Agenda Day 2

10:30 AM - 11:00 AM

UNICEO Leading Events to the Future

10:30-11:00: Searching for the right balance between Digital and Live in a hyper digital world
The hyper digital age is an opportunity to Corporate Events. Mixing physical interaction with remote participants needs is a winning receipt. In this conference, we will discuss the outcomes of UNICEO 2018 Congress about living in a hyper digital world.
Debora Piovesan, Head of Events, UNICEO

11:00-11:30: Sharing Collective Intelligence: How to succeed building communities
In this session, we will see how, in a world where sharing economy is growing exponentially (Airbnb, Uber, etc.) building a community can be a universal solution to develop a business, promote a destination or a hotel.
Laurent Fuchs, CEO, UNICEO

11:30-12:00:  Panel: The Corporate Events life: What really happens in the decision-making process?
3 UNICEO® (United Networks of International Corporate Event Organizers) Members will unveil the secrets of the indoor decision processes they have to deal with every day. 

Suppliers often think that they are simply skipped in the decision process or that if they do not meet the Purchasing department they will be simply “out”…Corporate life is not what it looks like. Listen to some testimony from real decision makers inside major Corporate Companies.

Panellists: 

• Nanna Dalsgaard, Global Head of Events, Danske Bank
• Mónika Mantuano, Marketing Manager, HP
• Rumyana Dimova, Managing Director Europe & Asia, Euro Petroleum
• Balazs Bartha, Communication Manager, Sanofi

Moderator:

• Debora Piovesan, Head of Events, UNICEO

11:00 AM - 11:30 AM

11:30 AM - 12:00 PM

12:00 PM - 12:30 PM

Robotics and Microservices: Removing friction from travel processing by Troovo

Hear from industry disruptors how next-generation robotic process automation and virtualisation – coupled with integrating multiple systems and content through APIs and deep expertise – will be the new standard of how travel is booked, managed and transacted. No longer will monolithic systems and “one-stop-shops” be how a dynamic travel business operates; rather a combination of highly specialised providers will intertwine their capabilities to enable a future-proof platform for travel globally

Presentation
Kurt Knackstedt, CEO, Troovo

Panel discussion
Panellists:

• Alvan Aiau Yong, Regional Lead, Airbnb for Work, APAC, Airbnb
• Michael Thorburn, Head of Partnerships, Serko
• Daniel Yao, Strategic Sales Manager, WEX Asia

Moderator:

• Kurt Knackstedt, CEO, Troovo

12:30 PM - 13:00 PM

13:00 PM - 13:30 PM

One-stop-shop for corporate travel: How AI & ML are enhancing the traveler's experience and bringing ease to travel management processes

Manish Raj, Co-Founder & Chief Business Officer, Tripeur

13:30 PM – 14:00 PM

Integrating Travel, Meetings & Events: Power Play or Legend?

Is integrating travel, meetings and events RFP data the next big power play or an unattainable myth? Join this interactive session to help us shape the future of business travel and meetings.

Konrad Pant, Regional Sales Manager, Hospitality Cloud, Cvent

14:00 PM - 14:30 PM

Bleisure Panel: Closing the gap and keeping up with the trends

Panellists:

• Renaud Nicolle, Vice President Business Travel, Asia Pacific, Amadeus
• Michael T. Molloy, Category Leader - Travel and Expense Management Procurement, Rio Tinto
• Marcos Isaac, Senior Vice President Sales & Marketing, Open Destinations
• Aditya Luthra, Security Director – Security Solutions, Asia Pacific, International SOS and Control Risks

Moderator:

• Jonathan Evans, Freelance Travel & Culture Writer

14:30 PM - 15:00 PM

15:00 PM - 15:30 PM

Reinventing the way you travel for work through artificial intelligence

In as little as a decade, artificial intelligence (AI) could match and then surpass human intelligence. This talk by Jens will let you understand AI followed by a fireside chat with Bart discussing the disruptions that will hit the corporate travel industry. 

SPEAKERS:

• Jens Oreel, CEO, Octotrip
• Bart Bellers, CEO, Xpdite Ventures

15:30 PM - 16:00 PM

Search & buy: Digitising your upgrading strategies

Like many other industries, there is a push towards onboarding digital initiatives in the Hospitality sector, especially leveraging online platforms to drive performance indicators in all departments, particularly sales and revenue. 

In hospitality, however, the best practices in customer service is historically associated with face- to-face touchpoints. This is changing. 

