Our association is built upon great people who want to succeed, and we want to support them.  I think one of the best ways our team here at HQ does this is through our continued production of great research and reports that are timely and help savvy pros navigate some pretty tough water through this recession.

I'm a big fan of the Business Barometer and chose this post to highlight some of the findings from this bi-monthly report's latest edition (August).  As our economies merge on a global landscape there is relevant data in here for all members, regardless of their geographic location or side of the business.  But for my purposes here, I've pulled out some key points both by geography and sector.

Taking a hard look at the US and North America, Business Barometer found:

•    Continued global economic uncertainty. Professionals labeled the global economy, along with U.S. Congress and the domestic economy as the most influential trends on the industry.
•    Nearly 10% decrease in concern about U.S. fuel and airfare increases; concerns around long-distance travel remains.
•    The number of companies hiring full-time and contract workers continues a 14-month continued growth.

Within the European Market some key indicators included:
•    Global economic uncertainty continues to concern meeting and event professionals.
•    The EU is reporting increased part-time employment (in the industry).
•    The greatest increases in meeting and events are in the areas of domestic and international corporate.

Hoteliers and other suppliers within the hospitality sector should consider:
•    Attendance levels at meetings and events is consistently higher than 2010.
•    Spending per meeting continues a steady, albeit, slight growth.
•    In the US, the greatest event increase is in the domestic corporate and association segment; for Europe the domestic and international corporate segments continue to grow.

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