Copenhagen Launches Global Risk Management Toolkit for the Business Events Industry

© Peer Kolberg | Wonderful Copenhagen

Copenhagen Convention Bureau unveils The Copenhagen Risk Navigator, a new global toolkit designed to help the business events industry strengthen resilience, improve risk management, and adapt to growing uncertainty.

What was once a relatively predictable operating environment for the global business events industry has evolved into a landscape defined by volatility. Geopolitical fragmentation, climate disruption, accelerated technological change, and shifting societal expectations are no longer isolated pressures — they are interconnected forces creating cascading risks that require stronger partnerships, sharper strategic thinking, and far more intentional preparation.

In response to this growing complexity, Copenhagen Convention Bureau has launched The Copenhagen Risk Navigator – International Strategies and Tools for Business Events, a first-of-its-kind industry resource developed alongside GainingEdge in close collaboration with the Federation of European Risk Management Associations (FERMA) and Risk and Insurance Management Society (RIMS).

According to Bettina Reventlow-Mourier, Deputy Convention Director at Copenhagen Convention Bureau: “With the Copenhagen Risk Navigator, we aim to take risk management in our industry to a new level. Our 2023 Copenhagen Risk Assessment White Paper was the first contribution to this conversation, and the response from the industry confirmed what we suspected: there was, and still is, a strong need for practical guidance and a shared recognition that risk management can no longer remain an afterthought. The Copenhagen Risk Navigator is our answer to that call."

"Our ambition is clear: to contribute to a more resilient, sustainable, and future-ready global business events ecosystem. We hope the Copenhagen Risk Navigator serves as both a practical resource and a catalyst for improved collaboration across our industry. The future of business events will come down to how ready it is to adapt. If the sector focuses on being prepared, agile and building stronger partnerships, it can turn uncertainty into real opportunities.”

From Awareness to Action

The research underpinning the Copenhagen Risk Navigator highlights a challenge many organisations already recognise: while risk management has become a leadership-level concern, practical implementation still lags behind. Awareness is growing rapidly, but the operational frameworks needed to embed risk management into strategy and day-to-day decision-making remain underdeveloped across much of the sector.

The Copenhagen Risk Navigator was designed precisely to close that gap.

At its core is a practical toolkit comprising 14 risk management tools, selected following updated research into emerging risk trends and validated by both FERMA and RIMS. Covering the full lifecycle of an event — from strategic planning and procurement to live delivery and post-event evaluation — the toolkit enables organisations to identify which approaches are most relevant at each stage of their planning process.

Each tool includes clear guidance on the challenge it addresses, how it should be applied, the resources required, and what best practice looks like across different levels of organisational maturity. For teams beginning their risk management journey, a Quick-Start Guide offers a five-step framework for immediate implementation. For more advanced organisations, the toolkit is designed to scale alongside existing processes and capabilities.
 

Bettina Reventlow-Mourier on stage, accompanied by Stuart Ruff-Lyon, RIMS’s Director of Events, and Steen Jakobsen, CEO of GeiningEdge.

More broadly, the Copenhagen Risk Navigator reinforces a central industry message: resilience is not built through reactive measures alone. It emerges when organisations integrate risk awareness into strategy, culture, leadership, operations, and partnerships. It grows when accountability is shared across teams and stakeholders, and when risk management becomes a unifying discipline rather than a siloed responsibility.

The project’s tools are intended to support exactly that transition — helping organisations establish stronger habits, improve communication, and embed preparedness into the fabric of how events are designed and delivered.

Gary LaBranche, Chief Executive Officer at Risk and Insurance Management Society, said: "Risk management is most effective when it is practical, accessible, and built for the realities of the people using it. The Copenhagen Risk Navigator does exactly that for the business events industry. RIMS is proud to have contributed to a resource that gives buyers, suppliers, and destinations a clear and actionable path to stronger risk practices."

Built for the Industry, Open to All

The Copenhagen Risk Navigator is available free of charge to business events professionals worldwide. Copenhagen Convention Bureau is encouraging buyers, suppliers, destinations, and industry associations to use the resource as a foundation for developing more resilient and coordinated risk management practices across the sector.

The publication has also undergone peer review by a range of industry experts and has received endorsements from several leading international organisations, reflecting growing consensus around the need for more consistent and structured approaches to risk across the global business events ecosystem.

Supporting organisations include AIPC, AMC Institute, BestCities Global Alliance, Events Industry Council, ESAE, IAPCO, ICCA, IMEX, PCMA, and CityDNA.

Download The Copenhagen Risk Navigator right here
 

Published by Meeting Media Company, the publisher of Headquarters Magazine (HQ) – a leading international publication based in Brussels, serving the global MICE industry and association community.