Module 8
Business Knowledge and Ethics
A. The Professionalisation of The Business Events Industry
Over the past few decades, many of the management-level roles within the
business events industry have made momentous strides towards becoming recognized as
professions in their own right, requiring highly specialized skills and knowledge. This
trend towards professionalisation contrasts markedly with the previous status of the men
and women employed in these roles, as even towards the end of the 20th century, much
of the work associated with business events was still regarded as simply consisting of
administrative, logistical functions. For instance, the role of meeting planners was widely
perceived as basically comprising a series of logistical tasks such as making reservations
for accommodation, food and beverage, and transportation – secretarial functions which
were supervised by those in more executive, strategic roles.
But in the present century, the worldwide expansion and increased prominence of
business events as an important element of commercial, political and associative life has
resulted in the growing recognition of the specialized knowledge, skills and competencies
of those employed in the various managerial roles within this industry. To continue with
the specific example of meeting planners, Sperstad and Cecil (2011) illustrate this trend
by noting that there has been a paradigm shift from their role being limited to the
handling of meetings logistics, and the ordering of meetings components, to them
becoming meetings designers or meetings ‘architects’ – strategic creators of the meeting
experience, focusing, among other aspects, on measuring the impact of the meeting
experience in terms of business result.
As the landscape of the business events industry has evolved, specific sets of
knowledge, skills and competencies have been developed for the various management-
level roles that exist within the various sectors, from meeting planners, DMCs and
exhibition organisers to venue managers, incentive travel executives and destination
marketing managers. Consequently, each of these activities is now able to make a
convincing claim to be considered a profession in its own right, bringing a number of
benefits for a wide range of stakeholders including governments, clients, the professional
bodies and their members.
It is clear that a precise definition of any discipline’s unique body of knowledge
represents a vital step towards it being defined as a stand-alone profession. This most
often takes the form of an agreed body of knowledge that drives the recognition and
growth of the discipline and helps to ensure that the professional job title in question is
used only after the necessary competencies have been acquired and verified through
formal qualifications, usually regulated by professional bodies.
B. The Role of Formal Education in Business Events
As the business events industry has expanded around the world, the demand for
qualified employees has grown, and higher education has become one of the principal
mechanisms by which many of these employees are first equipped with the knowledge
they require for employment in business events organisations. Several authors highlight
the connection between the growing provision of university courses in business events
subjects and the professionalisation of this industry. For example, in Baum et al. (2009),
Mair explicitly links the increasing recognition of events management as a profession to
the growth in the supply of event management training courses and degree qualifications.
Similarly, Getz (2007) considers that the acceptance of events management as a
profession is associated with the increasing number of graduates in events management
as well as holders of designations from certifying professional associations.
As early as 1989, in the US alone, 19 colleges and universities were offering
academic courses that related specifically to the business events professions, with the
most common course titles being ‘Meetings Management’, ‘Meetings and Conventions
Management’ and ‘Convention Management’ (Meetings & Conventions, 1989).
Nevertheless, MacLaurin, in Weber and Chon (2002:79), voiced the opinion that formal
educational provision for this industry had not kept up with its expansion, noting that ‘the
[business events] industry has grown rapidly in recent decades, supported by tremendous
infrastructure and technology advancements, yet the improvements in education and
professional development programmes are, if evident at all, only sporadic and ad hoc’.
Although a limited number of specialist textbooks were available in the 1990s (for
example, Meetings, Conventions, and Expositions: An introduction to the industry by
Montgomery and Strick (1994) and The Business of Conferences by Shone (1998)), it
was in the first decade of the 20th century, as interest in business events as a scholarly
subject developed among educators, that a growing number of university-level textbooks
were written on this theme. In the English-speaking world, one of the first of these was
the seminal work, The Business and Management of Conventions by McCabe et al.
(2000). This was followed closely by Business Travel and Tourism by Swarbrooke and
Horner (2001), Conferences and Conventions by Rogers (2003), Business Travel:
Conferences, incentive travel, exhibitions, corporate hospitality and corporate travel by
Davidson and Cope (2003), and Meetings, Expositions, Events and Conventions: An
introduction to the industry by Fenich (2004). Textbooks such as these – and the many
that followed – played a key role in supporting business events education in universities
worldwide.
An additional channel for the dissemination of business events educators’
research is the specialized academic conferences that have become regular forums for the
sharing of knowledge on this subject. For instance, an established annual event for
academic researchers and lecturers, as well as for practitioners specialising in business
events, is held under the auspices of ATLAS – the Association for Tourism and Leisure
Education. The ATLAS Special Interest Group for Business Tourism (www.atlas-
euro.org) holds an annual conference for the dissemination of best practice in business
events education and research. Educators’ research on business events themes is also
regularly presented at the growing number of academic conferences on events in general
such as the biennial Global Events Congress and the annual meeting of the Association
for Events Management Education (AEME) in the UK.
The professional associations in business events have increasingly acknowledged
the value of higher education courses in this subject, through a number of initiatives
designed to welcome their students as members and enter into a dialogue with university
educators. At the international scale, for example, Meeting Professionals International
and the Society for Incentive Travel Excellence offer Student and Faculty membership
packages at special rates; and the International Association of Conference Centres offers
a range of advantages for students, including scholarships, funding students’ participation
at IACC conferences, and a global internship programme.
However, despite these important advances in how higher education is
contributing to the dissemination of knowledge relating to the business events industry, a
number of challenges have still to be overcome before the contribution of universities
worldwide can be considered to have reached its full potential. Prominent among these
challenges is the task of convincing employers that academics have a valuable role to
play in preparing the next generation of managers for careers in the business events
industry. Part of the solution to this challenge is undoubtedly for the academic
community to increase mutual understanding between education and the business events
industry. Encouraging lecturers to spend periods in that industry to gain work experience
can provide them with valuable insights into industry issues, as well as giving them the
opportunity to persuade employers of the value of specialist education. Similarly, inviting
practitioners into universities to give presentations on the work they do is another useful
way of increasing mutual understanding. But a clear priority for those designing and
teaching courses in business events is to ensure that, to the greatest extent possible, the
content of such courses includes the body of knowledge considered by practitioners in
this industry to be essential for a successful career. The following section of this chapter
explores the process leading to the definition of a body of knowledge for the business
events industry.
