vabila nadaljevati in sporočilo prenesti tako, da udeleženci vsebino povezujejo z vabilom.

Takšno vabilo smo pripravili na dogodku, ki je bil namenjen vodstveni strukturi slovenskih podjetij.

IBM Slovenija, kot naročnik dogodka,

je udeležencem predstavil sistem storitveno organizirane arhitekture (SOA).

Rdeča nit vabila je bila SOA; slive, orehi, ananas. V zaporedju treh dni (dva meseca pred dogodkom) je vsak potencialni udeleženec prejel škatlico s slivami prvi dan, z orehi drugi dan in s suhim ananasom tretji dan, nepovezano. Četrti dan so prejeli še vabilo s podrobnejšimi informacijami o celotnem dogodku; kaj, kdaj in kje.

Vodilo dogodka je bilo spreminjanje miselnosti od neorganizirane do organizirane strukture. Začeli smo z nepovezanim vabilom, nadaljevali pa s posameznimi delci sistema puzzle. Različne storitve v poslovnih procesih (posamezne delce puzzla) smo prikazali kot nesmiselno razporejene delce po prostoru. Udeležence smo vodili po različnih prostorih, kjer so postopoma dobivali informacije o povezljivosti procesov po sistemu SOA. Na koncu smo smiselno povezljivost različnih storitev, ki je bila hkrati glavno sporočilo dogodka, prikazali kot enoten proces, kot sestavljen puzzle.

Dogodek je dobil s strani korporacije IBM (EMEA) posebno priznanje kot najbolj inovativen dogodek v Evropi.

Iskanje potopljenega zvona na Bledu Kako v natrpan kongresni urnik vnesti nekaj aktivnosti in svežega zraka, se obenem zabavati in skozi novo doživetje spoznati tradicijo, lepote in znamenitosti Bleda? Za mednarodno podjetje Hewlett Packard smo našli izvirno rešitev – iskanje potopljenega zvona je team spirit program, ki temelji na lokalni legendi, ki je močno povezana z Blejskim jezerom, njegovim edinstvenim otočkom in zvončkom želja.

Udeleženci kongresa so želeli popoldansko animacijo z zmerno aktivnostjo in poudarkom na sproščenem druženju. Ponudili smo jim aktivno doživetje Bleda skozi izviren scenarij in lokalno zgodbo. Iskanje potopljenega zvona je neke vrste lov za zakladom, kjer udeleženci s kolesarjenjem, veslanjem, hojo ali kako drugače napredujejo od točke do točke, kjer nabirajo delčke sestavljanke, vmes rešujejo uganke, spoznavajo lokalne znamenitosti (ste si že kdaj privoščili kremšnito med veslanjem po zelenem jezeru?), hkrati pa se v sproščenem vzdušju poglabljajo vezi med njimi in krepi komunikacija. Program podjetja HP se je zaključil na Blejskem gradu, kjer je udeležence pred večerjo čakalo še kreativno presenečenje – skozi daljnogled so morali poiskati začetnice podjetja … in jih našli na stavbi Park hotela (PH-HP). Bled je uspešna kongresna destinacija, kjer pa je opazno pomanjkanje produktov, ki bi povezali kongrese

52

Primeri dobre prakse

Neformalno srečanje obrambnih ministrov zveze NATO Avtor: Matjaž Žnidaršič (matjaz.znidarsic@h-bernardin.si) Izvajalec: Hoteli Bernardin d.d., Portorož, Portorož 28. – 29.9.2006 Naročnik: Ministrstvo za obrambo Republike Slovenije Ključne besede: Vladno srečanje

Neformalno srečanje obrambnih ministrov zveze NATO je zahtevalo: • Celovit prevzem vseh kapacitet kompleksa Hotelov Bernardin (complete take-over) • Začasno vzpostavitev pisarniških prostorov v skupaj 150 hotelskih sobah • Vzpostavitev začasnih pisarniških prostorov na več kot 700 m2 površin • Postrežbo od 1000 do 1500 hotelskih obrokov dnevno v dnevih od 27.9. do 30.9., skupaj približno 6000 obrokov • Organizacijo vrhunskega sprejema za 800 gostov • Brezhibno podporo informacijske tehnologije in energetike • Arhitekturo projekta in signalizacijo • Celotni inženiring za vse, kar se je odvijalo v prostoru Hotelov Bernardin (on-site)

Vodenje projekta Uspešna izvedba tako zahtevnega projekta z naše strani ne bi bila mogoča, če ne bi bil naročnik strokovno tako podučen o projektnem vodenju in tako dobro projektno organiziran, kot je bil v tem primeru. Prva ugotovitev: o tem primeru ne bi mogli govoriti kot o primeru dobre prakse, če ne bi bil naročnik tako dobro organiziran in ne bi do podrobnosti definiral pričakovanj in zahtev.

Od faze ponudbe in pogajanja do končne pogodbe so projektni tim Bernardina predstavljali štirje nosilci, in sicer: vodja projekta – odgovoren za namestitev, področje hrane in pijače ter pogajanja; tehnični direktor – odgovoren za tehnične zadeve; vodja kongresnega centra – odgovoren za delovne prostore in opremo, vodja IT – odgovoren za področje informacijske tehnologije. V fazi izvedbe se je tim razširil na nosilce posameznih področji po rednih procesnih funkcijah, npr. namestitve po posameznih hotelih, sektor hrane in pijače po posameznih restavracijah, zunanji pogodbeni izvajalci …

Posebnost projekta Gre za prvi tako obsežen in kompleksen projekt, kjer je naročnik zahteval od Bernardina inženiring vseh elementov, ki so bili vezani na prostor kompleksa Hotelov Bernardin. Obseg storitev, ki jih je Bernardin posredoval v primerjavi s storitvami, ki jih je sam izvajal, je bilo v razmerju ena proti ena. To je bila izjemna izkušnja, ki smo jo zelo uspešno prestali in si prislužili najvišje pohvale nad učinkovitostjo in strokovnostjo, kar nedvomno dodatno prispeva k ugledu Hotelov Bernardin. Ob pomembnem komercialnem učinku smo si pridobili neprecenljive izkušnje.

Win – Win Čeprav win – win v naši družbi predstavlja najpomembnejše načelo, še nikoli ni prednost spoštovanja tega načela tako izrazito prišla do izraza kot prav v tem primeru. Transparentnost ponudbe in pričakovanj Hotelov Bernardin v fazi pogajanj je bila nepogrešljiva in je olajšala postopek zelo težkih pogajanj, predvsem kot posledica zahteve po zapiranju prodaje rednim strankam.

Odstopanje med končnim obračunom in pogodbenim zneskom je bilo pod enim odstotkom in dokazuje natančnost skupnega načrtovanja in učinkovitost izvedbe, na kar smo ponosni mi in naš naročnik.

in poslovna srečanja z dogodki, ki povežejo udeležence in jih aktivno animirajo. Iskanje potopljenega zvona je unikaten team spirit dogodek in je dodana vrednost konferenčne ponudbe na Bledu.

Primeren je za vse strukture gostov, vsebinsko prilagodljiv in cenovno dostopen. In nenazadnje, združi različne ponudnike turističnih storitev na Bledu.

Ana Peskar

53

Case Studies

How can an Invitation attract more Participants?

Event Title: SOA Event 2006 Authors: Klemen Dragar, IBM; Irena Jelen, Boris Vrhovec, Auditoria Client: IBM Slovenija Contracter: Auditoria e-mail contact: boris.vrhovec@auditoria.si Key words: SOA, event, happening, IBM, Auditoria

First, we need to select the right target group for the event. Then we have to prepare a creative invitation that will arouse additional interest for the event. Elaboration on the primary point of the invitation must be attempted to the event itself, and the message communicated in a way that participants link the content of the event with the invitation.

We prepared exactly such invitation for the event hosting managers of Slovenian companies. IBM Slovenija, as the event’s client, presented a service oriented architecture (SOA) system to the partcipants.

The main idea of the invitation was SOA: slive (plums), orehi (walnuts) and ananas (pineapple). Two months prior to the event and over the course of three days, each potential participant received a box of plums the first day, a box of walnuts the next day and dried pineapple on the third day, without any explanation or indication. On the fourth day they received an invitation with detailed information about the event, with venue and time information.

The event’s guiding principle consisted of a change in thought processes, from disorganisation to an organised structure. We began with unrelated invitations, followed by the individual pieces of a puzzle system. Various services from business processes (the individual puzzle pieces) were displayed as absurdly arranged pieces in venue.

Participants were guided through various spaces, gradually obtaining information regarding the association of the processes according to the SOA system. Finally, we associated the various services in a logical manner, which also represented the key message of the event, shown as a standardised process – a completed puzzle.

The IBM corporation received special recognition, an EMEA award, for the event as the most innovative event in Europe.

The Search for the Sunken Bell at Bled How can one join several activities and fresh air into a busy meeting schedule and at the same time have fun and, through new experiences, get to know the traditions, beauty and sights of Bled? We found an ingenious solution for Hewlett Packard. ‘The search for the sunken bell’ is a team-building programme based on a local legend, strongly connected with Lake Bled, its unique island and its wishing bell.