With more digital platforms suppressing BAR rates, Hospitality needs to leverage digital strategies instead of getting lost in all the numbers thrown up by Big Data analysis. The weakest link in the Digital Chain is often an operations team that is not able to identify red flags or react quickly enough to shifts in market trends. Streamlining a selection of functions away from daily operations allows your team to focus on the most important aspect of hospitality -- the Guest!

Upgrading.cc digitises Front Office’s conventional face-to-face upselling routines to a digital, instantaneous, consumer-driven platform, with a unique 3-in-1 business model for hotel partners to promote higher category room upgrades, lounge access and club and suite promotions. Rather than depending solely on email notifications, which has limited conversion opportunities, the team created multiple channels enabling customers to search and buy directly on digital channels. 

SPEAKERS:

• Cetin Sekercioglu, Co-Founder & CEO, Upgrading.cc
• Jessie Khoo-Gan, General Manager, Dorsett Singapore

16:00 PM - 16:30 PM

Panel: Rethinking sharing economy in corporate travel

Sharing economy services have entered the corporate travel sector, changing the corporate travelers’ habits and the way corporate travel is packaged. But, would they be the future of corporate travel? 

• What does the rise of sharing economy mean for the corporate travel sector?
• Why do we have to care? What’s at stake if we don’t?
• In which areas that sharing economy services work for corporate travel? In which areas they don’t and why?
• How to collaborate among different partners?

Panellists:

• Alvan Aiau Yong, Regional Lead, Airbnb for Work, APAC, Airbnb
• Lo Li-Wen, Regional Director, APAC, Blacklane
• Pulak Bhaumik, Associate Director & Head of Supply Chain Management & Procurement, CBRE South Asia
• James Chua, CEO, MetroResidences
• Cetin Sekercioglu, Co-Founder & CEO, Upgrading.cc

Moderator:

• Shrutivandana Sharma, Assistant Professor, Singapore University of Technology and Design

16:30 PM - 17:00 PM

21:00 PM - 00:00 PM

Late Night Function

Big ideas for small meetings

Aspasia Papalitsas, General Manager, Panache Conference & Event Management

11:00 AM - 11:20 AM

Forecasting the Future of Event Technology

Technology is ever changing at a fast pace and MICE industry has undergone massive change in the last decade alone. What's next? Hold onto your mobiles, it's going to be an electrifying ride.

Harsha Hariharan, Territory Sales Manager (APAC), Cvent

11:30 AM - 11:50 AM

The Technology Enablers or Lack of …. In the MICE Space

This session will cover (1) the technological enablers currently available in the FIT & Travel space, and the MICE sector, (2) the gap that exists between FIT space and MICE space, and (3) the impact of this gap on the end clients as well as possible solutions.

Yuvraj Singh Johar, Founder & Managing Director, Shloka Events

12:00 PM - 12:20 PM

Conceive and Execute Events to connect with the Expat and Indian diaspora

Shalima Motial, Founder & CEO, Dream Catchers Vision

Extreme personalisation will rock your event, UBERISE it

The MICE market is booming, and the demand is growing.

While projections should give MICE companies reason to rejoice, we know that industry competition is fierce and are driven by attendee demand.

While attendees don’t have universal values, expectations, preferences or desires, there is a single commonality— attendee expects a customisable experience that fits their needs & desires.

AI can solve part of this challenge (using predictive technology). But, with new privacy laws in place, it will be increasingly difficult to collect sufficient data to formulate the correct last-mile services like dining, seating, business matching, sightseeing, interacting, gamifying, airport greetings and giftings.

Uber handles more than a million unique transactions a day using Peer to Peer servicing, where rider and driver can connect.

Learn how we can deploy Peer to Peer servicing, connecting attendees and onsite staff by using mobile apps as peers.
When attendee can connect with kitchen staff, chambermaids, tour guides, waiters, drivers, and machine peers like badge printers, beacons, social walls, business-matching algorithms, the level of event personalisation takes a quantum leap. 

Find out how simple it is to UBERISE your next event, and let your attendee design their own experiences.

Dr Kenny Goh, Founder, Mice Neurol Pte Ltd
 

15:00 PM - 15:20 PM

Technology Challenges for Small Meetings Bookings

The small meetings channel is the largest sector of the meetings channel with over 75% of the number meeting being classified as small (under 50 delegates). 