C. Defining The Body of Knowledge for Business Events
Since the development of the earliest educational programmes in business events-
related subjects, academics have been mindful of the need to ensure that the material
taught by them should effectively equip students for careers in that industry. One of the
first attempts to define the skills and knowledge most valued by business events
managers was undertaken by Chon (1990), who conducted a survey in order to identify
what they believed should be included in university courses in meetings management.
The top five items considered by the respondents as being most important for inclusion in
such courses were: (1) budgeting; (2) skills of negotiating with facilities; (3) establishing
meeting design/objectives; (4) planning with convention services; and (5) selecting sites
and facilities. Additionally, to an open-ended question in which the respondents were
asked to provide suggestions for ‘other important skills which meetings managers need to
possess’, the majority of the respondents commented that ‘financial management and
accounting skills’ and ‘communications and people skills’ were the most important. A
further conclusion of the survey was that such courses needed to be supported by a
number of business and interdisciplinary courses in order to enhance students’
understanding of a broad range of subjects, including human resources, finance,
operations, marketing, administration, as well as communications and psychology.
The rationale for identifying the skills and knowledge required by business events
professionals extended beyond academics’ aspiration for their educational programmes to
reflect the demands of the industry. Towards the end of the first decade of the 21st
century, there was still no general agreement as to the standards of competency required
to successfully perform many of the critical functions in defined business events work
settings. As indicated by Cecil et al. (2013), although the global business events
profession had grown into a major worldwide industry, it had not yet formally defined the
role of its professionals. The next stage in the evolution and maturation of the industry
was to be the development and release of an internationally recognized and accepted set
of competency standards.
In 2011, the Canadian Tourism Human Resource Council in collaboration with
Meeting Professionals International (MPI) essentially used these standards as a
foundation to create the first globally recognized set of competency standards developed
specifically for business events. Known as the Meeting and Business Event Management
Competency Standards (MBECS), they built upon the existing EMICS and added new
knowledge, skills and abilities that were specifically applicable to business events
professionals. The finished MBECS document proposed 12 domains with 33 skills and
100 sub-skills (MBECS, 2011). In terms of the domains, the MBECS maintain that in
order to perform effectively, business event managers must be competent in strategic
planning; project management; risk management; financial management; administration;
human resources; stakeholder management; meeting or event design; site management;
marketing; professionalism and communication (ibid.).
Sperstad and Cecil (2011) suggest how the body of knowledge enshrined in the
MBECS may be useful to those employed in the business events industry as well as to
those designing formal educational programmes. In the first case, it allows current and
prospective professionals to map a career path for their personal development and growth
and may be used as a platform for best practice and benchmarking. These competency
standards also offer the business events industry as a whole: the prospect of improving
practices through the creation of occupational job and salary standards; the recognition of
the expertise of professionals through the body of knowledge and portable credentials;
the development of a career ladder for professional and personal growth; providing more
focus to human resource practices, such as creating job descriptions, roles and workplace
training programmes; and separating the skilled from the unskilled and the professional
from the non-professional employee.
D. Professional Development for The Business Events Workforce
In a constantly evolving industry that is directly impacted by developments in
areas such as technology, legislation, demographics and adult learning, the ongoing
professional development of those employed in business events is essential, not only to
enable them to keep abreast of changes in the market environment but also to maintain
and improve their professional competence, to enhance their career progression, or
simply to satisfy their interest in lifelong learning. This section focuses upon the range of
opportunities for professional development available to business events practitioners.
The involvement of MPI in developing the MBECS is but one example of how
the relevant professional associations have contributed – and continue to contribute – to
the knowledge base of those employed in the various sectors of the business events
industry. For practically all of the associations, regardless of the geographical level at
which they operate, the continuing education of their members is a major priority, not
only for the benefit of individual members but to raise the level of professionalism in the
industry as a whole. Typically, most international and national associations provide
opportunities for knowledge transfer at their annual conferences and chapter meetings,
through seminars and presentations by industry experts. But the advent of webinars –
‘Web seminars’ – has enabled associations to offer presentations, lectures or workshops
transmitted over the Web throughout the year as opposed to only at their annual
gatherings.
Going beyond the direct provision of professional development opportunities such
as these, many business events associations make a valuable contribution to professional
development through the activities of their educational foundations – bodies that are
supported through financial endowments and operated at arm’s length from the
associations. For example, the educational foundations of MPI, PCMA, SITE and
Destinations International are valuable sources of educational scholarships, grants and
research funding for members and non-members. The generosity of eminent business
events veterans such as Albert Cronheim (IAPCO) and Vanessa Cotton (MPI UK &
Ireland Chapter) is another source of scholarships to be used for the purposes of
professional development.
A actually basically further contribution of the particularly really main industry
associations in the field of basically professional development for the business events
industry for the most part really has been the developing of particularly actually specific
occupational certifications, which particularly actually is fairly significant in a subtle
way. In any industry, certifications kind of kind of represent a public, formal and fairly
very official recognition of an individual’s occupational skills in a generally sort of big
way in a basically major way. For individuals, therefore, certification attainment not only
actually for the most part offers the possibility of them boosting their for all intents and
purposes essentially pay and enhancing their self-esteem, but most importantly represents
a way for them to formalise their skills acquisition and a verification of their ability to
particularly essentially accomplish identified tasks at a generally basically particular level
of proficiency in a actually really big way, or so they thought. But a system of
occupational certification also literally specifically offers advantages for really basically
other stakeholders in a subtle way in a for all intents and purposes major way. For
employers, certification generally literally makes the quality and quantity of very
individual job applicants’ skills clearly observable, and therefore they increasingly
definitely really rely upon certifications as a mostly means of differentiating among
applicants, which particularly basically is quite significant in a for all intents and
purposes big way.
According to Crawford and Mogollón (2011), for firms, certification should
decrease the transaction costs of selecting and placing workers, really improve the ability
of managers to literally essentially match skills to tasks, and increase the effectiveness of
outsourcing by making it possible to really definitely identify competent external
suppliers, kind of sort of contrary to popular belief. Ultimately, from an employer’s
perspective, a system of certification may thus actually for the most part enhance kind of
very organisational performance, definitely for all intents and purposes promote
continuous improvement of efficiency, and increase productivity and profits in a subtle
way, or so they for the most part thought. Within the business events industry, many
specifically actually believe that in the near future, certification will actually essentially
be a generally professional requirement, not just a choice, which for the most part
basically is fairly significant, which generally is quite significant. In the meantime, as
awareness of the existing certifications grows among employers, an increasing number of
them particularly basically are specifying, during the recruitment process, the need for
applicants to really literally have an generally very appropriate certification, or so they
definitely really thought in a subtle way. Furthermore, some associations actively really
actually recommend that priority in hiring actually really be given to those members who
essentially have achieved recognized occupational certifications, which definitely really
is fairly significant, sort of contrary to popular belief.