Participants at the meeting expressed the wish to have afternoon entertainment comprising idle activity and an emphasis on a relaxed gathering. We offered them the opportunity to actively experience Bled through an

original scenario, based and a local tale. The search for the sunken bell is a type of a treasure hunt in which participants by cycling, rowing, walking or other means advance from point to point, collecting parts of a puzzle by solving riddles. They learned local sights (have you ever offered yourself “kremšnita” (cream pastry) while rowing along a green lake?) while at the same time strengthening ties and improving communication in a relaxed atmosphere.

The program for HP finished at Bled Castle, where before dinner, yet another creative surprise awaited the participants – a quest to find the initials of the company using binoculars ... and finding them on the Park Hotel building (PH-HP).

Bled is a successful meeting destination visibly lacking products, connecting congresses and conferences with events, bringing together participants and actively entertaining them. The search for the sunken bell is a unique team-building event and gives added value to conference offers in Bled. It’s suitable for all structures of guests and comprises adaptable contents at an affordable price. Last, but not least, it combines the efforts of various tourist service providers at Bled.

Ana Peskar

54

Case Studies

Informal Meeting of NATO Defence Ministers Author: Matjaž Žnidaršič (matjaz.znidarsic@h-bernardin.si) Venue: Hotel Bernardin, Portorož, 28 – 29 September 2006 Client: Slovenian Ministry of Defence Key words: Governmental meeting

This informal meeting of NATO defence ministers required: • the complete use of all the facilities of the Hotel Bernadin complex, • the temporary establishment of office space in a total of 150 hotel rooms, • setting-up temporary office spaces with a surface area of over 700 m2, • catering for 1000 to 1500 hotel meals a day on 29 and 30 September, totalling approximately 6000 meals, • the organisation of a high-level reception for 800 guests, • faultless information technology and energy support, • project architecture and signalisation • complete engineering of all onsite activities in the premises of the Hotel Bernardin complex.

director, responsible for technical matters; the conference centre manager, responsible for working areas and equipment; the IT manager, responsible for information technology. During implementation, the team expanded its pillars to include individual areas of regular process functions such as accommodation among individual hotels, the food and beverage sector with individual restaurants, external contractors and so on.

Project Characteristics This was an extremely large and complex project in which the client demanded from the Bernardin engineering team all the elements of the Hotel Bernardin complex. The services contracted out by Bernardin, in comparison with services it implemented itself, had a ratio of one to one. This was an extraordinary experience, which we successfully mastered, earning the highest praise for our effectiveness and expertise, and this has undoubtedly positively contributed to the Hotel Bernardin complex’s reputation. We acquired invaluable experience as well as significant commercial benefits.

Win-Win Although the ‘win-win’ scenario is one of the most important principles in our society, never before has an opportunity to observe this principle in practice been as marked as in this case. The transparency of the offer and the expectations of the Hotel Bernardin complex during the negotiation phase were indispensable, facilitating the extremely difficult negotiation process, especially as the result of the necessity of closing sales with regular customers.

Deviations between the final and contractual amounts remained below 1%, showing accuracy of joint planning and efficiency of implementation, something that we and the client are both immensely proud of.

Project Management The successful execution of such a demanding project would not have been possible on our part without the client’s expertise in project management and its effective project organisation.

Initial findings: In this case, we could not speak about good practice, if the client had not been so well-organised, having precisely defined its expectations and requirements in detail.

From the offer and negotiation phase to the final contract, the Bernardin project team had four pillars: the project manager, responsible for accommodation, food and beverages and negotiations; the technical

55

Načrtovanje korporativnih dogodkov

Pravočasno izberimo lokacijo!

Na področju organizacije dogodkov se srečujemo z dvema segmentoma ciljne publike. Prvi, večji in največkrat dolgoročno nastavljeni dogodki so kongresi, namenjeni strokovni javnosti, drugi segment pa so korporativni dogodki, ki so namenjeni predstavitvam, izobraževanjem in promocijam podjetij.

nočitvah in morda celo aktivnostih za udeležence (»team buildingi«, športne aktivnosti ...), se število primernih kapacitet nenadoma zmanjša, nekatere so že rezervirane in podjetje je prisiljeno spreminjati termine dogodkov ali prestavljati dogodke na lokacije, ki jih prvotno niso vključili v ožji izbor. Največkrat prav lokacija vpliva na celoten preostali del dogodka (velikost prostorov, kulinarika, možnosti nočitev, parkiranje za udeležence, športne aktivnosti ob mestu dogodka itd.).

Pogosto se zgodi, da na lokacijo vpliva tudi vsebina dogodka. Takrat je še toliko težje poiskati lokacijo za želeni termin, saj mora podjetje, ki dogodek organizira, pretehtati, kaj so prednosti in kaj slabosti lokacije.

Zato v agencijah, kjer dobro poznamo dobršen del lokacij, dvoran in ostalih kapacitet na trgu, lažje svetujemo in se dogovarjamo s konferenčnimi ponudniki, ki imajo primeren prostor za planirani dogodek.

Največkrat je za rezervacijo lokacije potreben ogled, saj podjetja, ki organizirajo dogodke zase, vseh lokacij ne poznajo. Fotografije na internetu pa tudi niso tisto, kar prepriča. To pomeni, da se mora nekaj ljudi iz podjetja (ponavadi to ni le ena oseba) podati na več lokacij in si jih ogledati ter nato pretehtati, če jim ustrezajo. To zahteva kar nekaj ur, ki bi jih v podjetju lahko pametneje porabili za delo. Tudi ponudniki kapacitet nenehno spreminjajo svojo ponudbo (večajo centre, izboljšujejo ponudbo ipd.) in te spremembe agencije ves čas spremljamo. Vsak trenutek lahko ponudimo atraktivnejše lokacije in prostore, ki so za podjetje, ki dogodek organizira, primernejše. Če imamo pri rezervacijah lokacij več časa, imamo večje možnosti izbire. S tem bo podjetje – organizator dogodka dobil tisto, kar zares želi.

Podjetja tudi poznajo svoje udeležence in vabljene goste, ki bodo zaradi njim primerne lokacije toliko bolj zadovoljni z dogodkom.

Na uspešno izpeljan korporativni dogodek pa ne vpliva samo lokacija, ampak še veliko drugih dejavnikov, o katerih bomo še pisali. Prav zato je načrtovanje tako zelo pomembno!

Maša Pentek, Auditoria

Za korporativne dogodke je značilno, da se le redko načrtujejo za več kot pol leta vnaprej. Seveda so tudi izjeme, ko podjetja pričakujejo nek produkt in imajo tudi predviden termin njegove predstavitve javnostim. Ali pa gre za konference, ki imajo kontinuiteto in se dogajajo v istih terminih že nekaj let zapored.

Največkrat pa podjetja dogodke planirajo za dva, tri mesece vnaprej. Zato imajo težave z rezervacijami dvoran, prostorov, namestitev, saj pogosto potrebujejo kar nekaj časa, da pridejo do pravega prostora. Če ob tem načrtujejo večje število udeležencev in imajo posebne zahteve pri dvoranah,

Bohinj • Lake Bohinj (Foto/Photo: M. Pentek)

56

Planning Corporate Events

Choose your Location in Due Time!

We meet two segments of target groups in the area of event organisation.

The first, consisting of larger and often longterm planned events includes congresses or conferences designed for experts, while the second segment covers corporate events directed at company presentations, training and promotions.

It is characteristic that corporate events are only rarely planned more than six months in advance.

Of course, there are exceptions, when a company is launching a certain product, and thus has also foreseen the date of its presentation to the public. Or perhaps there may be a conference held on an ongoing basis, held on the same dates several years in a row.

Most often, companies plan events two or three months in advance. Thus, they encounter problems with reservations of halls, spaces or accommodation as they frequently require quite some time to find the right venue.

If they are planning an event for a larger number of participants with specific requirements regarding halls, overnight stays and perhaps even activities for participants (team building programmes, sports activities, etc.) the number of suitable facilities suddenly goes down. Some have already been reserved and companies are forced to change the dates of their events or hold the event at a loca-

tion which was not initially included in their preferred lists. Often it is exactly the location which influences the overal remaining part of an event (size of spaces, cuisine, overnight capacities, parking for participants, sports activities at the event location, etc.).

Often, the contents of the event also influence the choice of location, making it much more difficult to find a location on the desired date as the company organising the event must weigh the advantages and disadvantages of each location. Thus the agencies, which are familliar with the majority of locations, halls and other facilities on the market, can better advise and negotiate with conference providers who possess adequate venues for a planned event. Many times an on-site check is required to reserve a location since the company organising an event for itself is not familiar with all the locations. Besides, photographs on the internet are not the convincing factor. This means that company stuff (frequently several employees) must set off to a number of locations to check them and afterwards decide on their suitability. This requires quite some time which the company could utilise more efficiently. Facility providers very often change their offers (increase centres, improve their offers, etc.) something, which agencies monitor on an ongoing basis. We are capable of offering perhaps a more attractive location and venue at any moment, which would be more suitable for a company organising an event.

If more time is available for the reservation, we have a better selection at our disposal. Thus the company – event organiser will receive what it actually desires. The company knows its participants and invited guests who will, having a more suitable location, be more satisfied with the event.

