Exploring the Use of Virtual and Hybrid Events for MICE Sector Resilience: The Case of South Africa
This study departs from the premise that COVID-19 has fast-tracked the transition to the virtual environment in the global meetings, incentives, conference/convention, and exhibition (MICE) events sector. Using South Africa as a case study, the research explores the use of virtual and hybrid event...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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AfricaJournals
2022-10-01
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| Series: | African Journal of Hospitality, Tourism and Leisure |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.ajhtl.com/uploads/7/1/6/3/7163688/article_19_11_4_1579-1594_1_.pdf |
| _version_ | 1811192107778441216 |
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| author | Refiloe Julia Lekgau Tembi Maloney Tichaawa |
| author_facet | Refiloe Julia Lekgau Tembi Maloney Tichaawa |
| author_sort | Refiloe Julia Lekgau |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This study departs from the premise that COVID-19 has fast-tracked the transition to the virtual environment in
the global meetings, incentives, conference/convention, and exhibition (MICE) events sector. Using South Africa
as a case study, the research explores the use of virtual and hybrid events in enhancing the resilience of MICE
events. Adopting a mixed methods approach, data was collected from 19 purposively selected MICE tourism
stakeholders (involved in the planning and organizing of the MICE sector) as well as 500 MICE event attendees.
The findings reveal that virtual and hybrid MICE events ensured the business continuity of the MICE sector during
COVID-19. Additionally, these events were found to be essential for information sharing and proved valuable in
times of uncertainty. The study further found that these events provided substantial market opportunities for MICE
stakeholders in the country. However, the study uncovered that certain sub-sector of MICE, as well as some key
functions, cannot be easily replicated in the virtual space. Moreover, several challenges surfaced when hosting
such events, including the matter of internet connectivity and the significant capital investments required for their
execution. Overall, the study concludes that virtual events have emerged as a valuable tool for enhancing the
resilience of MICE events to crises, and hybrid events are postulated to become a prominent feature in MICE
events offerings in the future. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-11T23:47:14Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-0c5fd6c2619d4d11a95b14415773c42f |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2223-814X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-11T23:47:14Z |
| publishDate | 2022-10-01 |
| publisher | AfricaJournals |
| record_format | Article |
| series | African Journal of Hospitality, Tourism and Leisure |
| spelling | doaj.art-0c5fd6c2619d4d11a95b14415773c42f2022-12-22T03:56:36ZengAfricaJournalsAfrican Journal of Hospitality, Tourism and Leisure2223-814X2022-10-0111415791594https://doi.org/10.46222/ajhtl.19770720.310Exploring the Use of Virtual and Hybrid Events for MICE Sector Resilience: The Case of South AfricaRefiloe Julia Lekgau0Tembi Maloney Tichaawa1School of Tourism & Hospitality, College of Business and Economics, University of JohannesburgSchool of Tourism & Hospitality, College of Business and Economics, University of JohannesburgThis study departs from the premise that COVID-19 has fast-tracked the transition to the virtual environment in the global meetings, incentives, conference/convention, and exhibition (MICE) events sector. Using South Africa as a case study, the research explores the use of virtual and hybrid events in enhancing the resilience of MICE events. Adopting a mixed methods approach, data was collected from 19 purposively selected MICE tourism stakeholders (involved in the planning and organizing of the MICE sector) as well as 500 MICE event attendees. The findings reveal that virtual and hybrid MICE events ensured the business continuity of the MICE sector during COVID-19. Additionally, these events were found to be essential for information sharing and proved valuable in times of uncertainty. The study further found that these events provided substantial market opportunities for MICE stakeholders in the country. However, the study uncovered that certain sub-sector of MICE, as well as some key functions, cannot be easily replicated in the virtual space. Moreover, several challenges surfaced when hosting such events, including the matter of internet connectivity and the significant capital investments required for their execution. Overall, the study concludes that virtual events have emerged as a valuable tool for enhancing the resilience of MICE events to crises, and hybrid events are postulated to become a prominent feature in MICE events offerings in the future.https://www.ajhtl.com/uploads/7/1/6/3/7163688/article_19_11_4_1579-1594_1_.pdfvirtual eventshybrid eventsmice tourismsouth africacovid-19resilience |
| spellingShingle | Refiloe Julia Lekgau Tembi Maloney Tichaawa Exploring the Use of Virtual and Hybrid Events for MICE Sector Resilience: The Case of South Africa African Journal of Hospitality, Tourism and Leisure virtual events hybrid events mice tourism south africa covid-19 resilience |
| title | Exploring the Use of Virtual and Hybrid Events for MICE Sector Resilience: The Case of South Africa |
| title_full | Exploring the Use of Virtual and Hybrid Events for MICE Sector Resilience: The Case of South Africa |
| title_fullStr | Exploring the Use of Virtual and Hybrid Events for MICE Sector Resilience: The Case of South Africa |
| title_full_unstemmed | Exploring the Use of Virtual and Hybrid Events for MICE Sector Resilience: The Case of South Africa |
| title_short | Exploring the Use of Virtual and Hybrid Events for MICE Sector Resilience: The Case of South Africa |
| title_sort | exploring the use of virtual and hybrid events for mice sector resilience the case of south africa |
| topic | virtual events hybrid events mice tourism south africa covid-19 resilience |
| url | https://www.ajhtl.com/uploads/7/1/6/3/7163688/article_19_11_4_1579-1594_1_.pdf |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT refiloejulialekgau exploringtheuseofvirtualandhybrideventsformicesectorresiliencethecaseofsouthafrica AT tembimaloneytichaawa exploringtheuseofvirtualandhybrideventsformicesectorresiliencethecaseofsouthafrica |