What is Mays events? MICE tourism

What's happened mice projects?

The term MICE originated as an abbreviation from the English words:

Meetings (meeting, meeting, meeting, meeting, traveling, connection, game),
Incentives (stimulus, motivation),
Conferences (conference, meeting, congress, association),
Events (event, incident, result, transformation, competition, number).

These four words combined into one and began to denote a service for organizing events, creating and designing business and entertainment programs and projects of any scale and focus.

Both the new term MICE and each of the words that make it up now have a meaning - organization and conduct:

MICE - usually outdoor events;
Meetings - meetings, presentations, meetings, trainings;
Incentives - targeted trips, which are a unique sign of attention to the company’s most important clients and partners, as well as to the best employees;
Conferences - congresses, conferences, seminars at which project developments are presented and clients and partners are acquired;
Events - themed celebrations and programs.

Advantages of mice projects

The advantage of using such projects is that all of the listed types of events can be combined in any way and, thanks to this connection, give an amazing effect that could not be achieved with any other form of organization.

Organization of events using MICE today is the key to the business and economic success of any company: this is the best method to establish truly reliable, trusting, honest and long-term relationships with existing main target audiences - employees, partners, clients - and achieve their natural growth.

Each of these audiences is, of course, important for the normal development of the company, and all three groups are equally important. You can’t do without goodwill, customer loyalty, trust and reliability in relationships with partners, a united, well-coordinated team, because these are the three pillars of any business.

Therefore, each of these audiences should be given constant attention. But standard solutions for events of any level and focus have not brought any effect for a long time. But mice projects provide enormous scope for creativity both when conducting them and when choosing a venue.

Professional companies providing MICE- services, the best of which in Belarus is deservedly recognized as Event Expo Company, which also operates in Russia and Ukraine, are capable of organizing an event of any scale and focus anywhere in the world. Moreover, there are no restrictions in the choice of buildings, means of transport, recreational places, and so on: over the years of successful work, EventExpo has established excellent business connections around the world.

Even at the project development stage, Event Expo Company provides the MICE event customer with the opportunity to:

express your wishes about goals and objectives that should be implemented;
choose a location and other attributes for the project;
achieve the optimal price-quality ratio according to the budget;
coordinate all points of the range of services (accommodation, transfer, meals, all types of programs, visa support, business souvenirs, photography and video shooting, etc.), including legal registration; carry out inspection visits to the venue.

Professional companies providing services for the implementation of mice projects not only provide support and coordination of all stages of the project, but also promptly respond to any non-standard situations that require adjustments, and also complete the activities in a timely manner.

The organization of events of this kind has significantly modified the so-called business tourism, expanding its boundaries to incentive trips for employees. Ordinary business tourism, which is the prerogative of business people who need to attend conferences, congresses, symposia, and meetings, has become much more effective thanks to the new direction of organizing and servicing such events.

Business people are spared the hassle of organizing business trips: Event Expo Company provides almost all stages - from booking tickets to organizing business events and recreation for participants.

Thanks to this, all stages of projects of any scale are carried out at an ideal level, since they are organized by experienced top-class specialists who know all the details of such events and know how to organize them in the best way.

Mays tourism is a term that combines several concepts, namely Meetings, Incentives, stimulating trips, Conferences, experience exchange events, Exhibitions. MICE occupies a special place in such an area as the organization of business travel, and combines the four “pillars” of business tourism.

The first Russian MICE companies appeared in the nineties and initially dealt exclusively with booking tickets - railway, air, and bus. Over time, the scope of their activities expanded to organizing turnkey trips to events abroad and began to include services such as ensuring participation in business events and scheduling business meetings.

What services can a MICE agency provide?

A MICE business tourism agency, for example, such as SOLBY, can provide clients with both a full-cycle provision of services from the entire range of MICE capabilities, and outsource individual elements of organizing business travel. Let's take a closer look at each of the “whales” of MICE tourism:

Meetings are important business decisions that involve the need to hold meetings with partners and representatives of the professional community. The MICE agency prepares the client’s participation in such events, ensuring the effectiveness of the event itself.