Not only the location affects the succesful execution of a corporate event, but also a number of other factors, about which we will write in the future. This is precisely why planning is so very important.

MaĹĄa Pentek, Auditoria

Bled • Lake Bled (Foto/Photo: M. Pentek)

57

Tehnološki trendi

Komunikacija in tehnologija na konferencah Povsod po svetu, pa tudi pri nas, nastajajo novi konferenčni in kongresni hoteli, saj se v zadnjem času povečuje število srečanj vseh vrst. Kljub večnim finančnim težavam, povezanih z izgradnjo in obratovanjem, mora vsak konferenčni center ustrezati določenim standardom za kakovostno izvedbo konferenčnih srečanj.

Zaradi današnje tehnologije, ki nam omogoča komuniciranje na daljavo, lahko tudi v manjših centrih organiziramo najzahtevnejše konference.

Internet nam s svojo zmožnostjo prenosa podatkov, zvoka in slike omogoča, da lahko virtualno povežemo udeležence z vsega sveta s prisotnimi v dvorani. Ta možnost je uporabna predvsem za izobraževanje na daljavo, na primer za prenos videoslike zahtevnih predavanj, predvsem v medicini. Tehnologija omogoča tudi predavanja pomembnih predavateljev, ki so praviloma prezasedeni, da bi obiskovali konference po svetu. Pred kratkim je bilo čutiti zelo močne trende v smeri tovrstne komunikacije »na daljavo«, zaradi katerih so se snovalci konferenc že spraševali, če bomo v prihodnosti sploh še potrebovali srečanja. Na srečo ni tako, saj tehnologija ne more nadomestiti človeškega stiska rok in izmenjave izkušenj.

To pomeni, da je potrebno tehnologijo uporabiti le kot pomoč pri organizaciji konferenc. Naj na kratko omenim razvoj zadnjih dvajsetih let.

Starejši profesorji se z nostalgijo spominjajo grafoskopskih folij, diapozitivov in table »piši-briši«. Takratna organizacija predavanj je zahtevala kar dobro logistiko; predavatelji so s strahom predajali svoje materiale tehničnemu osebju, saj niso bili nikoli prepričani, da bo prava slika na pravem mestu, ali, da bodo svoje diapozitive sploh dobili nazaj. Na srečo so prišli računalniki in kmalu za njimi tudi projektorji. Danes so projektorji že tako poznani, da si predavatelji ne belijo več glave s tem, kako se bo prezentacija projicirala. Lahko se mirno posvetijo vsebini, lahko jo popravljajo tik pred predavanjem, na različnih pomnilniških medijih pa ustvarijo rezervo.

Razvoj tehnološke opreme teži k temu, da bi predavatelje še bolj razbremenil odgovornosti za prikaz njihove predstavitve. To pomeni, da so projektorji tako zanesljivi in vsestransko uporabni, da ne potrebujejo nikakršnih predhodnih nastavitev in so sposobni projicirati sliko s kateregakoli medija. Poleg projekcijske tehnologije je napredek hiter tudi v komuniciranju med udeleženci in predavateljem, komuniciranju med celotno konferenco in zunanjim svetom, skratka, tehnologija omogoča širše komuniciranje. V tej rubriki se bomo skušali dotakniti novosti, ki so že na trgu in splošno uveljavljene, kakor tudi novih trendov, ki mogoče nikoli ne bodo v uporabi. Na kratko naj ponudimo nekaj tem, ki jih bomo predstavili v naslednjih številkah:

Komunikacijska tehnologija • avdiokonferenčni in prevajalski sistemi, • IP – tehnologija, internet, • projekcijska in druga AV – tehnologija, • programska oprema za organizacijo konferenc in dogodkov, • interaktivnost pri konferencah, • videokonferenčni sistemi prenosa slike na daljavo, • tehnologija za obveščanje udeležencev, • zanimivosti iz sveta komunikacijskih »igračk«.

Proizvajalce in zastopnike vabimo, da v tej rubriki objavijo svoje novosti in s tem prispevajo svoj delež.

Boris Vrhovec, Auditoria

58

Technological Trends

Communications and Technology at Conferences In Slovenia and throughout the world the number of the various types of meetings has been growing in recent years and new conference and congress hotels are springing up.

Despite increased financial problems linked to their construction and operation, each conference centre must meet defined standards for the quality execution of conference meetings.

Modern technology enables us to organise the most complex conferences in smaller venues with the aid of remote communication technology. The internet and its capacity to transfer data, sound and images, allows us to virtually connect participants all over the world with those in a hall in real time. This option is predominantly used for distance learning, for example the transmission of lectures, especially medical ones. Technology also allows important lecturers, who are, as a rule, over-booked, to give virtual lectures at conferences around the world. A short time ago, one could feel an exceedingly strong trend towards such ‘distance’ communications leading to conference designers asking themselves whether meetings would still be necessary. Luckily, this is not the case, for technology cannot replace the human handshake and the exchange of experience. This means that technology must only be used as an aid in organising conferencćs. Let me just ˇriefly cover the last twelve years. Older professors remember the overhead transparencies, slides and dry-wipe boards with nostalgia.

The organisation of lectures at that time required good logistics and lecturers handed their material over to the technical personnel with fear, never sure if the right picture would appear in the right place or if they would even get their slides back. Luckily, computers appeared and, with them, digital projectors. Projectors are so user-friendly today that lecturers no longer need to worry about how to project their presentations. They can calmly devote themselves to the content, which can now be corrected just before the lecture, and they can quickly create back-ups on various media just in case.

Advances in technological equipment are reducing the lecturers’ responsibility for the display of their presentations as far as possible. This means that projectors can be used reliably and in a versatile manner. They do not require advance setup and they are capable of projecting pictures from any type of media. In addition to projection technology, progress is also being made in communication between participants and lecturers and communication with the outside world throughout the conference.

In summary, technology enables wider communication. In this column, we will endeavour to touch on novelties that are recognised on the market as well as new trends that may perhaps never be used. In short, we will cover several topics, which will be presented in future issues:

Communications technology • audio conferencing and translation systems, • IP technology and the internet, • projection and other AV technologies, • software for organising conferences and events, • interaction during conferences, • video conferencing systems for transmitting live pictures, • technology for informing participants, • interesting news from the world of communication ‘toys’.

We cordially invite manufacturers and representatives to publish their novelties in this column, contributing their share.

Boris Vrhovec, Auditoria

59

Srečko Koklič

Kulinarični trendi Težko bi našli boljšega sogovornika na temo kulinaričnih trendov doma in v svetu. Redno se udeležuje kulinaričnih razstav in tekmovanj po svetu. Je eden od gonilnih organizatorjev Gostinskoturističnega zbora Slovenije.

Zaposlen je na Gospodarski zbornici Slovenije kot svetovalec na Turističnogostinski zbornici, Združenju za turizem in gostinstvo. Je sekretar Društva gostinskih delavcev in njegovih sekcij. Je tudi ustanovni član in sekretar Društva kuharjev in slaščičarjev Slovenije. Posebno čast mu je izkazala svetovna kuharska organizacija WACS, ki ga je izvolila za kontinentalnega direktorja južne Evrope. Sedaj predseduje članicam WACS za južno Evropo, kamor sodijo tudi kuharske velesile Francija, Italija, Španija, Portugalska, Hrvaška, Ciper, Grčija, Malta, Romunija, Srbija, Črna Gora, Turčija in Slovenija.

In ne nazadnje je gospod Srečko Koklič človek, ki ob vsaki priložnosti s ponosom pove, da je v prvi vrsti kuhar. Poglejmo, kaj nam je zaupal o smernicah trenutnih kulinaričnih trendov v svetu. »Aktualne so manjše porcije, kombinacija hladno-toplo, nežni okusi, uporaba svežih zelišč in dišav, manj pikantnih začimb, reducirane omake, peneče omake nenavadnih okusov kot dodatek na krožniku ... Takšni so na kratko opisani trendi v kulinariki.

Predjedi so sestavljene iz različnih skupin živil, komponiranih v celoto, pomembna je barvna usklajenost kot enotna jed ali sestavljena v hladno-topli kombinaciji.

Na menije se vračajo čiste, dvojno močne juhe z zanimivimi jušnimi vložki, ki so lahko že vloženi v juho ali dodani naknadno.

Glavna jed je sestavljena iz osnovne, glavne sestavine (različne vrste mesa) v kombinaciji s termično obdelano zelenjavo (kuhana, gratinirana, sotirana) in svežo zelenjavo, ki predstavlja tretji del glavne jedi na enem krožniku.

Solate, kot jo poznamo Slovenci, v tujini skoraj ni, sveža zelenjava je vključena v predjed in tudi v glavno jed.

Omake različnih okusov (pomarančna, karamelna, vaniljeva, šampanjska) se morda za naš okus pripravljajo nekoliko nenavadno z osnovami, pridobljenimi z dolgotrajnim kuhanjem (reduciranjem). Ob tem se uporabljajo kakovostna živila in nato dodelajo okusi z omenjenimi dodatki, zelišči. Seveda ne smemo pozabiti na vrhunska vina, ki zaokrožijo celoto okusa omake, ki se nato popelje v meni z izbranim vinom.