The challenge has been for agencies and intermediaries is that the time and effort to book small meetings under the current commission-based programs is not efficient or effective – too much time too little return. The hotels and venues do not have the systems to manage this type of booking. 

Challenges:
1)    Hotels systems don’t talk to each other in terms of meeting room reservations 
2)    Inefficient systems within hotels to handle meetings efficiently 
3)    New Venues have lack of technology infrastructure 
4)    Current small meeting platforms cannot book all meeting online due to lack of systems 

Solutions: 
1)    Current large technology providers (GDS) need to address situation 
2)    Hotels and venues need to understand that the one click booking is today reality 
3)    Agents need to look at other ways of monetizing small meetings booking – transaction fees. 

Ian Quartermaine, Director, Advantage Meeting and Events
 

15:30 PM - 15:50 PM

Breaking Barriers - Growth Opportunities!

Make more profit by enhancing your as organizer and your attendee experience.

There are many available solutions right now to:

• Save your time and focus on the experience
• Make your event more accessible
• Engage and up-sell

At Interactio.io we work with more than 250 events per month around the world and we have seen it all and we will share the best practices.

Henrikas Urbonas, CEO & Co-Founder, Interactio

16:00 PM - 16:20 PM

Driving Sustainability Through Events: Is Going Digital the Green Solution?

The traditional event is not digital, backdrops are made of wood, lanyards are not recyclable, and so much paper is being printed. Can the industry be transformed? We're talking no foam board prints, no carpentry, no waste - is this even possible? In a truly sustainable world, can events be completely green? Can technology be used to aid this transformation? Do all of these come at a heavy cost? This talk highlights the problems of event waste and how perhaps going digital can drive more sustainability at events.

Carrie Liauw, Event Curation Director, Tabula Rasa

21:00 PM - 00:00 PM

Late Night Function

10:30 AM - 11:00 AM

The future is blockchain and why you need to care

Travel tech is long due an overhaul. It’s a very fragmented industry that often times uses ancient systems to communicate in today’s fast paced, information dense, world. It is also an industry that, due to the very nature of its business, does the most cross-border transactions in the world. There is a real cost associated with working with antiquated systems and every travel tech provider feels it in their wallets and the time it takes to deliver new software and features. There is also a real cost in having to pay all the providers involved in making every vacation a memorable one.

Blockchain technologies is the “new kid on the block”. Having received overnight fandom last year and hailed as the next coming in what will be a technology revolution; affecting every aspect of our lives. Is blockchain the thing that can help alleviate, if not cure, some of the common pain points in the travel industry?

This session will guide the participants through the hype and reality of what is possible with blockchain and how the travel industry might use this nascent technology to create greater customer value while lowering costs for all travel businesses

Bjorn Harvold, CEO & Co-Founder, Travelkoin

11:00 AM - 11:30 AM

Crossfire Chat: To succeed in hospitality, focus on your guests! How to combine commercial plans and technologies to drive customer-oriented service

We’ve entered the new age of hotel tourism and modern tourist services by connecting tourists and their service providers through the most advanced digital technologies. Smooth generation of sales offers through omnichannel communication improve the way in which collected data is used and ultimately offer a more personalized service and increase guests’ satisfaction. By combining the sales, marketing and operation activities, connect all segments of business and focus on your most valuable asset – the guests.

SPEAKERS:

• Trpimir Kvesić, Co-Founder & CEO, InSky Solutions 
• Dario Cvitešić, Business Development Manager, InSky Solutions 
• Jerko Ćus, Project Manager, Valamar Riviera d.d.

11:30 AM - 12:00 PM

Leveraging technology to create new efficiencies within the travel business and improve customer service

Angelo Jambore, Regional General Manager – APAC, dcs plus

12:00 PM - 12:30 PM

Driving meetings & events revenue through visual analytics and strategy setting

• Gain business insights with data driven visualizations
• Create demand-based forecasting and pricing strategies
• Apply industry best practices to your everyday work

SPEAKERS:

• Russell Britton, Regional Director of Sales, IDeaS Revenue Solutions 
• Tracy Dong, Lead Advisor, Advisory Services, IDeaS Revenue Solutions 

12:30 PM - 13:00 PM

How block chain make travel industry more efficient 

How the block chain makes the payment transfer with lower cost, makes reservation with trust and reverts with more incentives.

