Trevor Foley (pictured below) looks at who is getting the right people in the right place at the right time
With this issue of EW centred around the European industry, as UFI holds its European Conference in Maastricht, it is worth looking at how Europe is comparing with other parts of the world in terms of the talent agenda.
I’m delighted to have been invited to speak at the Women In Exhibitions meet that precedes the UFI European Congress. The gender issue is a fascinating one around the globe.
It is often said that men are much more confident than women when it comes to assessing how they match against a role brief. I see this play out on a day-to-day basis. Actually, a better word than confident is ‘relaxed’. Men will be almost blasé about their fit against the criteria for the role. Women certainly consider the criteria checklist in much more detail and will be more cautious around areas that they perceive as a weakness in their skillsets.
ecently, a very talented woman in the industry, emailed me in response to a role, questioning her own ability to step from VP into a CEO role. This was despite recommendations from senior industry colleagues. She finished the sentence by saying “How female was that response!” I’m not sure this can ever change (men and women are different you know!) but, maybe my role is to help women to see their skillsets and perceived areas of weakness, in a better light.
One geographical area where I do not have to do very much of this is in the US. Recent processes Stateside have not only seen the ‘final three’ shortlist of candidates for VP/MD roles consisting only of women, but women with such strong skillsets that employers have found it incredibly difficult to choose between those candidates.
In Asia, the mix of candidates for mid-level and senior roles is very much a 50/50 split between men and women. And in Europe it is a different picture based on the level of the role. At a mid-level (event director), there seem to be more women meeting the brief for roles and at a more senior level (portfolio director, MD) definitely a predominance of men wanting to go for such roles.
The maturity of talent markets around the globe is very much linked to the different ways in which different continents/countries dealt with the recovery from Covid.
The US and Middle East markets have been active for some time now because cash has been flowing for so much longer. Things got moving in Europe somewhat later but are now fully up and running except for Germany. The slower recovery of the large international events has held things back in the territory, with events having to be run with leaner teams. This should change next year.
In Asia, we are yet to see a great deal of people movement, but we will soon. Hong Kong and China are firing up rapidly now, which can only fuel further positivity and growth in our industry globally.
One final trend worth highlighting is the ever present one of popular vs unpopular companies in the industry. The best talent is always open, indeed keen, to leave the companies not motivating their people (usually for reasons of culture or vision) to join those that are seen as the more exciting players of the moment.
It always surprises me when the leaders of the less popular companies can’t see that their best talents are not motivated, particularly as the reasons are usually quite clear and obvious. On the other hand, it is great to be able to help those with a ‘following wind’ to turbo-charge their growth. The industry is mad at the moment, good mad. The right people, in the right place, at the right time always adds significant value to shows, brands and businesses at a good premium to the cost of that talent!