Sladice prihajajo v kombinaciji z različnim testom, sadjem, kremami in sladoledom, ki dopolnijo okus in hkrati osvežijo zaključek obeda. Sladoledi niso kremasti, bolj so podobni sorbetom ali zmrzlini različnih, včasih zelo nenavadnih okusov in kombinacij.

Tempo dela pa nam žal pogosto omejuje izvedbo opisanega obroka, za katerega si je potrebno vzeti čas in temu primerno pripraviti tudi mizo.

Na pohodu so kombinacije hladno-toplih lahkih obedov in prigrizki (snacks), ki zamenjujejo malice in kosila. Vse jedi so pripravljene v obliki, ki nam omogoča, da jih lahko zaužijemo stoje in brez pribora, potrebujemo le krožnik in papirnato servieto. Čeravno se sliši kot »sendvič varianta«, so ti prigrizki pripravljeni izredno domiselno in okusno. Kot osnova služijo kruhki različnih oblik in iz različnega testa, nanje pa so naloženi sveža ali popečena zelenjava, pečeno meso ali morski sadeži.

Pri postrežbi obroka, če ta ni med delovnim odmorom, seveda velja izpostaviti tudi kozarec izbranega vrhunskega vina, katerega kultura pitja v Sloveniji je na zavidljivem nivoju.«

Foto: Vivo Catering

60

Srečko Koklič

Culinary Trends It would be hard to find a better expert on the topic of culinary trends, both at home and around the world. Srečko Koklič regularly attends culinary exhibitions and competitions around the world. He is one of the pivotal organisers of the Catering and Tourism Convention held in Slovenia.

He is employed at the Slovenian Chamber of Commerce and Industry as a consultant in the Catering and Tourism Section and the Tourism, Hotels and Restaurants Association. He is also Secretary of the Association of Catering Employees and its sections. Mr. Koklič is also a founding member and Secretary of the Association of Slovenian Chefs and Confectioners.

Photo: Vivo Catering

The World Association of Chefs’ Societies (WACS) bestowed a special honour upon him by electing him Continental Director of Southern Europe. He now presides over WACS members in southern Europe, which includes cooking moguls such as France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Croatia, Cyprus, Greece, Malta, Romania, Serbia, Montenegro, Turkey and Slovenia.

And, last but not least, Mr. Srečko Količ is a person who says with pride that above all he is a chef at every opportunity. Let's take a look at what he shared with us regarding the directions being taken by the current culinary trends in the world. »Smaller portions, hot-cold combinations, milder tastes, the use of fresh herbs and scents, less spicy herbs, fewer sauces, foamy sauces with unusual tastes acting as a supplement on the plate - that's how, in a few words, I would describe the current trends in cuisine.

Appetisers consist of various groups of foods, combined to produce a whole where colour co-ordination plays an important role, served as a single dish or as a hot-cold combination dish.

Clear, double strength soups are returning to the menu, with interesting southern additions already included in the soup or ready to add as a supplement.

The main dish consists of basic key ingredients (various types of meat), in combination with ‘thermally treated’ vegetables (cooked, au gratin or sautéed) and with fresh vegetables on the same plate as the third part of the main dish. Salads, in forms familiar to us Slovenes, are practically non-existent abroad; but fresh vegetables are included in both the appetisers and main dishes.

Sauces of various types (orange, caramel, vanilla or champagne), perhaps somewhat unusually for us, are prepared from a base acquired through hours of cooking (over a low heat). Quality foodstuffs are used, to which the additives and herbs mentioned above are added later. Of course, we shouldn’t forget a superior wine that will round off the final taste of the sauce, selected from a choice menu.

Desserts appearing on the horizon are a combination of different pastries, fruit, cream and ice cream, supplementing the taste and also bringing a freshness to the conclusion of the meal. Ice creams are less creamy and are more reminiscent of sorbets, with variations creating quite unusual flavours and combinations at times.

Unfortunately, the pace of work frequently restricts those meals for which more time is required, along with a well-set table. Thus, hot-cold combinations of light meals and snacks are on the march, replacing lunch or morning and afternoon snacks. All dishes are prepared in forms that we can enjoy standing up and without the need for eating utensils, requiring only a plate and paper napkin. Although they may sound like the ‘sandwich variation’, these snacks can be prepared with extraordinary creativity and are quite delicious. Bread, in various shapes and made from a variety of dough, serves as the base, which is then stacked with fresh or fried vegetables, roasted meat or seafood.

When serving meals other than during a break from work, the rule applies, of course, that a glass of superior wine is also served – which is a custom at an enviable level in Slovenia.«

61

Splet in organizacija dogodkov

Že imate dobro spletno ime za svoj dogodek?

Vsaka spletna prisotnost omenjenih je, da naj bo domena čim krajša. Prednost kratkih domen je tudi v tem, da obstaja manj možnosti napake pri vnosu v naslovno vrstico. dogodka se začne z izbiro spletnega naslova oziro- Nekaj koristnih napotkov ma domene. Izbira dobre Velikokrat pa zaradi dolgega naziva dogodka, ki je sestavljen iz več besed, domene bo lahko poveča- nimamo možnosti izbire kratke domene. V tem primeru se ponavadi pojavi vprašanje, ali v domeni za deljenje besed uporabimo vezaj (dogodek-zla obisk vaše spletne stra- vec-besedami.si) ali zapišemo vse skupaj brez ločil (dogodekzvecbesedami.si). Vsaka izmed različic ima svoje prednosti. Ločevanje besed z vezaji ni in s tem prepoznavpomaga pri boljši uvrstitvi spletne strani v iskalnikih. Različica brez vezanost dogodka. Toda kak- jev pa je lažje izgovorljiva, kar nam precej olajša komuniciranje. Najboljša rešitev v tem primeru je registracija obeh različic domen ter uvedba preušna je dobra domena za smeritev z ene domene na drugo. Ob strošku manj kot 15 eur za enoletno dogodek? Kaj je boljše: registracijo domene s to potezo pridobimo prednosti obeh možnosti.

Veliko obiskovalcev si domene niti ne poskusi zapomniti, ampak spletno slovfestmodelarjev.si, stran poišče preko iskalnikov. Prav zato je potrebno upoštevati, da slovenski-festivaliskalniki nadgrajujejo spletne strani z nazivi domen, ki vsebujejo iskane ključne besede. To pomeni, da je pri določeni vrsti dogodkov smiselno v modelarjev.si ali domeno vključiti tudi naziv kraja ali leto dogodka.

V okviru tega se je potrebno dotakniti tudi vključevanja kratic v naziv slovenskifestival domene. Slednje je priporočljivo le, če je kratica uveljavljena v strokovmodelarjev.si? ni srenji, ki se bo udeležila srečanja. V tem primeru obstaja možnost,

V vsakem poslu se je potrebno posvetiti potrebam stranke in splet ne predstavlja nobene izjeme. Na spletu stranko predstavlja obiskovalec spletne strani. V nadaljevanju bom poskusil podati nekaj smernic, kako se s pravilno izbiro domene lahko čimbolj približamo obiskovalcu.

Pri organizaciji uveljavljenega dogodka je delo večinoma lahko.

Obiskovalcu se bomo najbolj približali, če bomo uporabili isto domeno, kot je bila uporabljena za pretekli dogodek. Velik delež obiskovalcev si namreč spletni naslov shrani med zaznamke. V primeru, da to ni mogoče, pa poskusimo slediti vzorcu poimenovanja, ki se je uveljavil pri organizaciji dogodka v preteklih letih.

Glavno vodilo pri izbiri nove domene naj bo, da si jo je lahko zapomniti. To lahko dosežemo na več načinov. Eden izmed največkrat

da bodo kratico obiskovalci vpisali v iskalnik, v nasprotnem primeru obiskovalcu le otežujemo delo tako pri poskusu, da si zapomni domeno, kot pri njenem vpisu v naslovno vrstico.

Pojavlja se tudi vprašanje, kakšno končnico izbrati za svojo domeno.

Odgovor je spet v obiskovalcih. Če je dogodek mednaroden, je primerna izbira domene s končnico .com ali .org, v primeru le slovenskega dogodka pa je primerna izbira končnice .si

Da nam domene ne bi ukradli Za konec še opozorilo glede ugrabljanja domen. V primeru dogodkov obstajata dve osnovni možnosti. Zavedati se moramo, da domene v bistvu nikoli ne kupimo, ampak jo najamemo za določeno časovno obdobje. Ko to časovno obdobje preteče, je domena spet na voljo za registracijo, kar v primeru, ko je na tej domeni veliko obiska, dobro izkoristijo nepridipravi. Tako so leto dni po koncu svetovnega kongresa čebelarjev v Ljubljani domeno apimondia2003.com registrirali ponudniki pornografskih vsebin in objavili spletno stran s svojimi vsebinami.

Druga možnost »ugrabitve« domen pa je, da nepridipravi izkoristijo svojo priložnost z dobrim predvidevanjem. Če se dogodek ponavlja v enakih intervalih in uporablja obliko domene, ki vključuje ime dogodka ter leto, lahko nekdo registrira domeno z namenom, da jo bo kasneje dražje prodal naprej. Vse zgoraj našteto nam kaže, da je smiselno domeno registrirati takoj na začetku projekta, čeprav morda še ne potrebujemo spletne strani. Nekaj vloženega truda in razmislek glede domene na samem začetku lahko kasneje prihrani marsikatero težavo ter tudi poveča obisk naše spletne strani.