Xiaowen Li, CEO & Founder, FlashTrip and Weego Group

13:00 PM - 13:30 PM

Do less waiting: Delighting guests with biometrics-empowered check-in experience

Hotel check-in with selfie — a reality now with GTRIIP. Enabled by machine learning and Artificial Intelligence, GTRIIP has created a product that augments the front desk officer’s cognitive capabilities.
 
In this session, we would hear from GTRIIP on how they are helping hoteliers to replace manual data entry paperwork and compresses time-consuming processes, allowing the hotelier to create the best hospitality experience for guests and increase productivity by shrinking the front office onto a guest’s mobile device.

SPEAKERS:

• Maxim Thaw Tint, Co-Founder & CEO, GTRIIP
• Vetri Mayandi, Senior Vice President of Sales & Partnerships, GTRIIP

13:30 PM - 14:00 PM

How Virtual Reality is about to transform the travel industry

It takes just a minute to transform a mobile phone, with the addition of a cardboard set, into a VR headset and the experience can begin. This trend will grow even further with high end headset prices steadily reducing. 

Picking up on this development, experienced providers (hotels/airlines/ theme parks) have started to provide VR content to their market audiences. 

Travel and tourism is already one of the fastest growing sectors using this technique. Some estimate that 40% of generated VR content falls into this category.

This session will offer insights into the future of VR and how it will transform the travel industry and consumer behaviour from the point of a VR creator and VR marketer.

SPEAKERS: 

• Max Tramboo, Managing Director, PanomaticsVR International
• Nethmina Kariyawasam, Cluster Ecommerce Manager, Anantara Hotels, Resorts & Spas

14:00 PM - 14:30 PM

Tech for DMCs & Wholesalers: Sell contracted rates to a GLOBAL audience 24/7

• Leverage $3 Billion investment for your own goals
• Guaranteed bookings all year round
• 0 Marketing budget for global exposure?! It’s possible!
• Trusted technology to distribute unique properties
• Unlimited Channel Managers compatibility
• 100% Safety for your properties & your commission

SPEAKERS:

• Radu Ciubotaru, Product Manager, wbe.travel
• Milad Sharafi, Founder, Bookingee.com

14:30 PM - 15:00 PM

TRAVEL START-UP FORUM by Innovel Travel Tech

14:30-15:00: Catching up is not enough: Innovation is essential for survival in tomorrow travel market
In this session we will discuss how travel organizations can be innovative even though they are still focus on catching up in many areas. We will see different approaches for innovation in other industries and discuss what are the best one for travel organizations.

Rom Hendler, Founder & CEO, Innovel Travel Tech

15:00-16:00: Panel: Meet cutting edge technologies from startup nation - Israel
In this panel we will meet several entrepreneurs that develop cutting edge technologies in marketing, cyber solution, customer engagement, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and more. All are applicable to the travel industry.

We will discuss the use cases and what is attractive and problematic in dealing with the travel industry. What is needed for a successful deployment and what is required from both sides. We will also discuss the Israeli tech market and try to understand Its uniqueness and how it produces so many innovative companies. 

Panelists:

• Zack Schwartz, Vice President Strategic Partnerships, Trustifi
• Uri Keren, CRO, Wishtrip
• Tomer Imber, APAC Director, Optimove

Moderator:

• Rom Hendler, Founder & CEO, Innovel Travel Tech

15:00 PM - 15:30 PM

15:30 PM - 16:00 PM

16:00 PM - 16:30 PM

Artificial Intelligence in photography: Helping attract more tourists

Touristic business is all about visual content. Vivid, vibrant, sharp visuals - both might well be a driving factor in customer decision making thus making leads in tours and hotels sales. Furthermore, the guests are your brand ambassadors, needless to say, how important is the quality of images and videos they share. Making all that content look great is the strategy for a long-term growth.

That's where the power of Artificial Intelligence (AI) comes into play. We will discuss how the modern technology of computer vision and deep learning can automate many of image editing tasks, both offline and online, increase conversion rates and brand engagement. We will go through the evolution of automated image editing, check out the tools available and dive into some deep neural networks technology. Also, we will take a futuristic look on this tech and discuss how it will change the market in the upcoming years with technologies like 2D to 3D conversion and fully-personalized VR/AR experiences.

Savsunenko Oleksandr, Head of AI Lab, Skylum Software

10:30 AM - 11:00 AM

Influencer Marketing Trends in 2018

Influencer marketing has become a mainstay in the tourism sector as brands seek to connect with their audiences more effectively. The influencer landscape is constantly changing and adjusting, and working with a wider group of engaged and activated influencers tends to perform better. Many businesses now seek to work with groups of micro influencers, who offer a greater credibility, net impact and cost efficiency among their smaller, niche communities than macro influencers or celebrities.

