The Incentive, Conference & Event Society Asia Pacific (ICESAP)

The Incentive, Conference & Event Society Asia Pacific - or ICESAP for short - is a dynamic professional membership based peak body for those working with or in the Incentive, Conference & Event industry across Asia Pacific. Members include those from the corporate sector who are customers, those working in agencies, and those working in supply of goods and services in the industry.

What are the objectives of your organisation?

Despite the scale of the Business Events industry within the region, there has, until now, been no pan-Asian member body to represent the interests of the many professionals working within this sector.

ICESAP has partnered with William Angliss Institute to provide Professional Development courses including an online distance learning certificate in Incentive, Conference & Event Management to be followed in the next two years by further higher level programmes providing a more formal qualification.

ICESAP has also from its inception believed that one of its key objectives was to strengthen the role of intermediary agencies operating across Asia Pacific. To this end ICESAP has worked for over two years on the implementation of an Agency Accreditation Scheme. This scheme is now operating and agency businesses are applying in a steady stream.What are the objects of your annual conference?

ICESAP’s annual conference was recently held in Shanghai and members from across Asia Pacific gathered to attend peer-to-peer Leaders’ Forums, Innovation Workshops and a full programme of Keynote and Plenary sessions. The background of the conference delegates reflected the ICESAP membership mix, with almost equal numbers of corporate delegates from clients’ organisations, agency delegates drawn from agency owners and management and partner delegates, those working in the supply of goods and services to the Incentive Conference & Event industry.

How does the association and meeting industry benefit from your organisation and annual conference respectively?

ICESAP is providing thought leadership on the economic value of the Business Events sector not only as a part of the overall tourism revenue statistics, but also as a driver of economic activity for those companies that increasingly direct their marketing dollars into Incentive Programmes, Conferences, Meetings and Business Events.

Any plans for the future?

The Business Events sector exceeded US$200 billion in economic value for the economies of Asia Pacific in 2016 and this will be exceeded again in 2017. ICESAP wants to continue to encourage this form of economic activity for the benefit of the economies of Asia Pacific where 80% of this business emanates from. 

What did delegates say...

“The conference was a great mix of participants from the industry sharing challenges, trends and best practices in Asia and the globe. Immersive experiences, VR, AR, AI, sustainability, GDPR, the Chinese business events market! So much to learn about! ICESAP brings the best minds in the industry together.”

Georgie Farmer, Group Manager, Global Travel, Meetings/Events Sourcing Strategy & Operations, Microsoft.

“It was an amazing experience, sharing the new trend, challenges, best practice with industry expertise and friends, showed great passion with highly engaged people.”

Vivian Chai, Senior Manager, Global Procurement, Lenovo Group.

“ICESAP Shanghai was such a great event and the W on the Bund was the perfect venue, what a great hotel! I was impressed with the mix of buyers and suppliers from so many countries and it was fabulous to reconnect with suppliers from Australia and Singapore as well. I thoroughly enjoyed some of the more thought-provoking subjects that were discussed and loved being back in Shanghai, it’s such a great city! Looking forward to the next event!”

Aileen London, Senior Manager, Global Meeting Services, Oracle.

www.icesap.org/conference