Guidelines
Important please note: The guidelines have slightly changed, see point “b” in bold text below under “Client criteria”.
Introduction
These guidelines deal with the Africa Client/Supplier Business Workshop. This workshop is the 8th edition organised for members in all the ICCA sectors and is open to all Africa members.
- Workshop Objectives
The primary objective of the workshop is to provide a cost-effective opportunity for ICCA members to meet and do business with key decision-makers of conferences.
A secondary objective is to introduce clients to ICCA and to explain the benefits of working with ICCA members.
The workshop is not an opportunity to reward a client with a free trip, nor should it be used by the host as a site inspection or familiarisation trip.
- Workshop Format
A minimum of 10 and maximum of 15 ICCA members each invite an African Association Executive to the Workshop to discuss their specific meetings requirements. Accompanying clients must conform to strict selection criteria (see below), so ensuring that participating members can promote their company and services to senior decision-makers who are actively looking for destinations, venues and suppliers.
The Workshop commences on Wednesday evening with a Welcome Reception. Thursday is the Educational Day of the Workshop with key speakers presenting on relevant industry topics. The next day of the Workshop takes place and members set up their tables prior to the clients arriving. At the start of the Workshop the clients are asked to join the members, sitting opposite the member who invited them for the first discussion period for 5 minutes. After the first discussion session and on the sound of the buzzer clients are asked to move in a clockwise direction to the next table for the second discussion period of 15 minutes (The length of the discussion depends on the number of participants). After every three or four sessions a 20 minutes break will be given. During the workshop, the participating clients get the opportunity to meet representatives from between nine to fourteen other ICCA Africa members as well as meet with the ICCA representative.
- Conditions for Participation
The workshop is open to all Africa members in good financial standing. Participation in each workshop is restricted to a maximum of 15 ICCA Africa members. Each of the Africa members brings a client who meets the criteria set out in these guidelines.
If the ICCA Africa member client is rejected for the workshop because it does not meet with the criteria set out in the guidelines, the Africa member may put forward a replacement client, but this will be treated as a new application to be dealt with under the first-come-first served rule.
Participating ICCA members are obliged to fully brief their client about ICCA in general, and about the objectives of the workshop. The ICCA member must ensure that their client brings with them any information/printed materials relating to their conference and organisation, which could be of use to participating members. In particular, information relating to the decision-making process for where the conference will be held in future years.
The official language of the workshop is English
Participating members are responsible for their own and their clients travel arrangements to the host venue. They are also responsible for covering the registration fees for themselves and their client, which includes all transport, accommodation, meals and entertainment from arrivals at the local airport/railway station to departure at the end of the workshop.
If a client cancels their participation in the Workshop for whatever reason, the cancellation policy is upheld and the member who invited the client cannot attend any part of the programme, business or networking/social events.
If at any time a client is not participating in the workshop (eg. Arrives late/leaves early) the ICCA member who invited him/her is suspended from participation for the time of absence of their client.
Participants are expected to participate in all parts of the programme
All participants are requested to bring business cards to the Workshop with them.
Accompanying persons cannot attend any part of the Workshop, business or social.
It is recommended to start looking for a client immediately upon receipt of the invitation. Once a client who fits the criteria has agreed to attend, the completed registration form should be sent to the ICCA Africa Regional Office for approval.
- Client criteria
a. He/she must be a key decision-maker or has decision making influence with regards to where the African conference takes place in future.
b. He/she must present an African Association and not an International Association. Note as from 2018 only African Association Executives will qualify to attend the Workshop.
c. The conference should not have been represented and the client must not have been present at any ICCA Africa workshop held within the previous 3 years. (see Exclusion list under the “My ICCA” section of the website).
d. In order to keep in line with ICCA’s new strategic goal #2 – Engage Association Executives, the guidelines have slightly changed and only association executive clients will be accepted straight away. Anyone registering with a Core PCO or AMC client will be held on a waiting list until the registration deadline and will only be offered a place if there are still places available and providing they meet the criteria and submit a document in which the client association agrees to be represented and states that the Core PCO or association management company is involved in the decision influencing process concerning future location of their event.
- Client Profile
Each client is requested to complete the Client Profile. This profile must be sent to the ICCA Africa Regional Office together with the Registration Form. If all two forms are not received then it is not accepted as an official application for the Workshop.
