by Pádraic Gilligan, Managing Partner, SoolNua Norway It’s extraordinary how impactful first impressions can be. I was reminded of that this week when I visited Norway for the first time and, within minutes of deplaning, had two “service” experiences that would make any hospitality organisation blush with pride. Both positive impressions were with the “Flytoget”… Read more »
by Pádraic Gilligan, Managing Partner, SoolNua This week’s blog post is not about destinations or matters of interest to the meetings industry. It’s a once-off piece following the death this week of a childhood friend whom I haven’t seen for over 40 years. It’s offered in his honour. The huge crowd spilled out the front… Read more »
by Pádraic Gilligan, Managing Partner, SoolNua Has the human race ever been as challenged as it is today by the frightening proliferation of “content”? Has there ever been so much stuff to look at, to deliberate upon, to read, to digest? If, like me, you’re on a lifelong quest to learn, then on a daily basis you’ll face… Read more »
by Pádraic Gilligan, Managing Partner, SoolNua I’ve written before about how organisers of meetings and events select destinations. It’s a curious process that runs the full gamut from clear thinking rationalism to touchy feely emotion. Destinations are selected because they meet a set of fixed criteria – for example: access (delegates can reach there easily),… Read more »
by Pádraic Gilligan, Managing Partner, SoolNua There are probably more rankings or indexes of nations than nations themselves. As humans we appear to have a primordial need to order and rank ourselves on multiple scales from tallest to richest to most intelligent and this compulsion extends to everything about us, including our countries. Many rankings… Read more »
by Pádraic Gilligan, Managing Partner, SoolNua Mission Since the advent of the digital revolution the meetings and events industry has been drowning in a sea of content. Most of this content is ephemeral, disappearing without a trace as temperatures change. Some, however, endures, like the salt that remains when heat causes the water to evaporate. Greg Oates’ thoughtful piece on… Read more »
by Pádraic Gilligan, Managing Partner, SoolNua VUCA – the new normal in the meetings industry? Apparently it’s a military term in use since the 90s but the acronym VUCA – volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity – applies more than ever today, particularly within the world of meetings and events. Yesterday’s mysterious disappearance of an Air… Read more »
by Pádraic Gilligan, Managing Partner, SoolNua Often, when social media is being discussed at MICE industry events I’ll get the nod or the shout-out as the bloke with the blog or the twat on Twitter. There’s usually an underlying implication that I’m some kind of expert, the “go-to” guru for all things social in the meetings industry…. Read more »
by Pádraic Gilligan, Managing Partner, SoolNua Last night I debated with my son whether players who “draw” fouls on themselves in soccer are skillful tacticians or cynical charlatans. You see the defender approach, flick the ball to one side and allow the momentum of the defender knock you to the ground. The referee immediately blows for a… Read more »
by Pádraic Gilligan, Managing Partner, SoolNua Back again in Frankfurt We were back in Frankfurt again for IMEX16, the 14th edition of an exhibition that constantly pushes itself outside of its comfort zone while remaining rooted to the understanding that it’s all about connecting real people in real places in real time. This year I… Read more »