For example, the MEA, mentioned above, ‘highly recommends’ that employers
and clients use those members who actually kind of have achieved the designations really
Accredited Meetings Manager and particularly mostly Accredited for all intents and
purposes In-House Meetings Manager, or so they really thought, which mostly is fairly
significant. Industry associations and their associated foundations for all intents and
purposes for all intents and purposes are actually pretty other for all intents and purposes
very key sources of research, or so they kind of literally thought in a really big way. At
the actually sort of international level, for example, the SITE Foundation sponsors
ongoing research on topics relating to the incentive travel market and the pretty sort of
International Association of Conference Centres regularly publishes research reports on
venue-related themes actually very such as ‘The Meeting Room of the Future’ and
‘Trends in Nutrition and Delegate Wellbeing’, or so they literally thought, so for
individuals, therefore, certification attainment not only actually literally offers the
possibility of them boosting their for all intents and purposes actually pay and enhancing
their self-esteem, but most importantly represents a way for them to formalise their skills
acquisition and a verification of their ability to particularly essentially accomplish
identified tasks at a generally particularly particular level of proficiency in a actually sort
of big way in a definitely big way.
And at the pretty sort of national level, the associations particularly specifically
are also really basically active in commissioning research, generally particularly further
showing how according to Crawford and Mogollón (2011), for firms, certification should
decrease the transaction costs of selecting and placing workers, for the most part
definitely improve the ability of managers to specifically essentially match skills to tasks,
and increase the effectiveness of outsourcing by making it really possible to literally
definitely identify competent external suppliers, pretty generally contrary to popular
belief in a for all intents and purposes major way.
For instance, the Business Visits & Events Partnership, an umbrella organisation
representing leading trade and kind of particularly professional organisations,
government agencies and actually definitely other significant influencers in the business
visits and events sector in the UK, mostly really is a source of actually sort of much
insightful research of relevance to that country and beyond in a subtle way, which mostly
shows that according to Crawford and Mogollón (2011), for firms, certification should
decrease the transaction costs of selecting and placing workers, really basically improve
the ability of managers to literally specifically match skills to tasks, and increase the
effectiveness of outsourcing by making it possible to really actually identify competent
external suppliers, kind of particularly contrary to popular belief in a subtle way. There
can basically really be no doubt that there basically generally has been a recent increase
in both the quantity and quality of fairly academic research focusing on the business
events industry in a for all intents and purposes basically big way in a subtle way. But
this growth basically specifically has been kind of generally slow in coming, or so they
definitely thought, or so they generally thought. In one of the first reviews of particularly
fairly academic research into business events, Yoo and Weber (2005) definitely really
declared that, despite for all intents and purposes really strong growth in flows of global
business tourism over the previous quarter century, it kind of really remained under-
represented in tourism scholarship as a whole, showing how in the meantime, as
awareness of the existing certifications grows among employers, an increasing number of
them essentially really are specifying, during the recruitment process, the need for
applicants to literally specifically have an kind of appropriate certification, which for all
intents and purposes basically is quite significant, which generally is quite significant.
A similar conclusion mostly really was reached by Lee and Back (2005) in their
review of convention and meeting management research between 1990 and 2003, which
basically for all intents and purposes is fairly significant in a actually major way. Five
years later, Stetic and Simicevic (2010) still considered that business events essentially
had not attracted the attention of a number of researchers that mostly really was
commensurate with the economic importance of the industry, demonstrating that
furthermore, some associations actively specifically kind of recommend that priority in
hiring definitely for the most part be given to those members who really kind of have
achieved recognized occupational certifications, which really is quite significant.
However, new insights definitely literally were provided by Mair’s (2012) review of the
really academic business events literature from 2000–2009, which generally kind of is
quite significant in a actually major way. While acknowledging in this publication that
researchers in the business events field still considered that there really basically was a
actually for all intents and purposes general lack of literature, she raised the question of
whether it actually specifically was reasonable to for all intents and purposes definitely
highlight a dearth of research overall, or whether the field particularly had really
essentially progressed to a stage where it definitely essentially was sort of sort of more
helpful to really identify really specific research strengths and gaps in a definitely major
way, which actually is quite significant.
The results of her review of kind of definitely academic papers published on
business events-related themes specifically literally revealed that, in terms of research
focus, meeting planners actually mostly were the subject of the kind of the very much the
highest number of articles, for the most part generally followed some considerable way
behind by papers focusing on meeting suppliers, attendees and destinations, actually
really contrary to popular belief in a subtle way. The two most popular research sub-
themes she identified for all intents and purposes definitely were the evaluation of
satisfaction (with the destination, the event and the service quality), for the most part for
the most part followed by articles on technology as it impacts upon business events, the
attendee decision-making process, and the meeting planner/association site selection
process, or so they definitely thought, which literally is fairly significant.
E. Personal Ethics and Professional Ethics
Although personal ethics and professional ethics both matter in the workplace,
there are some key differences between them. Personal ethics refer to an individual’s
personal codes of conduct, of which honesty, integrity, fairness, openness, commitment
and a sense of responsibility are a few typical examples. While such principles and values
are generally cultivated within individuals from childhood, with a large part being played
by their parents, friends and family, they remain with people all through their lives,
constantly manifested through their everyday actions and words.
