IBTM has announced the first details of its Knowledge Programme for IBTM World, which takes place at Fira Barcelona from 29 November to 1 December. This year’s programme has been designed to provide cutting-edge insight and take-away learning across a refreshed format with three keynotes and five targeted tracks. In partnership with ACS, the programme will focus on the event’s core theme of culture creation. As the business events world adapts to more disparate working postpandemic, this is a vital area for all businesses to consider so that tracks will cover connections, business, careers, brands and experiences.
IBTM World’s first keynote will be delivered by Anick Beaulieu, VP, Growth and Partnerships at C2, one of the world’s most forward-thinking business events. Anick Beaulieu, alongside Igor Beuker (futurist, entrepreneur and activist) will discuss how business entertainment can shape culture, using the C2 Montréal event as a case study. During the second keynote, Gareth Kelly, Senior Director and Head of Strategic Events EMEA at Salesforce, will explore how Salesforce uses empowering and inspirational events to bring better business results and create meaningful cultural experiences for businesses.
Day three, Igor Beuker returns to inspire with his radical vision and imaginative ideas as he shares his strategic foresight on the issues that will shake up the events industry. With his foresight and focus on trends and the technologies impacting business, the economy and society, he will ask: What will the events look like in 2030? Another highlight of the programme is Despoina Zachariadou, Lead UX Designer, Creative Technologist VR/AR, Jack Morton Worldwide. She will take us on a journey from storytelling to story experience as she considers how the metaverse shapes communication, behaviours and communities and what implications it may have for future events.
David Thompson, Event Director, IBTM World: “This year, we’ve gathered a schedule of new voices to deliver fresh perspectives, exciting solutions and thought-provoking concepts.”
A complete programme of sessions will take place on the IBTM Accelerate stage, which returns this year to help answer delegates’ questions on the future of business events. This year Accelerate presents Tech for Good, with three days of content that assesses where the industry is now, what it looks like in the near future, and what is to come next in the world of technology, both in and out of the events industry.
With interviews, keynotes, panel discussions and highly interactive formats, Accelerate will look at everything from gamification, the metaverse, AR and VR to the changing face of technology in events and how it fits into a new world of ethical, values-driven events. Accelerate stage speakers include Influencer and Creative Director at Chorus, Grant Dudson, who has become one of the leading creative voices in the business events industry. He will look back at the journey of event tech through a creative’s eyes and speculate about what this can tell us about the future of tech innovation at events. During the event, several sessions will reveal the latest market trends and insights, including the Global Meetings & Events Trends report presented by Amex.
The annual IBTM World Trends Watch Report, presented by its author, Alistair Turner, MD of Eight PR, will explore how current world events shape culture and influence the events we create and the people attending them. On the 28th of November, The Association Leaders’ Forum and The Corporate Experiences Day will take place across exciting venues around the city of Barcelona. The Association Leaders’ Forum, curated by Stylianos Filopoulos, International Associations Expert, will consider the role associations can play in our changing world. The Corporate Experiences Day is a tailored day of learning for corporate buyers, designed to provide an interactive look at the latest technology and sustainability developments within the events industry.
You can preview the IBTM World Trends Report 2023 on the IBTM World website.
