Working out of both USA and Netherlands; projects in Asia, Europe, Middle East and North America, with a mix of clients including IMEX, UFI, SITE and other international associations and meetings companies. Expert Advisor to tech start-up Kubify, Strategic Relations Advisor to IASP, the International Association for the Study of Pain, and International Advisor to Global Association Hubs Partnership, helping associations achieve their global development objectives by working with GAHP partner cities Brussels, Dubai, Singapore & Washington DC.
Formally CEO of ICCA, the International Congress & Convention Association, from 2002 to 2018, during which membership doubled from 600 to 1,200 companies and organisations in approx 100 countries, and before that senior sales and marketing positions with Hilton International, Brighton & Hove City Council, and British Tourist Authority (as VisitBritain was formerly known).
Expertise and interests: Future shape and direction of the meetings industry; meeting design to deliver social impact & business or behavioural outcomes; strategic planning; high-level advice and mentoring; creative writing; public speaking; meetings industry advocacy; association management & global development; international association meetings management; organisational culture; networking theory and practice; destination marketing; convention sales & bidding processes.
“I’m delighted to be an official supporter of The Iceberg, being a decades-long advocate for the power and potential for societal progress that international meetings represent. I encourage everyone in the business events sector to share their stories so that policymakers and influencers around the world can understand the impact of such events on knowledge exchange and lifelong learning, healthcare and scientific progress, business development, solutions to society’s most pressing challenges, and cross-cultural understanding, impacts which far outweigh the value of visible expenditure by delegates and organisers.”