This presentation by award-winning travel blogger and former Professional Travel Bloggers Association President Matt Gibson will explore the latest trends in influencer marketing for travel businesses in 2018 and how best to implement a successful campaign today.

Key Topics

• The value of influencer marketing today
• The components of a successful influencer campaign
• How to identify appropriate influencers (micro vs. macro influencers)
• Tips and tricks for maximizing the value of influencer campaigns
• The visual environment (images and videos)
• Working with an agency to deliver a successful campaign

Matt Gibson, Former President, Professional Travel Bloggers Association & CEO, UpThink

11:00 AM - 11:30 AM

11:30 AM - 12:00 PM

THE WELLNESS FORUM by WTS International 

11:30-12:30: Panel: The future of wellness travel and how to gain a competitive edge within the booming sector

Panellists:

• Daniel Remon, Founder & CEO, Fitcorp Global Group
• Tanya Talreja, President & Founder, GSD Spa and Wellness Development Corporation
• Kathryn Moore, Founder & Managing Director, Spa Connectors
• Barry White, Founder & CEO, WHITE

Moderator:

• Abhishek Jain, Vice President - International Operations, WTS International

12:30-14:00: Talk Series: Latest Trends in Wellness Travel

Applying Science to Wellness Travel

• Redefining Scientific Wellness & Components
• Wellness – Illness Paradigm / Continium
• Wellness Travel – A mere consumer driven market & less evidence driven
• Wellness Travel Quantified – Disease Demystified
• Primary – Secondary Wellness Traveller
• Evidence based non invasive Tools – Oligoscan, Heartvue, Iridology, VO2 Max, Genomics
• Applicability, Analytics & Results
• Case Studies – Scientifically validated metrics
• Empowering Wellness Travellers to take responsibility of their own wellness
• Media responsibility in communicating Wellness
• Conclusion

Dr. Arun Pillai, Director of Spa & Wellness | Dharana Wellness, Hilton Shillim Estate Retreat and Spa

New trends in Fitness & Spa Industry 

• Understanding Fitness in the Wellness Industry
• Wellness, Fitness and spa statistics
• Fitness & Wellness for mental and emotional disease
• Selling hotel and travel packages
• Current Fitness offerings
• Affordability, Profitability & Accessibility

Tanya Talreja, President & Founder, GSD Spa and Wellness Development Corporation

Wellness Edge in Travel

• Wellness 'branding' - How creation of 'soft' wellness brand is helping companies steer clear from competition across various verticals in the Spa and Wellness industry? 
• Wellness Insurance - Coverage of wellness under Insurance and forthcoming trends,
• Key characteristics of a Wellness Destination

Dr. Abhishek Jain, Vice President, International Operations, WTS International

Wellness Tourism - A new era of transformative wellness travel 

• Booking of hotel/spa rooms for sleep
• Trend of 'short getaways' in SEA region for a quick pick me up
• Future of 'short getaways' trend worldwide

Doris Sinnathurai, Director of CHI, The Spa & Health Club, Shangri-La Hotel

12:00 PM - 12:30 PM

12:30 PM - 13:00 PM

13:00 PM - 13:30 PM

13:30 PM - 14:00 PM

14:00 PM - 14:30 PM

Hot springs and hot ramen! The tourism appeal of Kyushu through Fukuoka International Airport

Fukuoka Airport (FUK) is the fourth largest airport in Japan, registering 23.8 million passengers in 2017. The airport is the gateway to Kyushu, the southernmost of the four main islands of Japan that is home to 40% of Japan’s hot springs and also the widely popular Tonkotsu (pork based) Ramen. This presentation will talk about the new FUK concessionaire’s traffic development plans, and how travel operators in Asia can take advantage of Kyushu’s tourism potential. 

Teo Chin Leong, Director and Head, Traffic Development & Market Analysis, Consultancy, Changi Airports International

14:30 PM - 15:00 PM

Sabah: Your next destination

Located at the northern tip of Borneo Island, Sabah – Malaysian Borneo, is a tropical destination abundant with eco-treasures literally from mountain high to ocean deep. Must-see and visit places such as Mount Kinabalu (designated by UNESCO as Malaysia’s First World Heritage Site), Sepilok Orang Utan Sanctuary in Sandakan, diving and lazing on white sandy beaches located all around the State put Sabah as the complete nature-based destination. Sample fresh seafood and see its diverse cultural heritage to create the perfect destination for a memorable working holiday. Asia’s next exciting venue for meetings and incentives is none other than Sabah in Malaysian Borneo.

