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    • Feb 3
    • 5 min read

Update from the CEO


14 December 2022



Dear members and friends of the EEAA,


It has been a long time since we were able to gather the way we did last week.

It was a busy and satisfying week full of opportunities to connect and engage with you all in person.

I would like to thank the many industry members and guests who took part in our 2022 Conference and Awards Dinner.

Leading Well Emerging Leaders Program

Last week, the majority of our Emerging Leaders completed the final component of the Leading Well Emerging Leaders program. This program was designed to develop leadership skills, for leading oneself and others by managing mindset and what has become one of today’s very important issues – wellbeing factors.


Congratulations to all those who completed the program; the insights shared and discussions were highly valuable.

As part of our delivery, we were able to bring the members of AACB with us to participate in the program. We hope this is the first of many programs we will run cooperatively with AACB.

Thank you to our sponsors at Business Events Australia and Ungerboeck who enabled us to offer this great program. In keeping with their values to support emerging leaders, their contribution allowed participants to participate in the program at no cost.

Thank you also to Dan Londero (TES / Leading Well) and Brad Barr (Leading Well) for their support and delivery of the program.

Due to the high success of this program, we plan to bring it back in 2023.




The Industry Conference


Our 2022 Conference provided a great opportunity to connect with our members, learn what their current challenges are, celebrate their successes, and also plan for what's next in our industry.

Thank you to everyone who attended, we appreciate your continued support of EEAA.

We would also like to thank our speakers for sharing their insights, personal experiences and predictions for 2023 and beyond. All of the sessions were highly informative, sparking conversations and challenging traditional thinking.

We thank Ken Holsinger (Freeman Co.), Kai Hattendorf (UFI) and Richard Ireland (Clarion / SACEOS) for their worldly contributions. Locally, Paul Bloxham (HSBC), Cynthia Cottrell (Mercer Australia), Spiro Anemogiannis (Informa Australia), Matt Pearce (Talk2 Media & Events), Elissa Duke (MCEC) and Jessica Zickar (ICC Sydney) shared their knowledge and updates.

Toward the end of the day, Justin Jones shared his inspiring story of resilience. The day concluded with an insightful panel session where our Emerging Leaders asked some hard hitting questions.

The day was facilitated wonderfully by our guest emcee’s, four of our Emerging Leaders, Lakisha Di Valentino (Diversified Communications), Amy Saleh (Hannover Fairs Australia), Simon Jacobs (Business Events Victoria) and Jasmine Pohl (Adelaide Convention Centre).

We look forward to continuing these conversations into the new year and supporting the exhibition and events industry in the next phase of recovery.




Awards for Excellence


The Awards for Excellence dinner celebrated the great achievements of our industry and recognised our industry's leading talent.

EEAA congratulates all of our winners and finalists, who have delivered outstanding events, even in times of adversity.

Organisation Awards:

Individual Awards:

  • Richard Geddes Emerging Leader – Jack Weatherby-Fell, International Convention Centre Sydney

  • Unsung Hero – Jimmy Kadwa, International Convention Centre Sydney

  • Trevor Riddell Presidents Award – Rod Peter and Spiro Anemogiannis

  • Life Membership – Jo-Anne Kelleway and Peter King

Thank you to everyone who attended the Awards Dinner, it was great to celebrate with you all!


Thank you to our sponsors


The delivery of our Conference and Awards was made possible through the generous contributions of our sponsors and supporters.

Our Principal Sponsor for all our activities and events was ICC Sydney who delivered support in so many ways. We thank the entire ICC Sydney team for their time, effort, and support.

Our Conference Delivery Partners were the Coleman Group, LUP Events and Orlando Sydney Photography.

Our Awards Sponsors were Sydney Showground, Melbourne Convention & Exhibition Centre, Business Events Australia, Ungerboeck, the Coleman Group, GEL Events, eTechSuite, Harry the hirer and LUP Events.

We also thank LUP Events, Harry the hirer, the Coleman Group, eTechSuite and Orlando Sydney Photography for their contributions during the Awards Dinner.


Special General Meeting of members


EEAA members met for a Special General Meeting on Thursday 8 December 2022, to discuss and vote for a resolution that would allow the EEAA Board to proceed with planning for the evolution of the Association and a significant change to its operations and future.

The members approved the resolution: ‘That the Board of Directors of the Exhibition and Event Association of Australasia (EEAA) be given the authority to proceed with actions as required to merge the Association, and its assets, together with the Association of Australian Convention Bureaux (AACB) and Australian Convention Centre Group (ACCG), into a new entity.’

The vote gives us certainty about our future, however our work to serve our members won’t stop. 2023 will see us delivering all our services as normal, if not more. This is a vote to plan and work towards having a new super group, and until that happens, we have the clear mandate to continue to serve our members.

After the Special General Meeting, leaders from the three Coalition Groups met to discuss continuing the work and processes, and next steps to keep this program positive and in the best interests of its members.



Membership Subscriptions


EEAA will continue to serve its members throughout 2023, as it always has.

Over the coming week, members will receive a subscription invoice to renew their membership. In support of the industry, the EEAA Board have decided the following:

  • If members renew prior to Monday 30 January 2023, the subscription renewal price will be no higher than the increase to 2022 costs.

  • If members renew prior to Monday 30 January 2023, the membership window will extend to 30 June 2024 at no extra cost. This means that your membership renewal will be for a total of 18 months.

  • All new memberships during 2023, and those renewed after Monday 30 January 2023 will have a 5% increase on 2022 prices.

I welcome you to call me at any time should you require assistance or clarification regarding the above.

This year has been a recovery year with significant positive outcomes; our success has been through the generous support and contribution of our members.

We look forward continuing to serve you in 2023 and into the future.


Yours sincerely,





Domenic Genua

Chief Executive Officer

Exhibition & Event Association of Australasia



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