NSW Tourism Minister to join members at EEAA event

NSW Minister for Jobs, Investment, Tourism and Western Sydney, Stuart Ayres will join members of the Exhibition and Event Association of Australasia (EEAA) at a special event on 29th March to address skills-related and operational issues affecting the business events industry.

The free EEAA event - Association’s Skills and Operational Rebuilding Strategies Exchange - will be held at the International Convention Centre, Sydney.

EEAA Chief Executive, Claudia Sagripanti notes “we are pleased that Minister Stuart Ayres will join this important opportunity to discuss the skills shortage and the current state-of-play in business events given the events of the past 12 months.

“It’s important to share with the Minister the issues facing the industry and in particular, how these affect the ability to hold events in New South Wales.

“Apart from the Minister, we will hear from a panel of key industry leaders from our community as well the Restaurant and Catering Association and the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

Sagripanti advised “our panel will address issues associated with staffing and skills. We’ll address which skills are in short supply and the industry’s appetite for micro-credentialling. We’ll also consider whether there is a need to reskill, cross-skill and upskill.

“These are all important areas that require leadership and focus if the industry is going to fully recover and get back on its feet and flourish again in the future.

“There is a lot of knowledge to be shared and we hope to identify opportunities that will help to make our industry stronger. There may be scope to implement operational efficiencies and share resources and skills sets across all sectors of the industry and make formal recommendations to Government.” she said.

Spiro Anemogiannis, President of the EEAA said the industry has had a very tough 12 months but there are now strong signs it is rebounding.

“The timing for this exchange is excellent and having access to a most senior Minister in the NSW Government is very positive. We encourage the industry to take this opportunity to come together for these important discussions and collaboration.

“I invite the business events industry to join us to discuss short to medium-term measures to help rebuild and the business events industry in New South Wales.”

The EEAA has created this free to attend event. It is supported by ICC Sydney.

Event Details:
Date: Monday 29th March 2021
Time: 9.30 Registration
10.00 Welcome from the EEAA CEO, Claudia Sagripanti
10.05 The Hon. Stuart Ayres, MP, Minister for Jobs, Investment, Tourism and Western Sydney, New South Wales
10.45 Official thankyou: Geoff Donaghy, CEO, ICC Sydney, and Deputy Chair, Business Events Council of Australia (BECA)
10.50 Panel
• Malu Barrios, Director of Event Services, International Convention Centre Sydney
• Belinda Clarke, COO, Restaurant & Catering Association
• Nigel Collin, Chairman, Meetings & Events Association (MEA)
• Jim Delahunty, Executive Director, ExpoNet
• Janet Hanlan, Industry Lead – Tourism and Experience Services, TAFE NSW
• Jenny Lambert, Acting CEO, Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI)
Moderator: Rodney Cox, past EEAA Board Member; Events Director, International Gas Union (IGU); and Director, DELARO Pty Ltd
12.30 Close
Cost: Free

Registrations are available here.