BestCities Global Alliance, a strategic collaboration between the world’s premier meeting destinations, today (19 April) announced the appointment of Jonas Wilstrup, convention director of Copenhagen Convention Bureau, as its new Board Chair.
Taking on the baton from Karen Bolinger, chief executive of the Melbourne Convention Bureau (MCB), under BestCities rotating chair policy, Jonas will play a pivotal role in the alliance’s ambitious plans for growth, his first appearance as chair being at a breakfast for visiting media at IMEX Frankfurt this morning.
Wilstrop has been running Wonderful Copenhagen Convention Bureau since January 2014, cementing the city’s position as a leading meeting and convention city. Previously, in his progressive career, Jonas has held positions at the Danish Chamber of Commerce and the Danish Association for Hotels and Restaurants, where his responsibilities included lobbying efforts, eco-labelling and exports.
Alongside senior representatives from the other eleven BestCities convention bureaus – Berlin, Bogota, Cape Town, Dubai, Edinburgh, Houston, Melbourne, Singapore, Tokyo and Vancouver – Wilstrop will be a driving force in positioning the alliance as an innovative industry leader.
He says: “One year ago, we formed our client advisory board. This has been hugely beneficial in providing insight into association needs and concerns as well as industry trends impacting on the way congresses should be planned and run – from the global economy to the impact of generation Y. Through sharing of this knowledge and expertise with our board and members, BestCities is strongly positioned to provide association planners with well-informed strategic guidance, which is fit to purpose and delivers lasting legacies way beyond clocking good delegate numbers and well-known speakers.
“We will be addressing some of the learnings from our CAB sessions at this year’s revamped client workshop – the BestCities Global Form – one of our most important business development opportunities in the calendar. Hosted in Dubai, the Global Forum will also see us team up with our strategic partners, the PCMA, offering interactive, educational sessions which help delegates advance the purpose of meetings to ensure longer term legacy development.
“With a number of successful member bid wins under our members’ belts this year, within the alliance we will also continue building on our strengths in the area of global planning, helping associations make partnerships with a multitude of BestCities destinations. This will not only ensure the highest possible quality standards but will hopefully see the benefits left by congress in one host city being carried on to the association’s next destination as they learn from best practice.”