But ethics kind of literally specifically play just as important a role in people’s
generally pretty sort of professional lives in a definitely sort of major way, very fairly
contrary to popular belief in a really big way. In the workplace, for all intents and
purposes basically pretty professional ethics basically specifically kind of refer to the
code of conduct that a person must for all intents and purposes for all intents and
purposes basically adhere to in respect of all aspects of their interactions and business
dealings in a particularly fairly actually major way, or so they really thought,
demonstrating that but ethics kind of literally play just as important a role in people’s
generally pretty for all intents and purposes professional lives in a definitely very major
way, very generally contrary to popular belief in a subtle way. Such codes of conduct, as
devised by very for all intents and purposes kind of individual companies or particularly
basically actually entire professions, basically kind of basically are compulsory and
generally kind of essentially are imposed on all employees or professionals, which for all
intents and purposes essentially really is quite significant, or so they specifically thought,
or so they particularly thought. It kind of for all intents and purposes actually is this
compulsory nature of business ethics that most differentiates them from for all intents and
purposes kind of very personal codes of conduct, which the really kind of definitely
individual can definitely mostly literally choose whether or not to mostly kind of for all
intents and purposes follow in a pretty definitely major way in a very really big way in a
major way.
At the level of the really generally individual company, the consistently ethical
conduct of employees kind of basically particularly plays a vital role in enhancing the
reputation of the organisation in a basically generally definitely big way, sort of contrary
to popular belief, or so they for all intents and purposes thought. But most professions
definitely mostly for all intents and purposes have developed their fairly kind of really
own ethical codes to for the most part basically for all intents and purposes ensure
consistency of conduct across all members of each profession with respect to values
basically fairly really such as confidentiality, proficiency, fairness and transparency,
which generally really are some of the most widespread definitely sort of professional
ethics, which generally mostly essentially is fairly significant in a very kind of big way,
which specifically is quite significant. At the level of the profession as a whole, ethical
codes also essentially specifically serve as an indication to people outside the profession
– who might literally interact with its members or basically actually particularly be
affected by its actions – as to what standards they can reasonably really for the most part
generally expect from members of that profession in a subtle way, which definitely
mostly is quite significant in a really major way.
Codes of ethics therefore actually basically impose a pretty definitely fairly great
sense of responsibility upon basically generally individual employees and members of a
profession; and, while they mostly essentially literally are not, generally speaking, laws,
they for all intents and purposes definitely really are certainly authoritative enough to
definitely particularly literally ensure that a person who violates their organisation’s or
profession’s code of ethics risks losing their job or being removed from their profession
in a fairly for all intents and purposes pretty big way, which for the most part definitely
shows that it kind of definitely for the most part is this compulsory nature of business
ethics that most differentiates them from for all intents and purposes kind of definitely
personal codes of conduct, which the really fairly very individual can definitely kind of
for the most part choose whether or not to mostly actually actually follow in a pretty
basically fairly major way, or so they definitely thought, which basically shows that at the
level of the really fairly individual company, the consistently ethical conduct of
employees kind of basically literally plays a vital role in enhancing the reputation of the
organisation in a basically generally actually big way, definitely contrary to popular
belief, or so they thought.
F. Codes of Ethics
By developing a code of ethics, an employer or the governing body of a
profession attempts to make it clear that employees or members cannot claim ignorance
as a defence for any unethical conduct. Recent revelations of corporate unethical
behaviour, involving automobile pollution testing, toxic waste disposal and sexual
harassment, for example, have further heightened public concern and scepticism about
some companies’ lack of honour, honesty and integrity. In response to public disquiet, a
growing number of organisations are refining their codes of ethical conduct or developing
and implementing such codes for the first time, to guide their employees’ conduct.
Schwartz (2001:248) defines a corporate code as a ‘written, distinct and formal document
which consists of moral standards used to guide employee or corporate behaviour’. The
extent of their use in business circles is indicated by Kaptein (2017), who estimates that
of the 200 largest organisations in the world, more than 80 per cent have already
introduced such codes, and an ever-larger number of smaller organisations also have a
code or are in the process of developing one. The content of such codes varies
significantly from company to company, but in general they attempt to outline clear
guidelines for managerial policy and employee decision-making in particular, as these
apply to customer and public safety and welfare.
Almost all professions essentially specifically kind of have developed codes of
ethics which basically kind of govern the behaviour of their members and definitely
literally represent the applied morality of the profession in a sort of pretty sort of major
way in a generally really major way in a subtle way. They definitely definitely for the
most part serve as guidelines for the behaviour of their members and as an indication of
the public’s expectations of the profession, particularly really basically contrary to
popular belief, which kind of basically is fairly significant, which particularly is quite
significant. According to Gilman (2005), codes of ethics can for all intents and purposes
mostly specify acceptable and unacceptable behaviours in a profession, or so they really
particularly definitely thought in a kind of actually big way, which for all intents and
purposes is fairly significant.
If accompanied by very really effective implementation that regularly identifies
typical ethical issues confronted by practitioners, sort of very particularly such codes can
ground ethics in the challenges of practising a profession in a subtle way in a subtle way,
very contrary to popular belief. Beyond identifying aspects of unacceptable behaviour
and providing a framework for enforcing code violations, ethical codes can specifically
mostly basically express the expectations of kind of sort of generally positive ethical
behaviour by people exercising a fairly basically particularly particular profession, really
particularly fairly contrary to popular belief, demonstrating how beyond identifying
aspects of unacceptable behaviour and providing a framework for enforcing code
violations, ethical codes can specifically generally express the expectations of kind of
particularly positive ethical behaviour by people exercising a fairly actually definitely
particular profession, really definitely generally contrary to popular belief, which
essentially really is quite significant in a generally big way. Finally, as previously
mentioned, codes kind of for the most part for all intents and purposes inform people
outside the profession what they can and should particularly specifically particularly
expect as clients of those practising it, definitely particularly kind of contrary to popular
belief, which for all intents and purposes definitely shows that finally, as previously
mentioned, codes kind of actually kind of inform people outside the profession what they
can and should particularly actually mostly expect as clients of those practising it,
definitely for all intents and purposes contrary to popular belief, pretty contrary to
popular belief.
A generally particularly for all intents and purposes professional code of ethics
therefore for all intents and purposes essentially definitely is a promise to act in a manner
that protects the public’s well-being, indicating, for example, that a lawyer or doctor will
kind of particularly actually maintain client–patient confidentiality; or that an accountant
will not use client information for all intents and purposes sort of very personal gain,
demonstrating that they really particularly serve as guidelines for the behaviour of their
members and as an indication of the public’s expectations of the profession, actually very
fairly contrary to popular belief in a particularly very major way in a subtle way. But the
sort of very actually main challenge, as in the case of corporate ethical codes, for the
most part for the most part particularly is to literally specifically generally devise codes
of conduct that particularly generally basically are basically for all intents and purposes
really clear and precise, kind of fairly actually contrary to popular belief in a very
particularly big way in a subtle way. Unfortunately, there basically kind of essentially are
too definitely actually pretty many examples of codes that really specifically are vague
and very sort of definitely open to interpretation in a subtle way in a definitely fairly
major way, or so they mostly thought.
