The 2025 AIPC Operational Excellence Summit, held from November 20–21 at the CCIB in Barcelona, once again brought together leaders and innovators from the global convention centre industry.
Under the theme “Future Ready Operations: Driving Efficiency and Sustainability in Convention Centres,” the Summit provided two days of high-impact learning, exchange and inspiration.
With participants from more than 20 countries, the event offered a unique platform to explore the challenges and opportunities facing venue operations in an era of rapid digitization, new event formats, and rising sustainability expectations driven by the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
The programme kicked off with an energising keynote by Sandy Kennedy, who challenged attendees to develop the mindset, skills and organisational resilience required to thrive in uncertainty.
A new era for AV
The AV session (AV has moved from backstage to centre stage – led by Zsuzsa Szégner) made one message crystal clear: AV is no longer a support service, it is the experience. What used to be “lights and sound in the background” now sits at the heart of storytelling, branding and emotional engagement and the shift is already happening in venues worldwide. As Zsuzsa highlighted, the future belongs to centres that think IT-first, immersive-first and adaptive-first: technology doesn’t just support events anymore… it shapes them.
The Future of Food:
Maria Bassegoda demonstrated that food is rapidly becoming a strategic pillar for event success. Sustainability, wellbeing, circularity and local supply chains now influence not only the ecological footprint of events, but also attendee satisfaction, destination identity and long-term impact. Her session highlighted that the future of food is not only about what is served, it is about how catering can reinforce values, support communities, and become a meaningful part of the event experience.
From there, the conversation evolved into some of the most pressing operational themes shaping our sector:
- The Nordic Approach to Sustainability – Guy Bigwood and Malin Erlandsson showcased how collaboration between competitors can accelerate destination-wide sustainability and transform relationships across the industry.
- Sustainability in Action: The Edinburgh Case Study – Rob Turnbull highlighted how the EICC achieved a 60% reduction in carbon emissions while doubling event volume, offering a practical roadmap for greener and more inclusive operations.
- Operational Excellence Keynote: the NATO Summit Case Study – Michiel Middendorf shared what it takes to deliver one of the world’s most complex, high-security summits.
The traditional back-of-house visit of the CCIB offered an exclusive look at where sustainability and operations come together behind the scenes, a perennial favourite among participants.
Turning ideas into action
Day two continued the strong momentum with practical sessions designed for immediate application:
- The Power of Continuous Improvement – by Sven Bossu, showing how small daily changes can lead to major operational impact.
- Shaping Workplace Culture — One Dialogue at a Time – by Angela Herberholz, demonstrating how intentional conversations strengthen collaboration and trust within organisations.
- Beyond Reports: Data for Smooth Operations – by Lloyd Tan, revealing how clear definitions and processes enable automation, instant customer response and operational scalability.
- Cybersecurity: A Short Introduction – by Robert McClure, addressing the rapidly evolving threat landscape and the rise of AI-driven attacks.
- At the end, it’s all about Finance – by Eric Manganel, showing how financial understanding empowers cross-departmental decision-making and event success.
- Everything You Want to Ask a CEO – a candid conversation with Julianne Jammers and Kurby Court, offering authentic insight into leadership challenges and organisational transformation.
A final optional PESTLE workshop helped participants translate global trends into concrete action plans for their centres.
Leaving a meaningful trace in the host community
In keeping with the spirit of sustainability and social value, AIPC replaced the traditional speaker gift with a donation to the local social-impact association Barcelona Forum District, supporting children from vulnerable families during the holiday season. A total of €540 was donated. The association will share photos when the gifts are distributed to the children, a meaningful reminder that industry events can create impact not only for delegates, but also for their host communities.
Looking ahead
With its mix of keynote insights, case studies, backstage tours, hands-on challenges and deep peer-to-peer exchange, the 2025 AIPC Operational Excellence Summit reaffirmed the power of coming together as a global community to learn, rethink and elevate how convention centres operate.
We look forward to welcoming the AIPC community again next year, continuing our shared journey of innovation, collaboration and growth.