Uroš Čimžar, RSKLAN.com

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The Web and Event Organisation

Is Your Web Address Effective Enough?

The Web presence of each event begins with the selection of a website address or domain name.

The choice of a good domain can increase the visits to your website and, thus, the awareness of the event. However, what makes a good domain name? Which of the following is better: slovfestdesigners.si, slovenian-festival designers.si or slovenian festivaldesigners.si?

In every business, it is necessary to focus on the needs of your customers, and the Web is no different. The Web host presents our website to visitors. We will endeavour to provide some guidelines on how to get as close as possible to visitors through the correct choice of domain name.

The organisation of an established event is easy, to a large extent.

We can reach visitors as closely as possible by using the same domain used for previous events. A large percentage of visitors simply save our website addresses among their bookmarks. If this is not possible, then we should attempt to follow a sample of the name used in organising the event in previous years.

The chief guideline in the choice of a new domain should be to make it one that is easy to remember. We can do this in a number of ways.

One of the most frequent is to select as short a domain name as possible, which also reduces of the likelihood of mistakes occurring when typing the name into the address bar.

Several useful tips Due to an event having a long name, perhaps several words, we frequently do not have the option of choosing a short domain. In this case, the question often arises whether dashes should be used to separate the words (event-word-word-word.si) or if all the words should be written together without separators (eventwordwordword.si). Each version has its advantages. The separation of words with separa- 3 tors improves its ranking in the result pages of search engines.

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Versions without separators, however, are easier to pronounce, making it easier to communicate them to others. The best solution in this case is to register both versions of the domain and set one up as a parked domain for the website. At an annual cost of under €15 for the registration of a domain, this option allows us to enjoy the advantages of both.

Many visitors do not even attempt to remember domains, but simply search for a website using search engines. For this reason, one must realise that search engines respond well to websites with domain names containing the sought after key search terms.

This means that, for specific types of events, it is sensible to include the name of the place or the year of the event in the domain name.

It is also necessary to cover the use of an acronym in the domain name. This is only recommended if the acronym is a recognised term in the expert community who will be attending the event. If this is the case, then it is possible that visitors will enter the acronym as a search term; if not, we only interfere with peoples’ ability to remember the address, as well as its entry in the address bar.

Another question arising is the choice of suffix of one's domain name. Again, the answer depends on the visitors. If the event is an international one, a domain ending .com or .org should be chosen; if it is only a Slovenian event, the ending should be a .si suffix.

Beekeepers’ Congress in Ljubljana, the domainprimondia2003.com was registered again by a provider offering pornographic content, publishing their website and its contents under that domain name.

The second possibility of ‘hijacking’ a domain consists of hijackers exploiting opportunities provided by good forecasting skills. If an event appears at regular intervals and uses a domain that includes the name and year of the event, then people can register that domain in advance with the intention of reselling it at a higher price. All this indicates that it is wise to register the domain as early as possible, even if the website might not be needed immediately. A bit of investment of effort and thought regarding domains from the start may save quite a bit of trouble later and also increase the number of visits to your website.

Uroš Čimžar, RSKLAN.com

How to prevent someone stealing your domain name?

Finally, a word of caution regarding the hijacking of domains: two things may occur in the case of events of this sort. We must remember that domains, in essence, are not purchased. They are simply leased for a defined period of time. When this period expires, the domain becomes available for registration once again and, if it was highly visited, that would make it sensible to take advantage of this traffic. For example, a year after the World

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Organizacija kongresnih in incentive dogodkov je velik logistični izziv.

Kako prepeljati številne udeležence do kraja vašega dogodka?

Adria Airways, slovenski nacionalni prevoznik, omogoča zanesljiv, hiter in udoben prevoz na svojih rednih linijah, s katerimi povezuje Ljubljano s 24 evropskimi mesti ter vas večkrat dnevno popelje do glavnih evropskih letalskih stičišč.

S pridružitvijo največjemu globalnemu letalskemu združenju Star Alliance vam zagotavljamo dostop do svetovne mreže poletov 17 letalskih prevoznikov, ki z več kot 16.000 leti dnevno povezujejo 855 destinacij v 155 državah. Ob usklajenih voznih redih, prijavi na let do končne destinacije in udobju letaliških salonov je pot do cilja prijetno doživetje.

Z bogatimi dolgoletnimi izkušnjami uspešno organiziramo charter prevoze za najzahtevnejše domače in tuje kupce.

Za udeležence in spremljevalce kongresnih in incentive dogodkov nudimo prevoz na rednih linijah po ugodnejših pogojih.

Poiščite nas, veselimo se sodelovanja z vami!

Prodaja redni promet + 386 1 3691317 Prodaja charter letov + 386 1 3691252 E-mail: events@adria.si www.adria-airways.com

Trženje v kongresnem turizmu

MICE-marketing: kako se ga lotiti? znem in stalnem večanju obsega ponudbe kongresnih kapacitet in stoAli bi želeli zasloveti kot ritev tudi v slovenskem prostoru, kar po eni strani stopnjuje konkurengostitelj mednarodne co, po drugi strani pa povečuje potrebo po sodelovanju in skupnem nakonference in udeležence stopu na mednarodnem trgu. s celega sveta s ponosom Tri ciljne skupine organizatorjev srečanj povabiti v katerega od Kot zanimivo izhodišče za razmišljanje o možnostih trženja MICE-storičudovitih slovenskih kon- tev bi lahko vzeli rezultate raziskave, ki jo je leta 2004 v okviru kongresne borze IMEX izvedla revija CIM. Ti so med drugim pokazali, da večina gresnih središč? Mislim, (68,46 odstotka od 1000 vprašanih) prirediteljev najraje sodeluje s svojida je odgovor na to vpra- mi izbranimi partnerji – z uveljavljenimi in preverjenimi kongresnimi hoteli ter z nekaterimi agencijami oziroma PCO-ji. Zanimiva je tudi ugošanje za večino potencitovitev, da 61,54 odstotka vprašanih organizatorjev sprejme višjo ceno alnih organizatorjev sre- storitev po načelu »raje izberem lokacijo (hotel, kongresni center), ki ga poznam in mu zaupam«. Ni presenetljivo, da je 78,48 odstotka prirečanj jasen. Vendar – ali diteljev pritrdilo, da sta poleg stroškov odločilnega pomena prav zaupato vprašanje slovenski nje in zvestoba (Zidanski, 2005, str. 38).

Trženjskega komuniciranja s potencialnimi organizatorji srečanj se je kongresni ponudniki že torej potrebno lotevati segmentirano in zlasti slediti zakonitostim neposrednega trženja, ki temelji na odnosih, ter osebne prodaje. Osnova znamo postaviti pravim trženjskega pristopa je v prvi vrsti skrbno načrtovanje ciljnih osebam, ob pravem času vsakega segmentov, ki se razlikujejo po mnogih specifičnih značilnostih, zato jih je potrebno na trgu obravnavati posamično ter k njim pristopati na rain na učinkovit način?

Kongresna ali MICE (Meetings – sestanki, Incentives – motivacijska potovanja, Corporates – poslovna srečanja, Exhibitions – razstave, sejmi) dejavnost pomeni organizacijo komunikacije. Nagel gospodarski razvoj, širitev mednarodnih integracij, razvoj znanosti in sama globalizacija so ključni dejavniki, ki so aktivno sprožili potrebe po hitri izmenjavi informacij in utrjevanju mednarodnih odnosov med državami ter med posameznimi poslovnimi subjekti.

Motivi in razlogi za srečanja so različni. Lahko so povezani s širjenjem znanja, z izmenjavo izkušenj, z urejanjem pravic in obveznosti, z oblikovanjem zakonov, s širitvijo političnih programov ali tudi z zabavo (Peterlič, 2003). MICE-dejavnost je torej izredno kompleksna in raznolika veja turistične panoge. Zaradi hitre rasti, donosnosti in širših gospodarskih učinkov slovi kot zelo privlačna.

Rezultati tega se kažejo v opa-

zlične načine. V MICE-industriji pri tem lahko pomagamo s tematsko razvrstitvijo kongresnih prireditev. Tako lahko govorimo o treh ciljnih skupinah potencialnih organizatorjev srečanj. Prva skupina so organizatorji znanstveno-strokovnih prireditev, ki so praviloma člani različnih

V Sloveniji imamo veliko novih kongresnih kapacitet: dvorana Jupiter, Sava Hoteli Bled. • A number of new meeting venues are available in Slovenia: the Jupiter Hall, the Sava Hotel Group in Bled.

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strokovnih, gospodarskih ali interesnih združenj. Velikokrat so to predstojniki, profesorji in raziskovalci na fakultetah, inštitutih ali v bolnišnicah. Po navedbah mednarodne organizacije ICCA je za znanstveno-strokovna srečanja značilno, da prav vsako interesno združenje organizira srečanja, da se srečanja ponavljajo in da se destinacije menjajo. Čeprav destinacijo izbere mednarodna organizacija, pa mora pobudo za organizacijo srečanja v določeni državi vedno podati lokalen član. Pri pridobivanju znanstveno-strokovnih prireditev je tako pomemben stik s slovenskimi strokovnjaki, zlasti s tistimi, ki so včlanjeni v različna mednarodna združenja.

