B4E Generations educates students on wider definition of events industry
Last year,
Britain for Events launched
B4E Generations to talk to students studying event management at university. Twelve months on, we look at how its fared
The Britain for Events campaign, of which
venuefinder.com is a senior supporter, markets itself heavily on the audiences it talks to. Firstly and most importantly it engages businesses, both domestic and international, to encourage event organisers to choose Britain. Secondly it talks to government, working to increase the international competitiveness of the UK industry. It also talks to consumers, encouraging them to attend more events, and finally the industry itself.
However, there is one audience that the campaign talks less about but is worthy of equal attention. Last year, Britain for Events developed B4E Generations, an outreach programme aimed specifically at students and the next generation of event organisers.
The genesis of this programme was based on feedback from universities that many of the students that study on their event-related courses do not have a wider view of the events industry, only the specific industry that they want to work in, be it sporting, music, cultural or business events.
“The reality is, most of the students that we speak to have a very clear idea of the work they want to be doing; they all want to work on the next Olympics, World Cup, or Glastonbury. They want to work with great brands, both consumer clients and world renowned event organisers. However, there is very little knowledge of the support industry that sits across all those sectors; in essence, that there is an ‘events industry’,” comments Alistair Turner, Campaign Director for Britain for Events.
“Britain for Events is the industry’s most inclusive self promotional campaign, and because of this we collect much of the most up-to-date reports, trends information and industry statistics,” continues Turner.
“This makes us ideally placed to set out what the industry they are joining is, what the challenges it faces are, how can they as future event organisers either engage with the industry, or join it directly, and what the trends are that are affecting it right now and in the future.”
B4E Generations has seen representatives from the Britain for Events campaign visit a range of universities across the country and share a wider perspective on the industry. The campaign works with many of the industry associations as well as senior corporate and agency staff to present a complete view of the industry.
“The sessions have been really engaging, and an eye opener for many of the students of the different sorts of jobs this industry can offer up. It also helps educate the students on how events can work with the supplier, destination and venue industry to make the product better; that’s got to be good for the industry,” concludes Turner.
Meanwhile, B4E generations allows supporters of the campaign the opportunity to show their support for the next generation of event organisers; in terms of advice, inspiration and education. The initiative continues this year, and supports the growing number of universities developing event management courses.
Article by
Mike Fletcher