Feature
The truth about
exhibition
recruitment
business shows.”
This specific focus on the
business arm of exhibitions
naturally complements the
fact that corporate events are
at number one, and possibly
reveals working in exhibitions
as a natural alternative to
corporate events for those who
want to work across events with
a business side, rather than focus
on the business side of events
within the corporate world.
Katherine Crowther, community co-ordinator
at event management course provider The
Event Academy, says the exhibition industry’s
‘recruitment issue’ may not be all it seems
T
he latest event industry
trend report from Event
Academy was published in April
2019 and holds a surprise for
the events industry – revealing
that exhibitions is one of the top
sectors respondents are choosing
to work in.
On the face of it, it shouldn’t be
surprising. After all, exhibition
management is one of the
largest sectors in the UK events
industry, with exhibitions helping
develop the UK as a recognised
base for international exhibitions
and trade.
Exhibitions are also financially
successful, contributing around
£12bn to the UK economy, whilst
as recently as this time last
year, UFI’s Global Exhibition
Barometer showed that 92 per
cent of UK exhibition companies
surveyed expected their turnover
to increase in the second half of
2018.
But if turnover is reportedly
increasing, exhibitions are
contributing more than ever
to the UK economy, and event
managers are reported to be
actively moving into exhibition
management roles, why are
exhibition companies perceiving
problems in recruitment and
retention of their employees?
26 — August
Positive perspectives
According to Event Academy’s
report, working in the corporate
sector takes the top spot because,
as we know, business is the
business when it comes to event
management. But close on its
tail, and alongside weddings,
venues, charity and party events,
working in exhibitions features
as a chosen career path.
In itself, this shouldn’t
be surprising, after all UFI
confirms that, “the exhibition
industry offers a variety of
job opportunities. With over
680,000 people employed full-
time, and thousands more who
are part time, the exhibitions
industry is thriving with a vast
number of career opportunities.”
This experience is mirrored
by Andrew Morris, a director
of the Business Design Centre,
London and chairman of Event
Academy. He reflects that,
along with conference events,
exhibitions create, “the greatest
opportunities for students
coming through to be part of this
industry.” Opportunities in the
exhibitions sector are wide and
varied thanks to the fact that the
exhibition industry involves two
specific sectors: B2B and B2C. In
Andrew’s experience, “the action,
in terms of opportunity, actually
lies in the world of business to
“Exhibition
companies
balancing
uncertainty
with solid
investment
in their
employees
could be
instrumental
in turning
around
recruitment
and retention
problems”
Recruitment conflict
Yet it’s recognised within the
industry that recruiting and
retaining event talent to work
in exhibitions specifically has
become problematic in recent
times. UFI acknowledges one
possible reason for this: lack
of awareness of exhibition
management as a career path,
as “the exhibition industry is
still not very well known among
students and almost never
mentioned as a potential career
path.”
With the implication here that
educators generally, and event
educators specifically, have a
role in promoting exhibitions
as a career option for potential
new event talent, there’s a clear
reason why there’s a difference
between what the industry is
experiencing and what the Event
Academy report shows: with
Andrew Morris at the helm,
Event Academy is proactive in
not only making would-be event
professionals aware of exhibition
events, but also in supporting
students with gaining the skills
and experience to be ‘work-ready’
for the specific demands of
exhibition roles.
Train to retain
For their part, employers in
the exhibitions sector too have
the power to ameliorate the