Bobby Alex, Marketing Manager, Sabah Tourism Board

15:00 PM - 15:30 PM

Experience matters - How to elevate your guests’ personalized experience in a world of growing expectations

Experience is no longer a gift, it’s an expectation. Whether you’re a hotel in Singapore, or an airline flying from Canada, guests and passengers expect an engaging experience that fits into their busy lives. So give it to them. Igor Smirnoff will discuss how PressReader works in these spaces to help partners deliver the best personalized experiences all around the world. Imagine providing thousands of global newspapers and magazines, all on one digital platform. So no matter where you travel, you’ll always feel at home. It’s about getting the right content in front of the right audiences at the right time through the right channels for the right price. It’s about meeting, and then exceeding expectations.

Igor Smirnoff, EVP, Chief Commercial Officer, PressReader

15:30 PM - 16:00 PM

May we have your attention! How storytelling can help travel brands cut through the noise

Giri Jadhav, Vice President, Asia, Ogilvy

16:00 PM - 16:30 PM

Traveller trends: Turning insights into action 

Travel is not a one size fits all experience, and the motivations and priorities for one traveller are likely different for another. Learn how travellers from Asia-Pacific are influenced throughout the booking journey, and the motives and emotions that drive their decisions. Plus, see how one destination harnessed these valuable insights and smart, digital marketing activity to identify, engage and attract visitors.

Wendy Olson Killion, Global Vice President, Expedia Group Media Solutions

16:30 PM - 17:00 PM

Tourism in the age of Smart Cities

The presentation will explore how visitor touchpoints change in a Smart city, what are the concerns (such as data privacy), and how is infrastructure evolving to cater to such Smart Tourists.

Tan Shu Jie, Senior Manager, Frost & Sullivan

17:00 PM - 17:30 PM

Indians on the go: Tapping today's Indian travellers through effective partnerships

Travel providers looking to target Indian travellers need to pay attention to what today’s Indian travellers actually want out of a travel booking experience. In this session, Abhijit Mishra, Director, India & Middle East of KAYAK, and Frank Cheng, Media Solutions & Sales Manager, APAC of KAYAK will discuss the shift in Indian travellers’ travel booking behaviour, how and why effective partnerships are important and their potential for your strategy.

SPEAKERS:

• Abhijit Mishra, Director, India & Middle East, KAYAK
• Frank Cheng, Sales & Media Solutions Manager, APAC, KAYAK

10:30 AM - 11:00 AM

Meeting Needs of Millennial Muslim Travellers (MMT) with Location-based Mobile Experiential App

The presentation will provide an insight on the Global Millennial Travellers trends including the Millennial Muslim Travellers (MMT) trends, articulate the challenges faced by Millennial Muslim Travellers embarking on free-and-easy trips and share how LDR has been using its award winning mobile authoring platform (Pocket-Trips) to create an award winning location-based mobile experiential app (e.g LocoMole) to help FITs (Free-Independent-Travellers) to explore the rich heritage, culture, nature and life-style precincts of Singapore, Malaysia and Sri Lanka by themselves using their own smartphone devices. 

Bee Hin will demonstrate how various location-based technologies (such as Augmented Reality, Image Recognition, Beacons and GPS) can be effectively used to trigger rich interactive medias (such as photos, videos, games, 3D animations) to enhance the experience of Millennial Muslim Travellers visiting Singapore.

Bee Hin will also demonstrate how anyone, anywhere in the world without programming knowledge can also use the same platform to create similar location-based mobile apps on Android and IOS platforms to meet the needs of a fast-growing number of Millennial Muslim Travellers visiting their countries. 

Png Bee Hin, CEO & Founder, LocoMole

11:00 AM - 11:30 AM

Connecting with Muslim travelers: Understand how their travel habits, requirements, and preferences affect tourism

What was once branded as a niche travel segment, Halal Travel is rapidly becoming mainstream. With the global increase in the number of Muslim Travelers, how can the tourism industry adapt to the nuances and unique needs of the Muslim Market? These needs include access to accurate prayer times, location of prayer room facilities and halal food places etc. While these needs may seem simple enough, many service providers take these things for granted and do not accommodate or address them. Hear from Muslim Pro’s Nik Emir Din on how Muslim Pro app has connected with the global Muslim population (1.8 billion worldwide) and is now helping millions of Muslims travel with a peace of mind.

