In the globally issued survey answered by 90 PCOs, 60 per cent of respondents said global conflicts had impacted the planning or delivery of their events, with 45 per cent indicating a moderate impact and 14 per cent flagging a severe impact.
Twenty-five per cent of respondents said they have cancelled, postponed or relocated their events due to safety concerns or instability in certain regions around the world.
When asked about recent US government policies – including cuts to education funding, immigration policies and import taxes – 47 per cent of respondents said these had affected their ability to plan or deliver events.
“The report revealed that 57.14 per cent of respondents had between one to 10 of their clients’ venues impacted by global unrest, with 5.95 per cent reporting this number was between 11 and 20,” said IAPCO CEO, Martin Boyle.
“To put this into context, in 2024 alone, IAPCO members delivered 19,469 events globally – we are talking about vast numbers of conferences that have been disrupted.
Global developments and instability are also hitting the bottom line.
“Over one-quarter of respondents (26.83 per cent) said they had experienced losses of up to €50,000 (AU$ 87,056), and 14.64 per cent experienced losses greater than €150,000 (AU$261,169),” said Boyle.
“The results paint a clear picture of an industry navigating multifaceted pressures, from operational logistics to stakeholder confidence and financial viability.
“The findings reinforce the need for continued adaptability, contingency planning and enhanced collaboration across the global meetings and events community.”
Survey respondents indicated visa and immigration policies were having the biggest impact on event management, with 62 per cent selecting this as an impact.