Drug segment so organizatorji gospodarsko-podjetniških prireditev. Po določilih mednarodne organizacije ICCA je zanje značilno, da se večkrat vračajo na isto lokacijo, da podjetja sama izbirajo destinacijo in da so srečanja manjša, na razpolago pa je več finančnih sredstev. Organizatorji takšnih srečanj so največkrat oddelki trženja in kadrovske službe. Kar petdeset odstotkov podjetij nikoli ne organizira srečanj v državah, v katerih nimajo predstavništva.

Ravno zato je ključnega pomena vzpostaviti stik s predstavništvi tujih podjetij v državi in preko njih pridobiti kontakte v matičnem podjetju oziroma v drugih predstavništvih, predvsem v državah, ki za kongresnega ponudnika predstavljajo ciljne trge. Takšen pristop bo omogočal pridobivanje regijskih srečanj in motivacijskih potovanj.

V tretjo skupino lahko uvrstimo organizatorje prireditev vladnih in političnih organizacij. To so predstavniki različnih ministrstev, državnih uradov, tujih veleposlaništev, mednarodnih političnih integracij, inštitucij Evropske unije ipd. Srečanja vladnih in političnih

organizacij so vedno zelo natančno in strogo načrtovana, povezana s togim državnim protokolom, medijsko odmevna ali velikokrat tudi tajna, predvsem pa operativno in izvedbeno zelo zahtevna. Za pridobivanje tovrstnih prireditev so pomembni stiki z različnimi uslužbenci v javni upravi, katerih kontaktne podatke lahko zelo enostavno poiščemo tudi na internetu.

Posebna ciljna skupina, ki ni povezana s klasifikacijo kongresnih prireditev, pa so t.i. PCO-ji (Proffesional Congress Organizer), AMC-ji (Association Management Company) in DMC-ji (Destination Management Company). To so posredniki med prireditelji srečanj in kongresnimi hoteli ali kongresnimi centri. Velikokrat so v odnosu do kongresnega naročnika odločilen vmesni člen pri iskanju in izbiri lokacije prireditve.

Tudi s to skupino poslovnih partnerjev je smiselno vzdrževati pristne in dolgoročne poslovne odnose. Velika podpora celovitemu neposrednemu trženju so seveda kakovostne baze podatkov o kupcih, ki naj bi bile po možnosti podprte z informacijsko tehnologijo CRM.

Kako do informacij o potencialnih strankah?

Informacije o potencialnih strankah in dogodkih je možno pridobivati tudi s pomočjo spremljanja vrste množičnih medijev (obvestila, oglasi in vabila k udeležbi na različnih konferencah, prispevki iz gospodarstva, članki v strokovnih revijah, internet itd.). Lastno prodajno osebje je potrebno motivirati k učinkovitemu in ažurnemu zbiranju notranjih podatkov o potencialnih naročnikih, s katerimi imajo kakršenkoli kontakt. Veliko informacij je mogoče pridobiti tudi preko predstavništev STO v tujini in tudi preko članstva v mednarodnih združenjih, ki razpolagajo z bazami podatkov o mednarodnih dogodkih in njihovih organizatorjih.

Kako napolniti vse kongresne stole preko celega leta?

• How to have every seat occupied throughout the year?

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Članstvo v mednarodnih združenjih vpliva na prepoznavnost posameznega MICE-ponudnika v tujini, prinaša pa mu tudi možnost dodatnega izobraževanja kadrov. Najpomembnejši dve organizaciji sta ICCA (International Congress & Convention Association) in MPI (Meeting Proffessionals International).

V prvi vrsti je predvsem nujno tudi članstvo v nacionalnem kongresnem uradu, ki je pomemeben vir informacij in pomeni povezavo z akterji doma in v tujini.

Največji kongresni ponudniki se pod pokroviteljstvom kongresnih uradov praviloma udeležujejo tudi specializiranih MICE-borz in sejmov v tujini, ki so idealna priložnost za navezovanje poslovnih kontaktov, omogočajo osebna srečanja s potencialnimi kupci in tudi koristne stike s konkurenti. Glavni evropski sejemski dogodki te vrste so IMEX Frankfurt (The Worldwide Exhibition for Incentive Travel, Meetings and Events), EIBTM Barcelona (Eeuropean Incentive Business Travel and Meetings), BTC Firence (Borsa internazionale del sistema Congressuale ed Incentive) in EMIF Bruselj (European Meeting Industry Fair).

Podpora neposrednemu trženju mora biti seveda tudi dejavnost oglaševanja in odnosov z javnostmi. Oglaševanje kongresnih kapacitet je priporočljivo zaradi ustvarjanja prepoznavnosti in podobe blagovne znamke destinacije. Organizator srečanja pa je v končni fazi tisti, ki je z vidika MICE-ponudnika najpomembnejši in pri katerem je poleg začetnega zanimanja potrebno vzbuditi predvsem zaupanje. Kongresni organizator si želi, da bi bil njegov dogodek odmeven in uspešen ter da bi udeleženci odšli zadovoljni. Seveda je to v končni fazi prva in najboljša reklama.

Avtorica Elvira Krupič, 27 let, je doma na Bledu, zaposlena v službi za prodajo in marketing v Sava hotelih Bled kot vodja kongresnega trženja, po izobrazbi univerzitetna diplomirana ekonomistka – diplomirala je na Ekonomski fakulteti v Ljubljani leta 2006 na temo »Možnosti trženja MICE-dejavnosti v Sava hotelih Bled«. »Pred nekaj leti sem se še kot študentka udeležila ene od diskusij o turizmu, ki jih večkrat na leto organizira dr. Tanja Mihalič na Ekonomski fakulteti v Ljubljani. Tema je bil kongresni turizem, o katerem takrat nisem vedela še čisto nič. Predavala sta nam gospod Srečo Peterlič in gospod Gorazd Čad, dva izmed vodilnih slovenskih strokovnjakov s tega področja. Radovedno sem ju poslušala, niti slučajno pa takrat nisem vedela, da bom o tej temi kasneje celo pisala v svoji diplomski nalogi in da se mi bo kmalu ponudila priložnost, da svojo kariero začnem ravno v tej t.i. kongresni industriji. Vendar me je prav kongresna industrija zelo hitro povsem zasvojila. Ena od prelomnic je bila zame gotovo tudi udeležba na lanski poletni kongresni šoli EFCT v Berlinu, kjer sem ugotovila, da je delo na tem področju v Sloveniji za vsakogar ogromen izziv.

Nešteto je še neizkoriščenih možnosti in ravno to je tisto, kar privlači.«

Uporabljeni viri in literaura: 1. Elvira Krupič: Možnosti Trženja MICE dejavnosti v Sava Hotelih Bled. Diplomsko delo. Ljubljana: Ekonomska fakulteta, 2006.

2. Srečo Peterlič: Prosojnice predavanja o Kongresni dejavnosti, 2003.

3. Majda Zidanski: Kongresna dejavnost – Organizacija kongresov. Bled: Albatros, 2005.

Kongres je organizacija komunikacije med ljudmi.

• A meeting is the organisation of communications among people.

Elvira Krupič

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Marketing in the Meetings Industry

MICE Marketing: How to go about it?

MICE activities are thus an extraordinarily complex and varied line of 'Would you like to be tourism. Due to their rapid growth, profitability and wider economic known as a host of effects, they are considered quite attractive. The results are reflected in a visible and ongoing increase in the scope of offers for meeting capacities international meetings, and services in Slovenia, which steps up competition on the one hand and, proudly welcoming on the other, increases the need for co-operation and a joint approach on participants from all over the international market.

As an interesting starting point for thought on the possibilities of the world to one of the marketing MICE activities we could use the results of a study carried out by CIM magazine in 2004 within the scope of the IMEX meetings wonderful Slovenian exchange. Among other things, the results show that the majority meeting venues?' I am (68.46% of 1000 surveyed) of organisers prefer to co-operate with their chosen partners – namely with validated and verified hotels and with certain that the answer several agencies, or PCOs. The discovery that 61.54% of the organisers to this question is clear to surveyed will pay a higher price for services following the rule that rather choose a location (hotel, meeting venue) that I know and the majority of potential “I'd trust” is also quite interesting. It is not surprising that 78.48% of the organisers. Nevertheless, organisers confirmed that, in addition to costs, it is trust and loyalty that prove to be of key importance (Zidanski, 2005, p. 38). the question is whether providers of Slovenian Three target groups of meeting organisers meeting venues know Marketing communications with potential congress organisers must how to contact the right therefore be handled by segment, especially following the principles of direct marketing, which is based on relationships and personal sales. people, at the right time The basis of each marketing approach firstly consists of the careful planning of the target segments, which differ in numerous specific and in the right way.

Meetings or MICE activities (Meetings - meetings, Incentives – incentive travel, Corporates – business gatherings, Exhibitions – exhibitions, fairs) cover the organisation of communications.

