IAEE Gets Into Public Sector

IAEE creates council for an industry sector NACS already serves

By Heidi Genoist -- Tradeshow Week, 3/19/2007

The Intl. Assn. of Exhibitions and Events has created a Public Events Council, formally venturing into territory already occupied by the Natl. Assn. of Consumer Shows. IAEE leaders said the two bodies would serve different purposes, but at least one of their counterparts at NACS wondered why he wasn't consulted first.

In its official statement about the creation of the Public Events Council, IAEE said its "main objective is to focus on issues and policies that are of specific relevance and importance to those who organize and supply public events. It will involve the producers and suppliers of public events throughout the world."

Jeff Price, president of Cygnus Expositions and chairman of IAEE, underlined the international nature of the council's work, and IAEE President Steven Hacker added that the move was further evidence of his association's "commitment to serve every niche and segment of the exhibition and events industry in every time zone."

With a heavy focus on advocacy, public policy and research, the group's list of responsibilities resembled that of a think-tank or consultancy. Nonetheless, it did encompass items typical of any nonprofit professional association, such as educational programming and new member development.

With a limited universe of consumer show organizers to tap, this could be where IAEE steps on NACS' toes.

But that's not what's bothering Jim Fricke, current president of NACS and a public show organizer with Colorado Garden Show Inc. He just wishes he'd known that IAEE was creating the council before he heard about it in an e-mail from the larger association.

"We weren't aware that this was being put together," Fricke said. He added that he and other NACS leaders had met with IAEE a few years ago (when it was still the Intl. Assn. for Exhibition Management) and "kind of agreed to work together on an annual basis — if they have an idea, or we have an idea, to share it, to have open lines of communication. ... It's interesting that, with the lines of communication open, they did it without any consultation from us."

NACS collocated several of its annual meetings with IAEM's mid-year meeting, until the latter was canceled three years ago. Because NACS members prefer to meet in the summer, it continues on its own, independent of IAEE.

Fricke pointed out that NACS was formed 15 years ago, "because there were members of IAEM who felt their needs weren't being addressed."

He added he would be happy to meet with IAEE's consumer show council and give NACS' input, and he wanted to maintain a positive working relationship between the two organizations.

Price echoed the sentiment. As a former chairman of NACS, he said, he would always "have a warm spot in my heart for them." Indeed, after becoming more active in IAEM, he was one of the people who led the collocation of the groups' annual and mid-year meetings.

"We still want to work with them," Price said, noting that IAEE had "reached out to" Mike Fisher, director of NACS, and let him know about the council. "The people on this committee are absolutely going to talk to NACS," he said.

Fisher was unavailable for comment at press time.

Who told whom what aside, Price emphasized that IAEE's Public Events Council had a fundamentally different scope and purpose than NACS. "We have some big hitters in (the consumer show) sector that aren't being served," he said. "They're looking at it more from a strategic point of view."

One such heavy hitter, Paul Schweitzer, vice president of business development for dmg world media, shared Price's view.

He said just before IAEE formed the council, he had been in conversations with his superiors about how to establish a group that could provide strategic direction on the consumer show business. He felt consumer show producers needed sophisticated tools — research, in particular — that neither individual companies nor existing associations could provide as well as IAEE could, with its extensive resources.

"I think IAEE handled it beautifully," said Schweitzer. "There are a couple small groups, the home show group and NACS, but from the get-go IAEE made it clear this new council was in no way to infringe."

He added, "This is really higher level; it's about strategic situations, not tactical day-in and day-out situations for consumer shows that are more than adequately handled by the existing groups that get together once a year and talk about common ideas."

For this reason, he said, dmg would continue to support both NACS and IAEE's new council.

IAEE's announcement detailed the establishment of several exploratory committees, made up of volunteer members from large organizations like Advanstar and Adjuvant, as well as smaller independent public show management firms and some associations.

They are developing a needs assessment survey to mail to IAEE members in the near future and will use results to determine the council's next steps.

Fricke bristled at the characterization of his organization as non-strategic:

"NACS has everything there is for consumer shows, whether it's strategic planning or marketing. Of course, it's operations also, but we've always focused on every aspect of consumer shows."

Still, he said, IAEE's interest in public shows is indicative of the sector's health: "Our membership continues to grow by about 15 percent per year. We have approximately 350 individual members. As recently as three years ago, that was around 220."