The Professional Conference Organisers Association (PCOA) is hosting a webinar focusing on conference organisation post COVID-19 on Thursday, April 23. Hosted by co-founder of Carillon Conference Management Pty Limited Ashley Gordon, the webinar will explore survival strategies, make suggestions for guiding clients through the maze of options and delve into getting ready for the ‘other side’.
To find out more, visit: https://login.redbackconferencing.com.au/landers/page/264694
The Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre could become a makeshift intensive care hospital under a plan being considered by the Victorian state government. Preparations are also underway to use part of the venue as a temporary morgue to store bodies of victims of the pandemic. The conversion of the centre would follow the lead of other cities which have re-purposed similar structures. The ExCel centre in London is expected to be ready to take the first of up to 500 patients within days.
Every business has to switch gears during this period.
Go with Tourism has launched a free service to support New Zealand’s tourism workers and businesses through redeployment, guidance, advice, and educational pathways. The platform will offer personalised support via phone or video call, and opportunities for upskilling through a selection of free courses. Go With Tourism is an initiative that was launched in April 2019 by Auckland Tourism, Events and Economic Development (ATEED) to build New Zealand’s tourism workforce.
To find out more about the service, visit: https://www.gowithtourism.co.nz/
There’s probably no better example than how crazy things are when you learn that the current closure of Taronga Zoo hasn’t happened since 1917. micenet was this week chatting to the Taronga CEO, Cam Kerr, who told us this fact along with some details about their brand new 62-room Wildlife Retreat which, like almost every other venue in the country, is sitting idle right now. Learn more in our April edition.
Wonder if all the animals are roaming free.
Yesterday Flight Centre told ASX that 6000 sales and support roles will go temporarily or permanently around the world, and that 3800 Australian workers will be temporarily stood down. More than 200 of the company’s stores will close, representing 30 per cent of its presence in Australia. Before the crisis, Flight Centre was on track for record sales, which were up more than 11 per cent on last year.
Oh dear... Woolworths is about to get a whole lot of new employees.
The light at the end of the tunnel is getting a little brighter. The Guardian has reported than more than 500 cinemas have re-opened this week across China. The news comes the same week that the Australian federal government ordered the closure of cinemas across the country, with no end date yet set.
The message seems clear enough to me. The sooner we enter lockdown, the sooner normalcy will return.
The closure of Merivale’s 70+ venues “for the foreseeable future” is a sign of things to come for other venues around the country, with many more predicted over the coming weeks. Sydney restaurateur Justin Hemmes said he was “completely heartbroken” that this had happened. Venues closed include The Ivy, Coogee Pavilion and Establishment – a firm favourite with the Sydney event sector.
Sad to see Establishment go...
ID Events Australia is keeping cool under pressure says director of sales and events, Karen Livermore, who admits she has seen nothing like this in her 30+ years in the industry. Karen told micenet they were now “riding out the storm” and looking forward to a strong pipeline of forward bookings, with the hope that things would be back on track from November. The ID Events team is all working from home and is reportedly looking forward to a Thursday afternoon happy hour.
Refreshing to see a positive attitude.