One of the major challenges currently facing the meetings and events industry on a global scale is the difficulty attracting, recruiting and retaining skilled professionals to work in the sector.

A lack of suitable courses at university level is being addressed but ongoing professional development for those within the industry can prove difficult due to work demands, unsociable hours and the almost peripatetic tendency of those in the sector to move frequently from job to job.

The recently launched Events Industry Skillnet is the training network for the events industry in Ireland and Dublin Convention Bureau is delighted to be involved in this vital industry-driven initiative through the participation of the Bureau’s CEO, Jean Evans, on the Skillnet’s Steering Group.

Ms Evans states ‘This is a key area that needs to be addressed in order to upskill our professionals and improve our overall competitiveness on the international stage and I believe the Events Industry Skillnet has a crucial role to play in helping Dublin and Ireland realise it full potential as a meetings industry destination in the next few years. The Steering Group is comprised of experienced industry champions who will drive the network forward, continually working with other members towards setting professional standards and improving performance for the events industry in this country’.

Ms Evans continued ‘The Skillnet will deliver on its objectives through the provision of hugely subsidised training courses which are tailored to the needs of our membership as well as plenty of networking opportunities. Courses such as Sales for Non Sales People, Telephone Sales for Events and Effective E-Marketing have already taken place this year and have proved extremely popular so we are off to an excellent start! Membership of the Events Industry Skillnet is open to professional event organisers, employees who organise events as part of their overall job responsibility, employees who work as event organisers for a specific industry, companies supplying good/services to the events industry and event co-ordinators in hotels and venues’.