The designation “Incentives” usually means incentive trips that a company can organize both for its own specialists and for partners or clients using the company’s services. Such “incentives,” as Russian-speaking representatives of the MICE community call them, are aimed at uniting the team spirit in the team, increasing efficiency, and are also intended to be a reward for existing merits. Incentive MICE tourism may include some elements of a business program - trainings, presentations, conferences.

The term “Conferences” includes not only thematic seminars and conferences, but also training internships, seminars and other events aimed at improving the skills of participants.

Exhibitions are primarily exhibitions and fairs held abroad with the aim of introducing local buyers to certain categories of goods.

MICE business tourism from SOLBY agency

The services that SOLBY provides to companies and individuals in the direction of “MICE business tourism” include a full range of measures to support trips abroad. Our specialists will take care of all the worries about booking tickets and hotel rooms, arranging visas, insurance and permits, organizing flights, meetings at airports and train stations, providing meals and ensuring participation in both business events and cultural and entertainment events. . The SOLBY agency operates all over the world, and regardless of where on the planet your business trip is planned, it will be able to provide Russian-speaking assistants, translators and tour guides who will take care of the effective conduct of your business trip.

In addition to organizing a turnkey business trip, SOLBY specialists can take on the preparation of individual segments of a business trip. With us, you can get rid of the need to maintain relationships with several contractors and outsource the entire process of organizing business trips.

The English abbreviation MICE - business tourism - is widely used in the business industry and denotes four main areas of activity in this area, namely:

Meetings – turnkey organization of business meetings of any level. Typically, MICE tourism in Russia is understood specifically as business meetings, but in fact, their organization is only one of the components of business tourism;

Incentive – incentive travel trips for employees, clients or partners that encourage action, initiative and creativity (usually involving active recreation);

Conference – a range of services for organizing corporate or thematic conferences, training seminars;

Exhibitions – organization and participation in various exhibitions, most often at an international level, in order to find partners and attract attention to goods and services.

Main goals and specifics of MICE tourism

The MICE industry is considered the most promising sector of the global economy. Its annual turnover today is more than a trillion dollars, and by 2020 this figure, according to analysts, should grow to one and a half trillion or more. This is explained by the fact that business tourism pursues goals that best meet the objectives of the modern business industry. These are the goals:

comprehensive, extended and in-depth training of personnel, clients and partners of the company;
motivating staff to be more productive and creative at work;
development and expansion of both professional and interpersonal communications;
PR (internal and external PR) of a company (brand) in order to popularize its philosophy, values, capabilities, and so on.

Now let's dwell on the specifics of MICE, thanks to which this industry is becoming increasingly popular and is gradually becoming a leader in the international market of goods and services, displacing even such giants as pharmacology and medicine. So, what allows MICE to develop so successfully:

focusing exclusively on high-income clients;
off-season business tourism, which is focused not so much on recreation as on communication events and exchange of experience;
predictability and orderliness of any events organized within the framework of MICE.

To better understand MICE tourism, you should become more familiar with its management, which includes, in particular:

development of proposals for corporate clients, as well as a business and cultural program plan for the upcoming event;
booking tickets, transfers, hotels, insurance policies;
ensuring uninterrupted operation of equipment during meetings, conferences, exhibitions;
control over the interaction of multiple service providers;
consultations on visa issues and much more.

It must be said that with the development of the MICE industry, on the one hand, it is becoming more and more complex and demanding for service providers, and on the other, more and more flexible and multifaceted, providing business tourists with truly unlimited opportunities to implement any communicative, commercial, educational and entertainment activities. goals.

MICE manager - business tourism manager - manager for organizing business meetings, trips and corporate events. The profession is suitable for those who are interested in psychology, geography and social studies (see choosing a profession based on interest in school subjects).

A MICE manager is an organizer of business trips in the tourism industry. MICE units can be either an integral part of the business tourism department in travel companies, or a separate company that organizes away business meetings and corporate events.

Abbreviation MICE formed from capital letters of English words that are elements of a package of services for corporate clients on business trips:

Meeting - meeting

Incentives - event

Corporate (or Conference) - corporate event: conferences, trainings, team building

Events - events.

