Vienna/Dijon. The annual meeting of European directors of tourism, organized by European Cities Marketing and held in Vienna for the first time, attracted a record number of delegates. 23 destinations including 18 capital cities were represented. For the fifth time – and after Dublin, Paris, Berlin and Copenhagen now for the first time in Vienna – on December 12 top tourism managers from 23 European metropolises convened at the Sofitel Vienna for the “Annual Meeting of the Chief Executives of Capital and Major Cities” to discuss the future perspectives of city tourism with their peers. The meeting organized by European Cities Marketing (ECM) was devoted to the theme of change management in city tourism organizations, and was opened by ECM President Dieter Hardt-Stremayr and Director of Vienna Tourism Norbert Kettner as representative of the host city. Exchange of views in cities network A presentation by Ray Bloom, Chairman of IMEX, the worldwide exhibition for incentive travel, meetings and events, focused on the importance of good relations between local government and the travel industry. Keynote speaker Matthias Strolz, managing partner of the consulting firm promitto, gave an insight into the management of public organizations during the process of change. A wider perspective was guaranteed by case studies of Geneva, Brussels and Amsterdam presented by the directors of tourism of these cities: Philippe Vignon, Patrick Bontinck and Stefan Diender all gave an insight into the change management processes of their tourism organizations. The ECM meeting is held in a different European metropolis each year. Only five years after it was established, the meeting has become an essential networking platform for decision-makers in the marketing of European city destinations. Next year’s meeting is scheduled to be held in Oslo on December.