Nik Emir Din, Country Manager, Malaysia, Muslim Pro

11:30 AM - 12:00 PM

Tourism and the Arab world 

In 2017, there was an estimated 131 million Muslim visitor arrivals globally – up from 121 million in 2016 – and this is forecasted to grow to 156 million visitors by 2020 representing 10 percent of the travel segment*. The citizens of Middle Eastern countries are among the biggest spenders when it comes to travel and tourism despite representing a small population of Muslims globally.  Research also indicates that there is a 41% growth in the number of tourists from the Arab world globally**.

A typical Middle Eastern family spends about $10,000 on a two-week holiday. The Arab tourists wait anxiously for that time of the year where they can plan and choose their holiday dream destination with extended family members and friends. They enjoy the breeze of fresh weather, they like to explore adventures, and taste new food as well as spend quality time with their loved ones. The preferred period to travel for Arabs takes place during the months between June and September and during 
religious holidays and school breaks.

Clearly, Muslim tourist market is culturally diverse and widely distributed and therefore will have different habits and patterns of travel. Understanding the needs, habits and preference of these Arab tourists and travellers are important for the tourism industry players to capture this market. 

The presentation will deliberate further on what the Arabs look for when choosing their travel destinations and the best way to attract this market.

*Global Muslim Travel Index 2018; Mastercard-Crescentrating
** 2005  to 2013, UNWTO-  The World Tourism Organization

Imran Musa, Group CEO, ARK HALAL

13:30 PM - 14:00 PM

Jordan Destination Showcase: I Wander to Wonder

Muslim travel is becoming a big business, and countries around the world is developing Muslim-friendly travel packages to attract these typically high-spending travelers. One of the top destinations for an Islamic tour is Jordan, which was the first land where Islam spread outside the Arabian peninsula.

Afanah Z. Afanah, Area Marketing Manager, Jordan Tourism Board

14:00 PM - 14:30 PM

Indonesia Destination Showcase: Targeting $126 billion Muslim tourism market with cultural changes

Indonesia is the world’s largest archipelago country with a population of around 250 million with 88 percent of them are Muslim, making Indonesia the country with the world’s largest Muslim population. With that in mind, Halal Lifestyle is already in Indonesia’s DNA. Furthermore, Indonesia has more than 17,000 islands, making Indonesia rich in natural and cultural attractions with more than 300 tribes that makes Indonesia rich in ethnicity and cultural diversity.  The wide variety of tourism attractions in Indonesia are surely supported with activities and facilities that are Muslim – Friendly. 

The wide variety of tourism attraction makes Indonesia suitable to be visited by Muslim Tourists from various countries where each tourist has their own unique needs and preferences. Muslim tourists from various countries can choose which destinations are suitable according to their respective preferences in the Top 10 Indonesian Halal Tourism Destinations. Ultimately, Muslim Tourists are able to immerse in a truly unique and memorable experience that Indonesia has to offer through a wide array of Halal / Muslim-friendly tour packages provided by various travel agents in Indonesia.

Riyanto Sofyan, Chairman of Team for Accelerated Development of Halal Tourism of the Ministry of Tourism of the Republic of Indonesia, Ministry of Tourism of the Republic of Indonesia

14:30 PM - 15:00 PM

Japan Destination Showcase: Making Muslims feel at home

SPEAKERS:

• Susan Maria Ong, MICE Director, Asia Pacific, Japan National Tourism Organization Singapore Office
• Khamisah Salamat, Product Planner / Japan Specialist, X-Trekkers Adventure Consultant Pte Ltd

16:00 PM - 16:30 PM

Addressing Muslim traveler’s anxieties & developing Muslim-friendly travel packages

A common mistake that happen in halal tourism today is that service operators thinks that Muslim travellers are all the same. This is a misconception where the Muslim travellers are not supposed to be generalised. They are definitely not the same although some fundamentals are being shared. There are at least six different groups of Muslims around the world and it is good to know them all; well, almost. Catering to Muslim needs is not as difficult as it seems to be. This session will be beneficial for service operators to learn about the different needs of different groups of Muslims from around the world based on their school of thoughts, culture, environment, inter alia.