Features of the profession

In Russia, business tourism as a field of activity was formed recently, in the late 90s, and continues to develop rapidly. High standards of the profession are set by foreign companies, in which the service in the field of “business travel” - “business tourism” has been developed for years.

A MICE or Meetings and Travel Manager is typically an experienced multi-destination or global travel manager whose responsibilities include organizing travel and events for large groups (100 to 1,000 people). Unlike organizing a leisure tour, business trips should be organized more carefully and clearly, since the goal of businessmen is to quickly, efficiently and with maximum comfort resolve work issues abroad.

The main requests of a business tourist that a MICE manager must provide:

Optimal departure and arrival times, convenient flight connections without wasting precious time. For example, today a businessman needs to go to an exhibition in Shanghai, tomorrow to a London office, and the day after tomorrow to a conference in Chicago. At the same time, he should not waste a single minute of working time.
The ability to change the date or time of departure without penalties in case business negotiations are delayed, which happens quite often.
High-speed and uninterrupted Internet in the room, the ability to use the services of the business center directly in the hotel around the clock.
The proximity of hotels with modernly equipped conference rooms to airports in order to save time and money on transfers during public events.
Possibility to use laundry, dry cleaning, hairdressing salon, gym within the hotel to look presentable.
Provide calculation of the optimal travel budget.

Based on the customer’s requirements, the functionality of the MICE manager is formed:

prompt development and calculation of proposals for a corporate client;
development of a plan for business and cultural programs;
analysis and negotiations with key partners;
organization of business and motivational events;
consultations on visa issues, control over registration and receipt of a visa;
booking hotels, transfers, guides;
booking and issuing air tickets, insurance policies;
conducting business correspondence with clients and partners in a foreign language;
control over the interaction between service providers;
Maintaining primary accounting for each client, monitoring timely payment of bills;
travel and on-site control of the organization of transfers, accommodation, operation of conference equipment;
solving all client problem situations on the spot;
on special occasions, participation in the organization of evening programs and banquets.

Sometimes you have to combine the functions of a PR manager and work with the media.

In companies, MICE managers are divided by area of work: foreign countries, Russia and CIS countries. When specializing in a certain area, knowledge of the spoken national language in this area is required. For managers abroad, knowledge of English is mandatory, since the business world is English-speaking. Knowledge of other foreign languages gives a competitive advantage at work.

Pros and cons of the profession

Pros:

high demand in the labor market
high level of remuneration
constant professional and personal growth.

Minuses:

intense rhythm of work, sometimes in emergency mode
permanent business trips
simultaneous work with a large number of different people and companies
possible failures in the coordination of their work
possible customer dissatisfaction with the results of work.

Place of work

Travel companies (MICE division)

Specialized business travel agencies

Currently in Russia, the majority of the business tourism market is occupied by large foreign and Russian companies: American Express, Zelenski Corporate Travel Solutions, Carlson Wagonlit Travel, HRG, BCD Travel, ATH-Business Travel Solutions, Nicko Travel Group, Jenico Travel, UniFest Travel, Aero Club Tour, etc. They provide a full range of services: from individual business trips to corporate retreats for 1,500 participants. Some tour operators also engage in business tourism: Intourist, Biblio Globus, Capital Tour, Inna Tour, Sodis Travel Company.

In large companies, the activities of the MICE department are divided between several departments: business travel department, reservation department, visa center, corporate events department (conferences, seminars), congress, exhibition and public events department. In addition, there is a private travel department specializing in exclusive itineraries. Clear and coordinated work of all departments creates a positive and sustainable reputation in the market.

Important qualities

Personal qualities:

innate ability to service
creativity, out-of-the-box thinking
negotiation skills
communication skills
organization skills
analytical and systems thinking
active life position
ability to make decisions quickly
high efficiency
discipline, punctuality, responsibility

Professional quality:

knowledge of the partner base by area
knowledge of online booking systems: GTA, TRAVCO, Kuoni, etc.
Experience working with reservation systems of global hotel brokers
experience in preparing proposals for tenders, including design and presentation, defense of projects
ability to conduct business correspondence
Fluency in English - spoken and written
experience in working at exhibitions and work-shops in different countries
skills in organizing team-building programs, own artistic and entertainment base.

