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Singapore MICE Forum: Sparking Passion, Ideas and Communities

  • Be inspired with practical insights from leading and rising business leaders and international trade association heads
  • Learn how passion for the greater good fuelled global success stories
  • Forging new and innovative partnerships for the future of Singapore’s MICE industry

A mathematician who is also a hardware hacker and AI practitioner. A medical doctor looking to empower fellow womenfolk in business. A 16-year-old boy inspiring young minds in less-privileged villages through technology. An urban farmer who wants to bring horti-entertainment to new heights. What do they have in common? They are passionate people who dreamt and were inspired to do purposeful work, acted on them and grew their businesses. The stories they have to share reveal transformative facets of the business world. Business events is more than just face-to-face meeting but about how organisations can generate meaningful impact. They are just some of the distinctive speakers who will be sharing their journeys and stories of possibilities on what “Wired for The Future” mean at Singapore MICE Forum (SMF) 2019.

Organised by SACEOS (Singapore Association of Convention and Exhibition Organisers and Suppliers), SMF2019 will be held at Resorts World Sentosa Convention Centre (East Ballroom) from 25 to 26 July 2019. As Singapore’s national trade association for the business events industry, SACEOS advocates for the industry, facilitates expertise and knowledge sharing, creates opportunities to strengthen networks & capabilities and spur business growth for the sector.

Embracing Design, Digital and Community

Picking off from last year’s Asia Pacific Community Building Manifesto, SMF2019 identified three compelling trends to examine further progress – Design, Digital and Community. A diverse mix of international and local business entrepreneurs and experts will be sharing their journeys in:

  • user-centric experience design,
  • disrupting businesses with technology enablement,
  • empowering others and
  • building communities (leveraging on technology) to strengthen engagement and foster co-innovation.

“As event attendees’ expectations evolve, the global business events industry is seeing  these three trends take centre stage. Businesses need to be able to design and create the desired context and settings to engage their participants. They need to be able to innovate and use technology to reinvent the way they do business; build and grow their communities; gather insightful feedback; co-create value-add solutions; and develop mutually beneficial relationships,” said Mr Aloysius Arlando, President of SACEOS, who will open the two-day conference with Special Guest Mr Keith Tan, Chief Executive of Singapore Tourism Board (STB).

Apart from the above themes, SMF2019 will see young innovators share their perspectives, international trade association leaders debating the future of MICE and also a celebration of the unsung heroes of Singapore’s MICE industry.

Fostering collaborations and building mutually beneficial communities

SMF2019 will also see SACEOS partnering with other regional trade associations and technology companies to foster stronger long-term collaborations, accelerate digital transformation for the MICE industry and facilitate knowledge sharing for mutual growth.

In conjunction with SMF2019, SACEOS will hold the Asia Business Meet (ABM), a premier business-matching event which brings together specially qualified global buyers and Asian suppliers. This three-day experience includes an immersive familiarisation journey where buyers will get to experience “The Singapore you never knew” and an innovative “Trade Secrets Workshop” – a game-changer in the world of MICE. The one-to-one business-matching platform ensures that MICE planners and organisers get connected with the right destinations, venues and services to suit the requirements of their groups.

Cultivating talents for the future of MICE

With educating and cultivating future MICE talent a key focus, SACEOS will conclude SMF2019 with Singapore MICE Challenge (SMC), where youths representing 17 teams from Singapore’s universities and polytechnics will develop realistic and competitive event proposals and vie for the top spot in a coveted champion title recognised by the MICE industry. The champion team shall win a fully-sponsored trip to attend the annual PCMA (Professional Convention Management Association) Convening Leaders, a prestigious event for the MICE sector in the United States. The SMC attracted 17 teams from 11 institutions of higher learning – universities, polytechnics and ITE. In the final round, six teams in two categories – polytechnics and universities – will vie for the category championship.

Together with the ABM and the SMC, the Singapore MICE Forum will be a significant business-enabling platform for participants to harness socio-economic, intellectual and commercial benefits. “Collectively, SACEOS will empower the business community to think right, act right and grow right,” said Mr Arlando.

About SACEOS

SACEOS was set up in 1979 to be the voice and champion of the meetings, incentives,
conventions and exhibitions (MICE) industry, to help those in the business to develop
and prosper, and to work closely with the government to meet the objective of making
Singapore the best venue in Asia. Training has been and continues to be a cornerstone of SACEOS and it is a strategic pillar for the association to help members as Singapore and Asia grapple with greater competition from other regions, fight for talent, as well as manage and retain talent.

To raise professionalism in the exhibition industry, SACEOS in 2001 became the first MICE industry association in the world to launch a set of technical references. Since it was set up, SACEOS has developed and strengthened its international MICE industry network which provides global networking and business opportunities for its members.

In Singapore, government agencies SACEOS works closely with include the International Enterprise Singapore (IE Singapore) and the Singapore Exhibition & Convention Bureau (SECB), a division of the Singapore Tourism Board (STB).

SACEOS achieved a milestone in this area in 2014 by bringing professional courses with international accreditation, only available in Europe and the US previously, to Singapore and accessible to MICE practitioners throughout Asia.