The Australian Business Events Association (ABEA) and Society for Incentive Travel Excellence (SITE) ANZ have called for a stronger focus on growing Australia’s incentive travel sector and strengthening the value placed on incentive travel programs locally and internationally, following a series of industry roundtables held across Sydney and Melbourne.
The recent discussions brought together inbound, outbound, domestic and supplier incentive practitioners to identify barriers to growth, opportunities to sharpen Australia’s competitiveness as an incentive destination, and ways to strengthen the long-term value and recognition of incentive travel across the Australian market.
Key takeaways centred on positioning incentive travel as a strategic business tool, building clearer career and education pathways for emerging professionals, and deepening industry collaboration to strengthen long-term industry capability.
The discussions also reinforced the important role industry associations and not-for-profit bodies play in advancing the sector through advocacy, education, government engagement and research, helping create stronger outcomes for members and the broader industry.
ABEA CEO Melissa Brown said Australia had both the product and the people to compete strongly as an incentive destination.
“Australia combines sophisticated conference and event infrastructure with culturally rich experiences and some of the world’s most unique landscapes, giving organisers enormous flexibility to create memorable incentive and business events programs.”
Brown said the roundtables reinforced that collaboration would be central to strengthening the sector’s future.
“We’ve got incredible knowledge, talent and expertise across the business events and incentive sectors, and if organisers, suppliers, venues, bureaux and industry bodies continue to work collaboratively, there’s a real opportunity to strengthen the industry’s long-term capability, profile and economic impact,” she said.
Building clearer pathways into the incentive travel profession was also a strong focus, with participants calling for greater awareness of incentive travel as a career choice among emerging professionals and more structured routes into the sector.
SITE ANZ President Tanya Wick said closer collaboration between the two bodies would be key to driving that agenda forward.
“Working closely with ABEA allows us to continue strengthening education, advocacy and industry capability while highlighting the value incentive travel delivers to businesses and destinations across Australia and New Zealand,” she said.
“As part of a globally connected association, SITE ANZ also plays an important role in supporting inbound incentive opportunities through international partnerships, collaboration and industry connections.”