Having an education in tourism, experience working in travel companies and a desire to master this profession, you can become a successful business tourism manager.

Certain aspects of the profession are covered in the courses “Tourism Management” and “Hospitality Management”. There are special courses in which prominent specialists with extensive work experience conduct master classes on various areas of business tourism.

Currently, MICE managers or travel agents are trained by the Corporate Travel Academy, a kind of corporate university of business tourism, created by an initiative group of Russian corporate tourism agencies, such as ATH, HRG, UniFest Travel, Zelenski Corporate Travel Solutions together with professional Association of Corporate Travel Agencies BTAA. The course is accredited and includes training in reservation systems, customer service, product catalog (visas, MICE, hotels, air tickets), English and other aspects of the profession. Business travel is a very dynamic field of activity, so the main learning occurs through constant monitoring of global trends.

The training program lasts 6 months, which is equivalent to the first year of study at Bournemouth University in the UK for a Bachelor of Tourism Management and Hospitality degree. The acquired qualification gives you the opportunity to work in any country in the world.

Salary

Salary as of 07/31/2019

Russia 45000—80000 ₽

Moscow 40000—100000 ₽

Career levels and prospects

An experienced worker from mass tourism can make a career in the field of MICE management. Due to the fact that the industry is developing rapidly, a career in this field can be made just as quickly: in 3-4 years from a simple specialist to a top manager. This is a good starting point and an excellent school for aspiring businessmen. Here you can acquire new connections and acquaintances among large Russian and foreign companies in all sectors of the economy: industrial facilities and reputable banks.

The average cost of a corporate tour consists of many components. For example, a tour for a group of 200 people to one of the cities of the Krasnodar Territory, including flights, accommodation, meals, business and entertainment programs, is approximately 4-5 million rubles. 15% of this amount is the cost of air tickets, 20% - programs and 65% - accommodation with meals. In Moscow, a similar program will cost 6.5 million rubles.

What are incentive tours? These are incentive trips that reward the best employees, such as, for example, a trip to the World Cup or the Oktoberfest beer festival in Germany, orienteering with elements of team building in some exotic country, or participation in a regatta.

What is team building? In recent years, team building has gained enormous popularity, which consists of entire scenario-based events, including competitions, educational and entertainment programs, and theatrical elements. The type of team building depends on the area where clients go. In the Krasnodar Territory, companies will be offered marine entertainment, trips on yachts and ships. In the Altai Territory, games are held outdoors, in the forest, often including sports competitions. “Quests” are popular in cities, that is, participants must go on a journey, guided by the map, to find some item that will help them win.

What is included in the concept of MICE tourism and how does it differ from business tourism? Why is it interesting to the hotel services market? To answer this question, let's first define the concepts of business tourism and MICE tourism.

Business tourism- these are organized trips for business purposes, this is a tourist trip, when employees of enterprises, companies and corporations are sent on a business trip or business trip to exchange experiences, resolve any issues that have arisen, visit exhibitions, congresses, conferences, participate in professional short-term internships, conduct negotiations, concluding contracts, or, for example, repair and maintenance of equipment, transfer of professional knowledge during master classes, round tables and seminars. Employees' trips within their own country and abroad constitute business tourism.

Who bears the costs of business travel? The employees themselves? Of course not, such trips are financed from the budget of companies that send their employees on business trips, achieving various corporate goals, be it participation in negotiations or short-term internships in foreign companies (see). A company employee on such a business trip retains not only his monthly income, but also the expenses he incurred during the business trip, which are fully compensated by his employer. A business trip consists of a set of the following elements: accommodation in a hotel of a certain category, a travel ticket to the destination and back, as well as full meals for the entire period of travel. Leisure during a business trip is paid for by the traveler himself.

