United Kingdom
News Release
Strategy as Important as Savings in Meetings Management
CWT Meetings & Events UK clients show support for Strategic Meetings Management
London, September 11, 2012 – Companies should implement meetings programmes that match their company objectives and support their employees, rather than focusing only on spend. This was one of the findings to come from a CWT Meetings & Events UK roundtable to discuss strategic meetings management (SMM), which was attended by clients, including Pfizer and RWE npower, who are at different stages of implementing their own SMM programmes.
SMM, long established in America and quickly gaining ground in the UK, works by reviewing a company’s M&E activity and aligning it with the strategic goals of the business, delivering value through savings, risk mitigation and service quality.
Andrew Gilkerson, European meetings & congress, worldwide procurement, Pfizer, commented, “ We are now in our third year of our SMM programme, and have found that SMM isn’t based on savings alone, it’s about a whole value-proposition and creating a strategy that details why consistency is a benefit to your staff.”
Jane Baker, business development director, CWT Meetings & Events agreed. “SMM isn’t just about strategic meetings, it’s an all-encompassing solution designed to manage a meetings programme effectively. Generating buy-in is vital to ensure the programme’s success, and companies should pick one event or a specific part of their M&E programme that they can test, learn from and deliver success in, before moving onto the more challenging areas of the business.”
Nearly half of
CWT Meetings & Events UK customers have expressed an interest in implementing SMM
programmes in their own organisation, and systems have already been rolled out for six of its
biggest clients. Further findings from the roundtable, which was sponsored by StarCite, will be
featured in a
CWT Meetings & Events white paper, planned for later this year. Articles on the
subject of SMM can be found in Engage,
CWT Meetings & Events’ UK client magazine. Further information is available on
www.cwt-meetings-events.co.uk
For high-resolution images of the roundtable, please contact Carrie-Ann Cooper.
About CWT Meetings & Events
CWT Meetings & Events is a global leader in event and meeting management. With an
international reach of 1,600 event specialists extending across 75 countries worldwide, it delivers
over 35,000 events each year for its customers – industries ranging from pharmaceutical and
healthcare, to technology, financial services, telecommunications, energy, automotive and
government. Leveraging Carlson Wagonlit Travel’s global expertise and network,
CWT Meetings & Events creates a customised, holistic approach that delivers excellent
results to clients. For more information about
CWT Meetings & Events, please visit
cwt-meetings-events.co.uk. Follow us on
Twitter
@CWTME_UK.
About Carlson Wagonlit Travel
CWT is a global leader specialising in managing business travel and meetings and events. CWT serves companies, government institutions and non-governmental organisations of all sizes in more than 150 countries and territories. By leveraging both the expertise of its people and leading-edge technology, CWT helps clients derive the greatest value from their travel programme in terms of savings, service, security and sustainability. The company is also committed to providing best-in-class service and assistance to travellers. CWT services and solutions comprise Traveller & Transaction Services, Programme Optimisation, Safety & Security, Meetings & Events and Energy Services. In 2011, sales volume for wholly owned operations and joint ventures totalled US$28.0 billion. For more information about CWT, please visit our global website at www.carlsonwagonlit.com.
Media contact
Christine Fischer or Carrie-Ann Cooper
CWT UK
+44 (0)20 3353 1113/1110 (office)
+44 (0)7920 863 180/ +44 (0)7785 458 844 (mobile)
