2023 The Year Ahead for Engagement Strategies (Events)

In 2023 over 4000 global businesses will report on their scope 3 carbon emissions to meet Race to Zero requirements. This is a game changing moment for company conferences, event sponsorships, AGMs, meetings, incentive trips and every other engagement activity.

The shift to a sustainable event sector is here and there is a good chance that the majority of people currently responsible for the planning of their company events or the supply chain delivering those events have no idea this is happening, what to do about it and what this means for their future. However CEO’s and Heads of Sustainability do know that their business engagement strategies have to change to meet customer demand and meet their brand reputation.

There are exciting and significant opportunities for the future of how human engagement happens. 2023 is a year for building a foundation of knowledge, action and commitment to make the most of the opportunities on the horizon. Those responsible for the planning of their company events or the supply chain delivering those events are facing their greatest business opportunity and if one word was needed to describe what 2023 means for them it would be ‘transparency’.

Over the last 10 years the business world has increasingly understood the need to act on sustainability and innovated accordingly. In 2023 government regulation and recognised best practice means there is transparency around what anyone claiming to be sustainable should be doing.

For business CEOS this is:

-taking action to meet a Race to Zero commitment

-using ISO standards to embed a sustainable business process?

-meeting regulatory requirements (eg reporting).?

The supply chain delivering business engagement strategies can follow the same transparent approach:

-Take action to meet Race to Zero commitment through the Race to Zero Accelerator programme which provides specific sector support

• Implement ISO 20121 the only international standard for events

In 2023 the supply chain delivering business engagement strategies will either be taking this action and be able to be transparent and share results or they will be doing something else (and there are many pledges, ranking systems, frameworks, checklists that, despite being well intentioned, do not meet the criteria that is needed). Doing something else is a distraction from the transformation the event sector needs to be taking to meet the sustainability needs of corporate, association and government clients.?

Event sector media and associations could show leadership in supporting the global event sector to be transparently reporting on these sustainability hygiene factors or they may ignore this responsibility as it jeopardises their business models. Here is a practical example to bring this challenge to life. In 2022, using measurement systems from The Race to Zero partners SME Climate Hub, Positive Impact identified that attending a European association conference would mean a 4% increase in the company’s carbon footprint. It doesn’t make business sense to be increased a carbon footprint when a commitment has been made to reduce it. Opportunities for innovation for an engagement strategy to address this challenge include virtual engagement or local ‘hubs’, however this approach does not match the traditional income generation model of hotel room or conference commissions. New business models are needed.

Sustainability is more than a Race to Zero commitment and ISO 20121 implementation but these can now be described as the hygiene factors which, if not being acted on, should raise concerns.

The good news for busy event professionals is that the hygiene factors are also hygiene factors for other sectors so we can expect innovation in shared areas of focus including energy, transport and food.?

In 2023 Positive Impact will also be taking action to be transparent including:

1- Ensuring 100% of our education is accredited by the world’s leading and largest Continuing Professional Development accreditation organisation working across all sectors. This means that everyone taking Positive Impact education will receive CPD hours and the education will be available to Heads of Sustainability and Heads of Marketing as they build their knowledge to meet their Race to Zero commitments.

2- Highlighting opportunities for engagement and collaboration to Positive Impact’s global ambassador community so they are supported to use their voice to champion the creation of a sustainable event sector.

3- Continuing to expand recognised international and UN initiatives to reach the global event sector including The Race to Zero , UN SDG Action, the consideration of human and child rights and the revision of ISO20121

4- And of course reporting on our Race to Zero and other commitments

Within the next 12 months over 4000 global businesses will report on their scope 3 carbon emissions to meet Race to Zero requirements. This is a game changing moment for company conferences, event sponsorships, AGMs, meetings, incentive trips and every other engagement activity. The opportunities for a future of a sustainable event sector are huge. It won’t be easy but it is possible. For the first time ever we know the what to do and how to do it and there is a global community in action. Will 2023 be the year you can be transparent and say ‘here is our data and evidence of how we are sustainable??

(PS Don’t miss out- the Positive Impact community is here for you?https://www.positiveimpactevents.com/ambassadors)?

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