Rapid economic development, the expansion of international integration, the development of science and globalisation are key factors that have actively triggered a need for rapid information exchange and a reinforcement of international relations between nations and individual business bodies. The motives and reasons for meetings vary. They can be directed towards expansion of knowledge, the exchange of experience, the arrangement of rights and obligations, the shaping of legislation, the broadening of political programmes or even entertainment (Peterlič, 2003).

characteristics, making it necessary to treat them individually and utilise various approaches. In the MICE industry, we can aid our endeavours by thematically ranking meeting events, and so we can

Domina Grand Media Hotel

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speak of three target groups of potential congress organisers.

The first group are the organisers of scientific/expert events who are, as a rule, members of various expert economic or interest groups. Often these are heads, professors and researchers at faculties, institutes or hospitals.

According to information from the international organisation ICCA, a distinguishing feature of scientific/expert meetings is that each interest group organises meetings and that these meetings are held on a repetitive basis, with changes of destination. Although an international organisation chooses the destination, the offer for the organisation of the event in a specific country should always be entrusted to a local member.

When acquiring scientific/expert events, contact with Slovenian experts is important, particularly those who are members of various international associations.

The second segment consists of the organisers of economic/ corporate events. ICCA defines these as events that frequently return to the same location, where companies themselves choose the destination and where the meetings are smaller and with more financial funding available.

Organisers of these meetings are often marketing departments and personnel offices. Fifty per cent of companies decline to organise meetings in countries where they do not have a representative office. This is why it is of primary impor- 6 tance to establish contact with the representative offices of foreign companies within countries and, through them, obtain contact with their parent companies or other representative offices, particularly in countries representing target markets for suppliers of the

meetings industry. Such an approach will enable the acquisition of regional meetings and incentive trips.

We can classify the organisers of events for state and political organisations as the third group. These are the representatives of various ministries, state administrations, foreign embassies, international political integrations, European Union institutions and so on. Meetings of state and political organisations are always extremely precise and strictly planned and associated with rigid state protocols.

They either have wide media coverage or are often in secret, and they are especially demanding in terms of operatives and implementation.

To obtain such events, contacts with various civil servants in public administration are of extreme importance, and those contact details can quite easily be found on the internet.

Special target groups, not associated with this classification of meeting events are the so-called PCOs (Professional Meeting Organisers), AMCs (Association Management Companies), and DMCs (Destination Management Companies). These serve as intermediaries between congress organisers and congress hotels or meeting venues. They often represent an excellent go-between in the relationship with the client in the search and selection of event locations. It is also advisable to maintain genuine and long-term business relationships with this group of business partners. Of course, quality databases on customers are a good support for your entire direct marketing activity, which should be supported using CRM information technology if possible.

How to acquire information on potential customers Information on potential clients and events can also be obtained by monitoring the numerous varieties of media available (announcements, advertisements and invitations to participate in various conferences,

Predsedniťki apartma, Grand Hotel Toplice • Presidential suite, Grand Hotel Toplice

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economic contributions, articles in professional journals, the internet, etc.). One must motivate one's own sales people to the effective and concurrent collection of internal data on all potential clients with whom one has any contact. A great deal of information can also be • A meeting is the organisation of communication among people. 7 obtained from STO representative offices abroad and through membership of international associations who possess databases on international events and their organisers. Membership of international associations is beneficial for raising the standing of an individual MICE provider abroad, as well as providing the possibility of additional training for personnel. The two most important international associations are ICCA (the International Congress & Convention Association) and MPI (Meeting Professionals International). Membership of a national convention bureau is also important, providing an important source of information and connections with active entities both at home and abroad.

As a rule, the largest meeting venue providers also participate in the sponsorship of convention bureaus in specialised MICE exchanges and in fairs abroad, which are an ideal opportunity to establish business contacts and personal meetings with potential customers – as well as giving useful contact with competitors.

The main European fair events of this type are IMEX Frankfurt (The Worldwide Exhibition for Incentive Travel, Meetings and Events), EIBTM Barcelona (European Incentive Business Travel and Meetings), BTC Florence (Borsa internazionale del sistema Congressuale ed Incentive) and EMIF Brussels (the European Meeting Industry Fair).

Support to direct marketing must, naturally, include advertising and public relations activities.

Advertising meeting venues is recommended to create awareness and brand name destinations. From the viewpoint

of a MICE provider, the congress organiser is the most important factor in the final phase, in whom one must also awaken trust as well as initial interest. The meeting organiser wants their event to be a resounding success and wants participants to leave pleased. Of course, this is ultimately the best form of advertising.

Literary sources: 1. Krupič Elvira: Možnosti Trženja MICE-dejavnosti v Sava Hotelih Bled (Possibilities of Marketing MICE Activities at the Sava Hotel Group in Bled). Diploma thesis. Ljubljana: Faculty of Economics, 2006. 47 pages.

2. Peterlič Srečo: Prosojnice predavanja o Kongresni dejavnosti (Transparencies from a lecture on Meeting Industry Activities), 2003.

3. Zidanski Majda: Kongresna dejavnost – Organizacija kongresov. Bled (Meeting Industry activity – Organisation of Congresses in Bled): Albatros, 2005. 115 pages. 9 April.

Elvira Krupič

(Author: Elvira Krupič, 27, from Bled, worked in the Sales and Marketing Office of the Sava Hotel Group in Bled as Congress Marketing Manager. She has a BSc in Economics and graduated from the Faculty of Economics in Ljubljana in 2006 with the thesis: 'Možnosti trženja MICE-dejavnosti v Sava Hotelih Bled' (Possibilities of Marketing MICE activities at the Sava Hotel Group in Bled). Several years ago, as a student, I attended an EF discussion on tourism organised by Dr Tanja Mihalič at the Faculty of Economics in Ljubljana. The topic consisted of the meetings industry, a topic that I had no knowledge whatsoever of at the time. Mr Srečo Peterlič and Mr Gorazd Čad, two of the leading Slovene experts in this field, gave lectures. I listened with great interest, not knowing then that I would later write my diploma thesis on this topic and that I would soon be given an opportunity to begin my career in precisely this field, the so-called meetings industry.

Nevertheless, it was precisely the meetings that quickly took me over.

One of the turning points for me was surely my participation in last year's EFCT summer congress school in Berlin, where I established that work in this field in Slovenia was a great challenge for everyone involved. Numerous possibilities remain that are not yet exploited and this is what I find so enticing.

Mestni muzej Ljubljana • Ljubljana City Museum

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Kongresna statistika

Slovenska industrija srečanj 2005 Na podlagi statistike Kongresnega urada Slovenije, pridobljene od glavnih ponudnikov kongresnih kapacitet v letu 2005 (brez univerz, ipd.), je bilo v Sloveniji organiziranih 6.505 dogodkov, od tega 21 % mednarodnih oz. slovenskih dogodkov z mednarodno udeležbo. Upoštevajoč to dejstvo, vrsto dogodka (združenje, podjetje, politično), trajanje dogodka in število udeležencev je kongresna dejavnost ustvarila prihodek v višini 225 milijonov eur (ali 16,07 % skupnih turističnih prihodkov v višini 1,4 milijarde eur).

Glede na strukturo v Sloveniji prevladujejo prireditve gospodarsko – podjetniškega značaja (51 %), sledijo znanstvene in strokovne prireditve z 29 % in prireditve mednarodnih in političnih organizacij, ki so dosegle 12-odstotni delež. Manjši del prireditev predstavljajo motivacijska srečanja, ki so zastopana v višini 8 %.

Tabela 1: Število in delež dogodkov glede na število udeležencev Vrsta dogodka

Število dogodkov

Delež v %

4.190

64,41 %

1.117

17,17 %

100 – 249 udeležencev

791

12,17 %

250 – 499 udeležencev

287

4,42 %

500 – 999 udeležencev

78

1,20 %

1000 – 1999 udeležencev

34

0,53 %

do 50 udeležencev 50 – 99 udeležencev

Nad 2000 udeležencev Skupaj

7

0,11 %

6.505

100 %

Vir: Kongresni urad Slovenije, 2006

Iz tabele je razvidno, da je več kot polovica dogodkov manjših od 50 udeležencev, medtem ko je slaba tretjina dogodkov gostila med 50 in 250 udeležencev in samo dobra polovica odstotka dogodkov več kot 1000 udeležencev.

V Ljubljani se je odvila več kot polovica dogodkov, natančneje 3.719, z več kot dvema tretjinama udeležencev, natančneje 346.500. Na Obali in Krasu je bilo v letu 2005 organiziranih in izvedenih manj kot 10 % dogodkov (513) s 14 % vseh udeležencev. V alpskem svetu je bilo izvedenih skoraj 15 % dogodkov oz. 953, s 7 % vseh udeležencev. V wellness in spa hotelih so bili izvedeni slabi 4 odstotki dogodkov (239), z 2 % udeležbo oz. 11.161 udeleženci.

V kongresnih centrih je bilo izvedenih dobrih 7 % dogodkov, natančneje 480, medtem ko je bilo v hotelih s kongresnimi oz. konferenčnimi kapacitetami izvedenih preko 92 % dogodkov oz. preko 6.000.

Z nestrpnostjo pričakujemo rezultate statistike za leto 2006.