Azlan Oppier, CEO, Halaltalk

16:30 PM - 17:00 PM

09:00 AM - 16:00 PM

ACTE Education Forum by ACTE

Session 1: NDC and the Evolution of Air Distribution: 5 Considerations for Your Travel Program

The way corporations buy air travel is changing. It has been said that NDC (New Distribution Capability) will transform the way air products are delivered to companies, leisure and business travellers.  For corporate travel managers, this presents a considerable challenge, with immediate and long-term implications. This session will explain NDC, and explore the findings from recent global research by ACTE and Amex GBT into travel manager attitudes towards NDC. This research provides five considerations that travel managers may wish to focus on to address cost visibility and the traveller experience.

Session 2: The way forward to future proof your travel program

There’s more to just savings to build a lasting and effective travel program. With stronger emphasis on internal efficiencies and productivity, coupled with the changing workforce, technology should be in the forefront of your travel program to make it more accessible and efficient. What sort of technology should you be embracing? How should you prepare your organization for this change?  In this session, our panel of travel managers will share real accounts of how technology has helped to future-proof their travel program, the challenges encountered in driving adoption of technology and managing change.

Session 3: Foster employee engagement, growth, and belonging, even at work

The nature of work and the workforce in this new economy is changing. In this new work world, how can organisations foster engagement, growth, and belonging, even at work. This is especially important to business travelers who form a big population of the workforce for many organisations. How can companies give business travelers a chance to live in a city when traveling for work?

Halal in Travel – Asia Summit 2018 by CrescentRating

The third Halal in Travel Asia Summit will focus on “Innovation & Technology in the Muslim Travel Space”.

This year’s conference sees the release of the Mastercard-HalalTrip Digital Muslim Travel Report (DMTR) 2018. Expect insights and in-depth analysis into the Muslim travel behavior when it comes to trip planning research and engagement in the digital space. Find out if your service is digitally enabled to cater to this billion-dollar market. In line with this year’s theme, experts on the subject will touch on their industry experience and how innovation will continue to affect their interaction with Muslim travelers.

• Launch of the Mastercard-HalalTrip Digital Muslim Travel Report (DMTR) 2018
• Spotlight: 10 Key Trends of 2018 in the Muslim Travel Market
• Converse with HalalTrip's Farah (The AI Chatbot) - the world's first chatbot in the Muslim Travel segment launched in November 2017.

10:30 – 10:45: Latest insights on the Muslim Travel Market

Fazal Bahardeen, CEO of CrescentRating will set the stage for the panel discussions by addressing the latest insights on the Muslim Travel market.

Fazal Bahardeen, CEO, CrescentRating and Halal Trip

10:45 – 11:05: Launch of the Muslim Travel Report by MasterCard and Halal Trip

CO-PRESENTERS:

• Raudha Zaini, Marketing Manager, HalalTrip
• Aisha Islam, Vice President, Consumer Products, Southeast Asia, Mastercard

11:05 – 11:25: In the Spotlight: A One on One Interview

• Rafat Ali, CEO/Founder, Skift
• Moderator: Fazal Bahardeen, CEO, CrescentRating and Halal Trip

11:25 – 11:55: Panel: Going Digital: How Online Has Shaped Muslim Travel Behavior

Panellists:

• Aisha Islam, Vice President, Consumer Products, Southeast Asia, Mastercard
• Sujimy Mohamad, Marketing Consultant & Content Creator, Screenbox
• Neollene, Filmmaker and Photographer, @neollene

Moderator:

• Barkathunnisha, Principal Consultant, Elevated Consultancy and Training

11:55 – 12:05: Investing in Halal Travel

Chris Nader, Vice President, Shaza Hotels

12:05 – 12:20: Network break

12:20 – 12:30: 10 Key Halal Travel Trends 2018 by CrescentRating

Fazal Bahardeen, CEO, CrescentRating and Halal Trip

12:30 – 13:00: Panel: What’s Next? Developing the Halal travel market in the service & destination sectors

Panellists:

• Carel Stadler, Trade & Partnership Manager, Cape Town Tourism
• Chris Nader, Vice President, Shaza Hotels
• Riyanto Sofyan, Chairman, Team for Accelerated Development of Halal Tourism Indonesia

Moderator:

• Fazal Bahardeen, CEO, CrescentRating and Halal Trip

13:00 – 13:20: Converse with HalalTrip's Farah (The AI Chatbot)

13:20 – 13:30: Muslim Travel Trivia

Stand to chance to win attractive prizes