Despite cross-industry emphasis on eco-friendly practices, corporate event creators are still struggling to incorporate sustainability into the planning process for events, according to the latest ICE Annual
Benchmarking Research Report.
Produced in collaboration with Cvent, the report has revealed a mixture of knowledge, cost, and time are all taking their toll on organisers, with 70 per cent of respondents citing cost as the biggest barrier. Lack of resources and knowledge are also significant challenges, with 54 per cent and 46 per cent of respondents respectively citing these as barriers to sustainable event planning.
“It’s clear that more needs to be done to provide planners with the resources and knowledge they need to make sustainability a standard practice, rather than an afterthought,” said Anita Howard, founder and CEO, ICE. “It’s really important to underline that ICE members are, on the whole, utterly committed to sustainability and many are leading the way on sustainable practices. But it’s our belief that these latest results are concerned with the continual evolution of green practices and the confusion around lots of varying steps to achieve more sustainable event.
“It’s not about starting the journey, it’s about having the time, budget and clear knowledge to progress it,” she added.
The
report, based on survey responses from event planners in the UK, Germany, and
the US, also highlights a growing shift towards artificial
intelligence (AI) adoption, with 41 per cent of planners already integrating AI into
their workflows.
The most common application was in content generation, with 84 per cent of
users leveraging AI for this purpose. Additionally, 32 per cent of planners use the
technology to streamline logistics and planning, while 30 per cent employ it for data analysis
and insights. AI is also beginning to influence the personalisation of delegate
experiences, with 22 per cent of planners using it to tailor experiences to attendees’
needs.
“The uptick in adoption of AI across the industry is really positive for the
sector, in particular its use as a tool to analyse data and subsequently use
those insights to help organisers create more personalised delegate
experiences”, said Felicia Asiedu, Cvent marketing director for Europe.
“Although the number of respondents using it for these
purposes is still low when compared to content generation, these users are
making the most of one of AI’s greatest opportunities. The more we can
personalise an attendee experience, the more engaging it is for individual
audience members, which in turn leads to greater outcomes such as enjoyment,
knowledge retention, beneficial networking and personal growth. This is
one of the most exciting opportunities for our sector, which we look forward to
seeing develop over the months and years ahead.”
The
report also highlights other key metrics event planners are using to measure
success, with attendee satisfaction (94 per cent) and post-event surveys (76 per cent)
topping the list. However, the data suggests that many planners are still not
fully harnessing the commercial potential of their events, with 41 per cent stating
they only occasionally seek commercial outcomes, and another 41 per cent doing so
regularly.
In
addition to AI, event planners are increasingly relying on various event
technologies, including platforms for event registration (used by 91 per cent of
respondents), hybrid event solutions (75 per cent), and web-streaming (73 per cent).
Emerging technologies like ChatGPT (44 per cent) and augmented reality (16 per cent) are
starting to make their mark, though their full potential has yet to be realised
across the industry.
“This
year’s findings reflect a step change in the way events are planned and
delivered,” continued Anita. “AI is transforming how we think about event
content, logistics, and even how we measure success. But it’s essential that as
we embrace technological innovation, we don’t lose sight of our environmental
responsibilities.”