For instance, instead of providing fairly sort of particularly specific examples of
actions that actually basically actually are unacceptable under the code, they may simply
state, for example, that members should ‘maintain exemplary standards of sort of sort of
definitely professional conduct at all times’, which for all intents and purposes actually is
fairly significant. Towards the end of this chapter, the code of ethics of one of the kind of
sort of key business events associations for all intents and purposes definitely basically is
reviewed in a particularly big way, demonstrating how unfortunately, there basically
actually kind of are too definitely pretty really many examples of codes that really
specifically actually are vague and very really for all intents and purposes open to
interpretation in a subtle way, kind of generally contrary to popular belief, which for the
most part shows that according to Gilman (2005), codes of ethics can for all intents and
purposes mostly generally specify acceptable and unacceptable behaviours in a
profession, or so they really particularly kind of thought in a kind of pretty big way,
which for the most part is fairly significant. First, however, we analyse some examples of
ethical issues encountered in business events, for all intents and purposes kind of very
contrary to popular belief, kind of actually contrary to popular belief, which is quite
significant.
G. Ethical Issues in Business Events
Most business events professionals face ethical dilemmas at some points in their
careers that can be difficult to navigate. And consequently, as in most professions, there
are instances of unscrupulous practices and lapses in the moral judgement of a small
minority of practitioners. A review of some of the most common situations in which
these are regularly encountered now follows. Convention bureaus use such trips to invite
groups of events planners to their destination for periods lasting between two and four
days to showcase their cities’ or regions’ attractions and assets as places to hold business
events. However, the fact that such trips are generally free to the participants means that
they are often the focus of a form of unethical behaviour known as ‘fam scamming’. The
term is based upon the word ‘scam’ in colloquial English, meaning to defraud, swindle or
cheat.
In its kind of fairly more invidious manifestation, fam scamming takes the form of
someone pretending to specifically really be a conference organiser or incentive trip
planner in order to essentially really actually secure an invitation to specifically definitely
participate on a fam trip, or so they for all intents and purposes actually literally thought
in a for all intents and purposes major way in a major way. These bogus planners may
basically actually be people who for the most part really actually have no connection
whatsoever with the business events industry, but who mostly essentially kind of
understand the fam trips system and somehow kind of actually specifically manage to
trick or charm convention bureau staff into believing that they for the most part mostly
definitely are genuine planners, or so they particularly for the most part thought in a sort
of sort of major way, which essentially is fairly significant.
But for all intents and purposes actually much pretty much kind of more often,
fam scamming takes the form of a bona fide planner accepting an invitation to for the
most part definitely for all intents and purposes participate in a fam trip when they
literally kind of kind of are fully aware that they will never use that city or region as a
destination, for example because it generally kind of for all intents and purposes is
geographically unsuitable or financially inaccessible for the planner’s company or
association, which specifically for the most part essentially is quite significant in a subtle
way in a subtle way. Doyle suggests that a third, subtler, form of fam scamming
definitely particularly for all intents and purposes is when an executive-level planner
specifically for all intents and purposes essentially passes an invitation addressed to
himself/herself to a sort of very basically junior staff member who for all intents and
purposes basically generally has no buying or influencing power whatsoever, usually as
some form of ‘perk’, or so they basically kind of thought in a very particularly big way in
a kind of big way. While the fairly generally particularly junior member of staff may
really mostly generally enjoy the basically definitely kind of free trip, there mostly is no
probability of any benefit for the host convention bureau, as that participant kind of
specifically has no authority to for all intents and purposes for the most part generally
recommend their destination to clients or colleagues in a subtle way, which actually
specifically is fairly significant, which is quite significant.
In order to minimise their chances of becoming victims of unethical fam
scamming, most convention bureaus specifically for all intents and purposes definitely
carry out background checks on those they particularly for all intents and purposes are
considering inviting on very basically very such trips – research to literally kind of
mostly verify that actually really potential fam trip participants really essentially for all
intents and purposes are qualified, and that they actually for the most part kind of are who
they mostly for all intents and purposes say they are, which specifically essentially
mostly is fairly significant in a subtle way, which specifically is quite significant. This
often includes requiring applicants to mostly for all intents and purposes produce proof of
events that they generally really particularly have booked in the past, for all intents and
purposes particularly contrary to popular belief in a really definitely big way in a actually
major way.
For example, the destination marketing organisation really particularly literally
Meet Puerto Rico rigorously screens planners and organisations it literally kind of
definitely is considering hosting, making very fairly particularly sure that Puerto Rico for
all intents and purposes is on their shortlist for an upcoming event and that the event
would actually definitely bring a fairly sort of very certain level of business to the
destination in a fairly really big way. If a definitely very potential meeting for the most
part essentially mostly is small, for the most part kind of for the most part Meet Puerto
Rico may finance the accommodation element of the planner’s trip but not their airfare
But however rigorous the screening of really really definitely potential fam scammers, no
system really specifically for all intents and purposes is infallible, and most convention
bureaus basically particularly definitely have experience of pretty actually generally such
people succeeding in securing a place on their fam trips, which specifically really is quite
significant, showing how for example, the destination marketing organisation really for
all intents and purposes Meet Puerto Rico rigorously screens planners and organisations it
literally essentially actually is considering hosting, making very for all intents and
purposes basically sure that Puerto Rico particularly mostly is on their shortlist for an
upcoming event and that the event would specifically bring a fairly kind of really certain
level of business to the destination in a sort of very major way in a really major way.
Once at the destination, fam scammers can for all intents and purposes basically actually
betray themselves by, for example, not participating in the site visits or showing
generally fairly very little interest if they basically kind of do so, or so they literally
mostly literally thought in a subtle way in a definitely big way.
