What will an event agency that wants to grow in an era of automation, new client expectations and increasingly rapid technological change look like? Fifty leaders from 37 event agencies brought different experiences to Bratislava, but discussions at this year’s BEIC CEOs Meeting largely led to the same questions: how agency operations will change, where technology can truly help and what the next phase of cooperation within BEIC should be built on.
The annual gathering of directors of member agencies was therefore primarily focused on the organisation’s future development and its strategy for 2027. Mary Kirillova, CEO of BEIC, presented the association’s future direction, while Cristian Hossu, Lead of Innovations, introduced BEIC’s new communications app.
Technology was one of the key topics on the programme. Knut Amund Gulsvik from Qondor spoke about artificial intelligence, automation and their role in agencies’ day-to-day operations, while discussions during the meeting also addressed sales, client relationships and the different business models through which the event industry is adapting to the market today.
Experiences were also shared by Jens O. Mayer from VOK DAMS, Renata Krajačić from Komunikacijski laboratorij, Thomas Kenyeri from KESCH, Gonçalo Oliveira, Maris Altsoo from ALL-SET and Erlend Syltevik from Appetite for Production. In Bratislava, BEIC also introduced a new name responsible for the association’s social media, with Jure Čad taking on the role going forward.
The discussions did not remain limited to the exchange of experiences among agencies. In cooperation with the Bratislava Convention Bureau, participants were given a specific task: to jointly develop a one-off pitch for a future edition of Coronation Days in Bratislava. The group work thus transferred topics from the conference programme to a real event challenge, with ideas that could contribute to the future development of the event.
The host also incorporated Bratislava into the programme far beyond the conference room itself. Participants were guided through the city by Juraj Holub, who introduced them to the architecture of the old town and the historic coronation route used since 1563. The programme also included visits to the Mirror Bar, UFO Restaurant and the National Wine Collection, where Slovak sparkling wines were presented.
At the UFO Restaurant, participants also heard the story of slackliner Jaan Roose, who, in cooperation with Red Bull, stretched a slackline between the restaurant and Bratislava Castle, 100 metres above the ground, and set a Guinness World Record after 12 hours of walking.
The informal part of the meeting continued with a Fu*kup night and dinner at FACH Restaurant, while the final programme included a visit to Bratislava Castle by oldtimer train.
This year’s edition of the BEIC CEOs Meeting was organised in close cooperation with the Bratislava Convention Bureau, Crowne Plaza Bratislava and local partners. Once again, the gathering brought together what a network like this exists for in the first place: the experiences individual agencies gain in their own markets became shared material for a discussion about how the industry wants to operate going forward.