To clearly present the algorithm for the development of business tourism and the separation of a separate direction from it - MICE, I invite you to look into the past. Almost the entire subsequent history of mankind is directly related to business tourism. In the VII-X centuries. the ships of Arab merchants plied the waters of the seas and oceans. There were many educated people among the merchants. A merchant seriously counting on success had to know literacy and numeracy, foreign languages, have an understanding of the laws and customs of other countries, and understand jurisprudence and maritime affairs. Medieval merchants were the first businessmen to enter into trade deals, establishing international connections, exchanging their country's goods for those of foreigners, thus developing and influencing world politics and economics. Necessity and curiosity pushed for business travel: for example, trade caravans from Western Europe to China, this is how the Great Silk Road arose, or thanks to the sea voyages of Christopher Columbus, Vasco De Gama and Marco Polo, new lands were discovered, new routes were laid, trade bridges were built between continents.

It was at this time that the first, timid harbingers of the modern tourism system were born - inns, caravanserais, taverns - where the traveler was offered rest, food, and accommodation.

Professor Rob Davidson, a lecturer at the University of London Greenwich, wrote about this in the best possible way: “Business tourism is associated with people who are forced to travel for work. Thus, it appears to be one of the most ancient forms of tourism, when since ancient times people have been traveling for business purposes.”

Definition of business tourism

Business tourism is a general concept that combines the following purposes of business trips: meetings and negotiations, scientific expeditions and conferences, incentive programs, short-term internships, trainings, training during the exchange of experience, inspection of representative offices, presentations.

Compared to the long history of the development of business tourism, one of its segments, namely MICE tourism, is the youngest and most promising direction. According to the World Travel and Tourism Council, at the end of 2016, spending on business travel increased to $1.150 trillion, and in 2017, according to preliminary forecasts, it will increase by 3.7% and reach $1.192 trillion. By 2026, the global business tourism market will be valued at $1.658 trillion, with annual growth averaging 3.7%

How is the English abbreviation deciphered? MICE? Everything is very simple:

Meetings are meetings,
Incentives are incentive events
Conventions are conferences
Exhibitions are exhibitions.

Events held within the framework of MICE are aimed at serving the corporate activities of enterprises, be it organizing an incentive trip for employees, presenting products or exchanging experience in the form of master classes, round tables, technical visits to production.

Unlike the usual classical (in the international classification of business travel), the purpose of which, for example, is to conclude new contracts, work on the road, or present the products of an enterprise, the MICE industry is a comprehensive set of opportunities aimed at offering a full range of commercial services companies, or services for the future (incentive trips), so the specifics of organizing a classic business trip and MICE events will be fundamentally different.

The structure of the MICE industry is quite flexible and depends on many factors, including the characteristics of the business tourism market in a particular region and the economic situation in the country. MICE events can take a variety of forms and be combined with each other; an excellent example is the integration of the scientific and business spheres, exhibition and congress activities, when each exhibition is accompanied by congress events, all participants in the event benefit from this combination: exhibition operators and exhibitors from the flow of visitors , congress organizers from cost reduction, visitors from a huge amount of information, invited speakers from the opportunity to present their reports to colleagues.

It makes sense for the Russian hotel market to pay special attention to the MICE direction, since such a focus on business tourists ensures stable occupancy throughout the year, and not just during the rather short tourist season.

Of course, cooperation between MICE industry participants and hoteliers can be fruitful if the necessary conditions are met:

Improving the hotel stock and creating congress and exhibition complexes that meet international standards (today there is a clear discrepancy between the price and quality of services of places where business tourists are accommodated;
Variability and quality of food (poor quality of food services along with high prices is noted);
Introduction of special MICE programs;
Providing conference packages and a professional supervising manager who can greatly facilitate the organization of the event and monitor all stages of order fulfillment;
Improving the quality of service in the tourism sector (accommodation staff sometimes do not speak a foreign language;
Introduction of a modern classification of hotel accommodation facilities;
Creation of a modern system of training, retraining and advanced training of personnel.

The strengthening of Russia’s position in the international arena leads to an increase in the flow of “business tourism”, not only domestic, but also inbound. The stability of the economy, increasing incomes of the population leads to the fact that international and Russian companies invest in their employees, organizing incentives and incentives for them. study tours. Thus, business tourism contributes to the expansion of the scope of business contacts and the development of the Russian economy, and is the most important tool for stimulating business activity.