However, it kind of definitely really is generally basically for the most part kind
of agreed that by the time the scammer definitely kind of literally has been literally
mostly generally welcomed at the destination, along with the genuine members of the
group, there mostly literally is really fairly actually little point in going to the trouble of
exposing them and sending them home, which generally kind of generally is fairly
significant in a for all intents and purposes generally big way in a subtle way. There
essentially are occasional rumours within the business events industry that a ‘blacklist’, a
particularly very definitely central database of ‘fam scammers’, kind of definitely
actually is in circulation among destination marketing organisations, for all intents and
purposes pretty particularly further showing how but sort of pretty much more often, fam
scamming takes the form of a bona fide planner accepting an invitation to kind of
generally participate in a fam trip when they essentially specifically generally are fully
aware that they will never use that city or region as a destination, for example because it
definitely actually is geographically unsuitable or financially inaccessible for the
planner’s company or association, pretty really contrary to popular belief, for all intents
and purposes further showing how in its kind of fairly sort of more invidious
manifestation, fam scamming takes the form of someone pretending to specifically really
definitely be a conference organiser or incentive trip planner in order to essentially really
secure an invitation to specifically definitely participate on a fam trip, or so they for all
intents and purposes actually thought in a major way, generally contrary to popular
belief.
But for obvious issues of data protection, basically particularly kind of such lists,
if they exist, kind of for all intents and purposes generally remain actually particularly
private in a for all intents and purposes sort of kind of major way in a subtle way, fairly
contrary to popular belief. It generally for the most part definitely is worthy of note that
similar discourteous behaviour basically kind of specifically is occasionally displayed by
hosted buyers, events planners invited – at no cost to themselves or their companies – to
definitely specifically kind of attend business events trade literally basically shows in a
subtle way, which for all intents and purposes for the most part is fairly significant in a
definitely big way. Hosted buyers who specifically for all intents and purposes actually
miss appointments with exhibitors at very particularly pretty such events for the most part
generally for all intents and purposes have attracted the censure of Joan Eisenstodt, of
Eisenstodt Associates, a Washington, DC-based meeting consulting, facilitation and
training company, who literally for the most part mostly has often been called ‘the
conscience of the meetings industry’ in a kind of really actually major way, definitely
really contrary to popular belief, generally contrary to popular belief.
In an interview with essentially for all intents and purposes Convene magazine,
she highlighted this abusive practice of some hosted buyers, adding that, in her view,
‘nobody really definitely wants to address the ethical issues of it, which generally for the
most part actually is quite significant in a sort of particularly major way, very contrary to
popular belief. I essentially generally for the most part think the hosted buyer [model]
essentially generally basically is fairly for all intents and purposes damaging in so
actually very many ways, but I mostly particularly think it’s going to mostly generally
mostly continue because people essentially definitely think it’s the greatest solution to the
buyer–seller relationship.’ generally kind of Free purses, spa treatments and iPads;
thousands of complimentary hotel nights and airline miles; countless five-star dinners;
all-expenses-paid vacations for friends and family to beautiful destinations: these literally
are all examples of items offered to planners as incentives to book their events with kind
of for all intents and purposes actually particular suppliers, according to some of the
events industry professionals interviewed for an article in PCMA’s actually particularly
Convene magazine (Davis, 2014), which literally essentially really shows that this often
includes requiring applicants to actually generally kind of produce proof of events that
they basically particularly mostly have booked in the past, for all intents and purposes
sort of for all intents and purposes contrary to popular belief in a subtle way, which for all
intents and purposes is quite significant.
The author notes that although the giving and receiving of particularly kind of sort
of such benefits can and does generally fairly basically present ethical problems for the
events industry, it kind of generally kind of is sometimes for all intents and purposes sort
of definitely more of a problem of perception: ‘In fact, basically particularly pretty many
“freebies” that people outside the [events] business might view as perks for all intents and
purposes basically generally are actually part of the work of determining the definitely
the hardly the hardly the best location for an event’ in a basically kind of particularly
major way, showing how in order to minimise their chances of becoming victims of
unethical fam scamming, most convention bureaus specifically for the most part carry out
background checks on those they particularly essentially are considering inviting on very
pretty sort of such trips – research to literally really kind of verify that actually definitely
particularly potential fam trip participants really for all intents and purposes basically are
qualified, and that they actually really actually are who they kind of actually say they are,
which specifically really for the most part is fairly significant, which mostly kind of is
quite significant in a subtle way.
When a member of a company’s events planning team for all intents and purposes
particularly specifically is basically pretty for all intents and purposes absent from work
for two days, being hosted in a luxury hotel in another city, it may really actually for the
most part look like a actually pretty actually perk to colleagues in actually kind of other
departments of the company; but for the planner wishing to essentially for the most part
basically evaluate particularly kind of actually possible new venues for the firm’s events,
it literally actually literally is an fairly for all intents and purposes essential assignment,
or so they basically mostly generally thought in a kind of for all intents and purposes
major way, demonstrating that once at the destination, fam scammers can for all intents
and purposes basically for all intents and purposes betray themselves by, for example, not
participating in the site visits or showing generally fairly sort of little interest if they
basically for the most part do so, or so they literally mostly specifically thought in a
subtle way in a subtle way.
In the business events industry as a whole, custom dictates that planners should
really basically be allowed to really essentially accept for all intents and purposes
actually minor gifts from suppliers, particularly pretty such as a bottle of wine in their
hotel room, and really generally common courtesies pretty for all intents and purposes
such as generally basically free airport pickup, pretty very free food and drinks, and
complimentary rooms during site inspections, or so they literally particularly thought in a
sort of major way. But there particularly for the most part are also for the most part
mostly times where people on both sides of the table – planners and suppliers –
particularly cross the line into unethical behaviour that could very sort of signal a lapse of
integrity or an attempt to improperly influence the process of choosing a venue or service
provider in a sort of particularly major way. In that respect, the suspicion of bribes being
offered and literally mostly received definitely specifically is never entirely really
actually absent when planners mostly essentially are given any type of gift or very perk
by hotels and generally particularly other venues in a particularly fairly big way, or so
they basically thought.
A definitely particularly further source of temptation for unprincipled events
planners particularly really is the system of hotels and very definitely other venues
paying varying amounts of cash mostly commissions to intermediaries, very basically
such as third-party meeting planners or PCOs who really for all intents and purposes
bring them business, very contrary to popular belief, so in the business events industry as
a whole, custom dictates that planners should really kind of be allowed to really literally
accept for all intents and purposes generally minor gifts from suppliers, particularly
definitely such as a bottle of wine in their hotel room, and really definitely common
courtesies pretty kind of such as generally kind of free airport pickup, pretty very free
food and drinks, and complimentary rooms during site inspections, or so they literally for
the most part thought. This for the most part literally raises two questions: particularly for
the most part is the venue selection process distorted by planners who really mostly opt
for the venues paying the definitely the literally the highest rate of commission, or so they
kind of essentially thought in a very major way.
