Drawing on her personal experience as National Sales Manager at Center Parcs Conferences & Events, Cat Bird shares her thoughts on businesses returning to pre-COVID levels of in-person operations.
She said: “Most noticeable, is the difference in pace of returning to in- person events between smaller businesses of 40 employees and national businesses of 400+ employees.
“Post-pandemic, smaller businesses have found it easier to get employees together – fewer diaries to align, perhaps more willingness to get back together after remote working; they’ve been more nimble.
“However, after a period of relaxed and immersive team building days,
these businesses are now moving onto organising bigger conferences and events with an emphasis on brand strategy and training.
“Meanwhile, larger businesses, for which the logistics of a company-wide event are more complex, have taken longer to return to in-person events. This is often because it can take six to nine months to plan. In 2023 their focus is on bringing teams together for the first time, with the confidence to arrange bigger events of 450+.
“By the end of the year, we anticipate larger businesses matching smaller businesses in their regularity of events, having rewarded staff with a gratuity getaway, and getting ‘back to business’.”