There are a number of encouraging signs that the meetings and events industry is rebounding – from increased hiring in hospitality to industry organizations hosting in-person events themselves – like FICP did in November – to feedback from the FICP community itself about what is being planned by their companies and organizations in 2022.
One of the more encouraging signs for the meetings and events industry seen in FICP’s 2021 Pulse Survey was a commitment to hosting in-person events in 2022 that is fueling positive predictions from the hospitality industry.
According to 54% of meetings professional participants, companies’ philosophy on meetings was that they cannot wait to move away from hybrid/virtual and have people together in person. Perhaps even more telling is that nearly two-thirds of hospitality partners anticipate that business volume will return to pre-pandemic levels by the end of 2022.
While in-person meetings are projected to increase notably in 2022, changes for attendee comfort and safety are continuing to be made. Nearly all meetings professionals (96%) are making changes, with the top three changes for attendee comfort and safety being implemented being: 1) vaccination requirements (68%), 2) changes in F&B service (57%) and 3) increase in outdoor activities (54%).
Chart A: What changes are you implementing for your upcoming in-person meetings for attendee comfort and safe
Not all changes are equal for all meeting and event types, and not all meeting and event types are expected to reemerge in 2022 as in-person experiences. The approach is not one size fits all, and especially so when it comes to differences between incentive programs and corporate/business meetings, as illuminated in the 2021 FICP Pulse Survey. Keep an eye out for bite-sized data callouts like type-specific differences being shared on FICP’s social media channels, tagged with #FICP, over the coming weeks.
The full survey report is available for download. The 2021 FICP Pulse Survey was generously sponsored by Destination Canada.
About the FICP Pulse Survey
The 2021 FICP Pulse Survey was conducted in November-December to gain a clearer perspective from meetings professionals in the financial and insurance industry as well as hospitality partners about the state of the meetings and events industry and how different types of events are being planned. The 2022 FICP Pulse Survey will be conducted in Q3.