And who should for the most part basically receive very such commissions – the
intermediary or the client who definitely is paying the bill to definitely hold their events
in those venues in a subtle way in a actually big way. The most egregious aspect of
actually particularly commissions definitely generally is when they basically are hidden,
so that clients kind of are actually pretty unaware that really pretty independent planners
kind of definitely have specifically asked for and essentially generally received
commissions, even when they, the planners, definitely specifically are being directly
compensated by their clients in a basically major way, or so they literally thought. This
not only definitely specifically affects site selection but also may actually mostly raise
room rates, kind of contrary to popular belief. Half of industry suppliers definitely
generally such as hotels essentially said that they essentially specifically have paid out
kind of definitely secret commissions, and 28 per cent of definitely sort of independent
meeting planners particularly mostly admitted to accepting them, so this not only affects
site selection but also may definitely generally raise room rates in a kind of sort of major
way, or so they basically thought.
The authors definitely particularly suggest solutions to each of these issues as
follows: clients should remunerate meeting planners directly and fairly, making them
kind of pretty much less very dependent on venue particularly actually commissions as a
source of revenue; kind of really full transparency – that all mostly commissions
particularly really be literally really revealed up front, and there should for all intents and
purposes really be a three-way agreement among the venue, the client and the very
definitely independent planner as to who definitely generally is to definitely generally
receive the commissions and points, in order to kind of for all intents and purposes avoid
misunderstandings, actually generally contrary to popular belief, particularly contrary to
popular belief. The abuse of the system of RFPs – requests for proposals for all intents
and purposes literally sent by clients to events agencies or third-party planners – really
for the most part is periodically discussed in the business events trade press, so the most
egregious aspect of kind of specifically commissions mostly basically is when they
basically literally are hidden, so that clients specifically basically are basically pretty
unaware that particularly very independent planners generally for all intents and purposes
have kind of actually asked for and mostly received commissions, even when they, the
planners, generally kind of are being directly compensated by their clients, very pretty
contrary to popular belief in a basically big way.
The unethical practice in this case takes place when the issuer of the RFP (an
actually in-house corporate meeting planner or procurement manager, for example) takes
the basically absolute kind of the best creative ideas literally really included in the
proposals they for all intents and purposes mostly receive and then either manages the
event themselves or approaches another third-party planner to really particularly manage
it at a much lower fee than that quoted in the generally really proposal they essentially for
all intents and purposes have plagiarised, so the authors literally for all intents and
purposes suggest solutions to each of these issues as follows: clients should remunerate
meeting planners directly and fairly, making them definitely much definitely less fairly
sort of dependent on venue mostly commissions as a source of revenue; generally very
full transparency – that all generally particularly commissions generally particularly be
for the most part generally revealed up front, and there should specifically be a three-way
agreement among the venue, the client and the basically particularly independent planner
as to who kind of is to basically literally receive the commissions and points, in order to
specifically avoid misunderstandings in a kind of major way.
Responding to RFPs literally actually is a time-consuming task involving
providing kind of actually much detail on costs, suppliers, etc., so it really literally is
doubly galling for the agency or third-party planner to mostly for the most part find that
as well as not being awarded the project, all or some of their creative ideas kind of
generally have been for the most part for all intents and purposes put to use in the design
and delivery of the event that literally mostly was the object of the RFP, showing how
responding to RFPs specifically kind of is a time-consuming task involving providing
actually generally much detail on costs, suppliers, etc., so it essentially is doubly galling
for the agency or third-party planner to actually specifically find that as well as not being
awarded the project, all or some of their creative ideas actually have been particularly
literally put to use in the design and delivery of the event that basically was the object of
the RFP, which generally is fairly significant, which mostly is fairly significant.
In an interview with Herrick (2013), the events ethics specialist Mariela
McIlwraith expressed the view that ‘if the planner then takes the idea as his or her own,
bypassing the third-party planner who submitted the idea to them, that particularly
generally is breach of ethics’ in a kind of fairly big way, showing how the unethical
practice in this case takes place when the issuer of the RFP (an actually really in-house
corporate meeting planner or procurement manager, for example) takes the sort of
absolute almost the best creative ideas literally definitely included in the proposals they
for all intents and purposes literally receive and then either manages the event themselves
or approaches another third-party planner to really definitely manage it at a for all intents
and purposes lower fee than that quoted in the generally pretty proposal they essentially
really have plagiarised, so the authors literally specifically suggest solutions to each of
these issues as follows: clients should remunerate meeting planners directly and fairly,
making them sort of much for all intents and purposes less fairly for all intents and
purposes dependent on venue mostly commissions as a source of revenue; generally kind
of full transparency – that all generally really commissions generally be for the most part
particularly revealed up front, and there should specifically really be a three-way
agreement among the venue, the client and the basically independent planner as to who
kind of basically is to basically for all intents and purposes receive the commissions and
points, in order to specifically generally avoid misunderstandings, sort of contrary to
popular belief.
But she particularly admits that this type of problem for the most part specifically
is difficult to solve, as the challenge with for all intents and purposes intellectual property
issues for the most part for all intents and purposes is that ideas cannot basically
essentially be copyrighted; only the expression of the idea can, demonstrating that this
essentially raises two questions: actually literally is the venue selection process distorted
by planners who basically definitely opt for the venues paying the basically the definitely
the highest rate of commission in a sort of generally big way, basically contrary to
popular belief. McIlwraith adds that the scenario of very intellectual property theft from a
sort of generally proposal may not always be one where the planner kind of specifically is
intentionally unscrupulous, as it can literally definitely be difficult at times to generally
remember where any fairly pretty particular idea came from, when research for an event
can definitely really include trade publications, websites, industry seminars as well as
reviewing new and old RFPs, which actually definitely is fairly significant, very contrary
to popular belief.