10 najbolj perspektivnih destinacij 1. Estonija 2. Kitajska 3. Hrvaška 4. Indija 5. Litva 6. Oman 7. Vietnam 8. Abu Dhabi 9. Namibija 10. Slovenija

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Vir: C&I C&I Agents’ Survey 2007 Corporate and Incentive Travel Magazine, UK

Meeting Statistics

Slovenian Meeting Industry 2005 Based on statistics from the Slovenian Convention Bureau, obtained from key providers of meeting venues in 2005 (excluding universities), there were 6,505 events in Slovenia, of which 21% were international events or Slovenian events with an international attendance. Taking into account the type of event (association, corporate or political), the duration of the event and the number of participants, this meeting activity created revenue exceeding eur 225 million (or 16.07 % of total tourist revenues totalling eur 1.4 billion).

In terms of the structure in Slovenia, corporate events prevail (51%), followed by association events (29%) and events of governmental and political organisations (12%). Incentives were a smaller share of events (8%).

Table 1: The number and share of events by participants Type of Event

Number of Events

up to 50 participants

4,190

50 – 99 participants

Share in % 64.41 %

1,117

17.17 %

100 – 249 participants

791

12.17 %

250 – 499 participants

287

4.42 %

500 – 999 participants

78

1.20 %

1000 – 1999 participants

34

0.53 %

over 2000 participants Total

7

0.11 %

6,505

100 %

Source: The Slovenian Convention Bureau, 2006.

From the table, it is evident that over half of the events had fewer than 50 participants, while slightly under a third hosted between 50 and 250 participants. Only slightly over a half of a per cent hosted over 1000 participants.

Over a half (3,719 to be precise) took place in Ljubljana, more than two thirds of the participants, or 346,500 people. Less than 10% (513 events) were organised on the coast or in Karst in 2005 and comprised 14% of all participants. Almost 15% of the events (or 953), comprising 7% of all the participants, were held in the Alpine area. Slightly less than 4% (or 239), consisting of 2% or a total of 11,161 participants, were held at heath centres and spa resort hotels.

A good 7% of all events (480) were held at meeting venues, while around 92% (over 6,000) were in hotels with meeting or conference capabilities.

We are impatiently awaiting statistical results for 2006.

Top 10 Overseas Destinations to watch 1. Estonia 2. China 3. Croatia 4. India 5. Lithuania 6. Oman 7. Vietnam 8. Abu Dhabi 9. Namibia 10. Slovenia

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Source C&I Agents’ Survey 2007 Corporate and Incentive Travel Magazine, UK

Kako prepeljati udeležence do kraja vašega dogodka po ugodnih cenah?

Tel.: + 386 1 36 91 317 Fax: + 386 1 23 01 325 kongresi@adria.si events@adria.si www.adria-airways.com

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Globtour je podjetje za destinacijski management in »incentive« agencija, ki ima več kot osemintridesetletne izkušnje v turizmu. Visoko strokovno in inovativno osebje prijazno pomaga in strokovno usmerja vsak segment dogodka.

Kontakt: Matjaž Triplat Globtour Bled (04) 574 18 21 E-mail: globtour.bled@globtour.si

Kompas Corporate

KONGRESI, POSLOVNA POTOVANJA, LETALSKE VOZOVNICE Kompas Corporate je Kompasova blagovna znamka za vrhunske celostne storitve za vse poslovne uporabnike – podjetja, razli~ne ustanove in vladne institucije iz Slovenije in tujine.

Ne glede na to, kaj želite – letalsko vozovnico ali celotno organizacijo konference kjerkoli na svetu – je Kompas Corporate tu zato, da poskrbi za vse.

telefon: 01 2006 151 • congressesakompas.si • www.kompas.si

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Z_W`1^ Y`eV] dZ hhh ^ Y`eV] dZ

Kongresno - prireditveno središče Robotrade je vodilni dobavitelj opreme za simultano tolmačenje (do 31 jezikov) in konferenčno-diskusijskih mikrofonov v Sloveniji. Trenutno predstavlja edinega ponudnika IR prenosov v digitalni tehnologiji (IR digital) ter kabin, ki ustrezajo ISO 4043 standardu za mobilne kabine v Sloveniji. Paleta njihovih storitev vključuje tudi najem sistemov za vodenje (tour guide systems), sistemov za šepetanje, ozvočenj ter projekcijske tehnike (LCD projektorji, platna, plasma zasloni ...), osebnih in prenosnih računalnikov. Od leta 2006 je Robotrade tudi predstavnik/član CRN (Congress Rental Network-a) za Slovenijo. Robotrade sodeluje s profesionalnimi tolmači ter nudi popolne strokovne storitve najvišje kakovosti na katerikoli destinaciji v Sloveniji.

T: +386 41 707114 • F:+ 386 4 5765 001 • E: info@robotrade.si • www.robotrade.si

Informacije in rezervacije: Postojnska jama, turizem, d.d.

Jamska cesta 30, 6230 Postojna tel.: 05 7000 100, faks: 05 7000 130 e-pošta: events@postojnska-jama.si www.turizem-kras.si

Ko udobje pomeni poslovnost!

Ferrarska ul. 30 6000 Koper Slovenija Tel.: +386 5 61440 00 Fax: +386 5 61440 40 Gsm: +386 51 347231 E-mail: hotel@luka-kp.si Marketing: mojca.rojc@luka-kp.si www.pristan-koper.si

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Organizacija dogodkov, butična korporativna srečanja in motivacijska potovanja.

Agencija LIFETREK je eden vodilnih ponudnikov korporativnih team building in team spirit dogodkov, ki jih izvajajo v vseh letnih časih. Programi so unikatni , vedno usmerjeni k novim izkušnjam in izvedeni z visoko stopnjo motivacije. Podjetje odlikuje tudi organizacija butičnih korporativnih srečanj in kongresov, ki temeljijo na dobri ideji in efektu presenečenja. Velik poudarek dajejo tudi motivacijskim potovanjem, ki jih za poslovne skupine organizirajo na vse celine sveta. LIFETREK trži in izvaja programe pod znamko zmagovalec.si in spiritowin.com na trgu EU. Odlikujejo jih strokovna izvedba, celostni servis in dobre ideje.

LIFETREK d.o.o., Partizanska cesta 18, 4000 Kranj • T: 00 386 4 20 14 875 • F: 00 386 4 20 14 878 • M: 00386 40 50 88 35 • E: info@zmagovalec.si • www.zmagovalec.si / www.lifetrek.si • Kontaktna oseba: Ana Peskar

Zakaj GR? • na‰e kapacitete: 14 do 17 multifunkcijskih dvoran in sejnih sob • najveãja kongresna dvorana v Sloveniji za 2.200 udeleÏencev • najveãja banketna dvorana za 1.200 udeleÏencev • najsodobnej‰a tehniãna oprema Gospodarsko razstavišče d.o.o., kongresni in razstavni center, Dunajska cesta 18, 1000 Ljubljana, T: 01/300 26 11, F: 01/300 26 28, E: info@gr-sejem.si; www.gr-sejem.si, kontaktna oseba: Rastko Aleš (rastko.ales@gr-sejem.si)

predstava kulinarike Vivo, d.o.o.

Pot na Fužine 2, 1000 Ljubljana T: 01 54 61 65 F: 01 54 61 659 E: catering@vivo.si jerneja.kamnikar@vivo.si jerneja.kamnikar@siol.net www.vivo.si kontaktna oseba: Tea Gmeiner Zupančič

Zavod za turizem Ljubljana je vaš profesionalni partner in najboljši vir informacij o turistični in kongresni ponudbi slovenske prestolnice. • The Ljubljana Tourist Board is your professional partner and best source of information on the leisure tourism and convention offer in the Slovenian capital.

www.ljubljana-tourism.si

www.slovenia-convention.com Terme SPA Rogaška d.d., Stritarjeva 1, 3250 Rogaška Slatina T: +386 3 811 2794 • F: + 386 3 811 2790 • E: marketing@terme-rogaska.si; www.terme-rogaska.si

• Skupna kapaciteta kongresnega centra: 2.600 sedežev • Kapaciteta največje dvorane: 1.100 sedežev • 767 hotelskih sob v treh hotelih • Sodobna tehnična oprema • Izkušeno tehnično osebje n destinacijski management • Motivacijska srečanja in prireditve

• Total seating capacity: 2.600 • Largest convention hall seating capacity: 1.100 • Total hotel rooms: 735 in 3 hotels • State of the art technical equipment • Experienced technical and destination management Breathtaking event locations • Teambuilding’s and incentives

HOTELI BERNARDIN d.d., St. Bernardin, Adriatic Resort & Convention Centre Obala 2, SI – 6320 Portorož • www.h-bernardin.si

HOTELI BERNARDIN d.d., St. Bernardin, Adriatic Resort & Convention Centre Obala 2, SI – 6320 Portorož • www.h-bernardin.si

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HOW DO LJU DO? * KAKO SI KAJ?

www.slovenia.info

Plečnik`s Watergate (detail).

A COOL CAPITAL FOR GREAT MEETINGS LJUBLJANA is celebrating the year of famous architect Jože Plečnik in 2007.

For this occasion numerous events are taking place throughout the year.

Read more on:

www.ljubljana-tourism.si

Ljubljana Tourist Board

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