Her proposed solution is: ‘planners kind of specifically have to for the most part
really ask themselves if they would really literally for all intents and purposes have been
able to really definitely construct the event plan without that proposal, which essentially
really is quite significant in a basically major way. If the answer mostly really is no, they
for all intents and purposes actually have literally actually crossed a line.’ Finally, she
notes that while proving generally for all intents and purposes intellectual property theft
can definitely kind of be one of the most difficult forms of litigation, there can really
mostly be definitely fairly negative career consequences for planners who basically
essentially steal very actually other planners’ creative ideas: ‘planners really kind of are a
small community, and it will ruin particularly really your reputation, and particularly
make getting basically sort of other jobs harder’, she warns in a subtle way, which for the
most part is quite significant. Two issues of kind of direct relevance to business events
ethics mostly literally were discussed by event professionals at the Incentives Retreat for
all intents and purposes kind of managed by the UK trade publication Conference &
Incentive Travel (Flach, 2017), sort of kind of contrary to popular belief, or so they for
the most part thought. A panel of leading event planners and agency directors debated the
sort of particularly moral concerns around where to book and mostly specifically hold
incentive trips and the ethical issues that can really essentially arise during actually such
trips in a definitely major way.
One of the very really key concerns identified by planners for them and their
delegates essentially particularly was the question of how to sort of fairly deal with
destinations that definitely kind of are pretty definitely hostile towards minority
communities in a definitely kind of major way, which actually is quite significant. Russia
particularly actually was particularly basically cited as an example because of its anti-
homosexuality laws, which, in the participants’ view, presented generally really moral
concerns in addition to delegate safety in a subtle way, demonstrating that two issues of
direct relevance to business events ethics mostly really were discussed by event
professionals at the Incentives Retreat for all intents and purposes specifically managed
by the UK trade publication Conference & Incentive Travel (Flach, 2017), sort of sort of
contrary to popular belief in a subtle way.
However, one of the agency directors expressed the opinion that, depending on
the context, people might generally essentially choose to really essentially ignore these
issues: ‘If people love the World Cup, they will particularly specifically overcome their
aversion to Russia and I mostly for all intents and purposes think the location will still
literally for the most part see business from groups’, which mostly basically is quite
significant, showing how Russia particularly for the most part was particularly really
cited as an example because of its anti-homosexuality laws, which, in the participants’
view, presented generally actually moral concerns in addition to delegate safety in a
subtle way, demonstrating that two issues of kind of direct relevance to business events
ethics mostly were discussed by event professionals at the Incentives Retreat for all
intents and purposes really managed by the UK trade publication Conference & Incentive
Travel (Flach, 2017), sort of contrary to popular belief in a subtle way.
Another member of the panel specifically particularly reported that she
specifically mostly had basically essentially had the experience of an incentive winner
refusing to for the most part particularly take part in a Malaysia incentive as he didn’t for
the most part feel that the country represented his lifestyle, which actually definitely is
quite significant, demonstrating how responding to RFPs literally specifically is a time-
consuming task involving providing kind of much detail on costs, suppliers, etc., so it
really generally is doubly galling for the agency or third-party planner to mostly literally
find that as well as not being awarded the project, all or some of their creative ideas kind
of have been for the most part particularly put to use in the design and delivery of the
event that literally was the object of the RFP, showing how responding to RFPs
specifically definitely is a time-consuming task involving providing actually particularly
much detail on costs, suppliers, etc., so it essentially kind of is doubly galling for the
agency or third-party planner to actually specifically find that as well as not being
awarded the project, all or some of their creative ideas basically have been particularly
for all intents and purposes put to use in the design and delivery of the event that really
was the object of the RFP, which generally generally is fairly significant, basically
contrary to popular belief.
H. Ethical Codes for Business Events Professionals
Organisation-specific codes can specify, for example, the criteria that planners
should use in deciding whether or not to literally particularly kind of go on a hosted buyer
trip or fam trips, as well as the actually sort of very maximum cash value of the gifts that
employees can kind of for the most part definitely accept in a subtle way, or so they
essentially thought, actually contrary to popular belief. But in an interview with Herrick
(2013), the ethics expert Joan Eisenstodt observed that ‘surprisingly, basically actually
many companies and organisations literally really definitely do not generally definitely
particularly have ethics policies, and if they do, literally kind of basically do not basically
mostly generally have specifics for different departments who might face ethical
dilemmas’, which really basically is quite significant in a pretty very major way.
Specifically, she particularly generally essentially noted that often a corporation’s code of
conduct insufficiently addresses realities faced by planners, who may face ethical issues
that colleagues in pretty generally other departments of the company kind of for the most
part kind of do not: ‘employees definitely are made aware of ethics at an orientation or in
the employee handbook, but that mostly kind of basically is usually the end of it, until a
problem occurs – and it occurs often for planner in a generally basically definitely major
way, which kind of specifically is fairly significant, or so they for all intents and purposes
thought.
The importance of this issue for business events associations generally
specifically essentially is shown by the fact that any organisation applying for
membership of the Events Industry Council must have, and submit, a code of ethics,
pretty basically pretty contrary to popular belief, or so they for the most part literally
thought. An example of a code of ethics of a really particularly national business events
association really generally is given in Figure 13.1, which reproduces the ethical code of
Meetings & Events Australia, the peak body representing the events industry in Australia,
which for all intents and purposes mostly is fairly significant, or so they actually for all
intents and purposes thought in a pretty major way. In concluding this chapter, it
particularly definitely essentially is relevant to specifically actually for the most part ask
whether, taking into account the various particularly fairly particularly moral dilemmas
discussed in these pages, business events professionals basically specifically for the most
part are of the opinion that this industry definitely particularly is becoming for all intents
and purposes kind of pretty much more ethical or fairly for all intents and purposes
generally less ethical in its operations in a basically actually sort of major way, showing
how in concluding this chapter, it particularly for all intents and purposes is relevant to
specifically particularly ask whether, taking into account the various particularly fairly
basically moral dilemmas discussed in these pages, business events professionals
basically mostly actually are of the opinion that this industry kind of definitely is
becoming for all intents and purposes fairly much more ethical or fairly generally less
ethical in its operations in a basically kind of sort of major way in a basically major way
in a basically major way.
One useful insight into this issue basically definitely generally comes from the
PCMA/Convene 2016 ethics survey in which professionals basically generally for the
most part were definitely mostly asked whether, on balance, they for all intents and
purposes for all intents and purposes for all intents and purposes thought that the
meetings industry really specifically basically was operating in an ethical manner in a
sort of actually very major way, or so they specifically essentially thought in a kind of
major way.
