PREDSEDOVANJE EU 2008 EU Presidency 2008 PREDSTAVITEV ...

EU Presidency - Finland
Oh, what a Circus …
Ever wondered what
it’s like to organise
the meetings when you
country holds the EU
presidency? Leena Sipilä
thought she knew all
there was to know about
conferences until she
took on the job for
Finland’s six months
in the hot seat.
Leena Sipilä, now back at her desk
at the Helsinki City Tourist &
Convention Bureau, had spent
25 years in meetings management
before she was invited to join the
secretariat responsible for the
technical meeting preparations
for Finland’s EU presidency. This
involved moving to the prime
minister’s office in September
2005 to plan the 140 official
meetings Finland would host
during the second half of last year.
“I thought I knew everything about
conference and event
organisation,” says the former
conference director at the Marina
Congress Centre in Helsinki, head
of the congress department at
Tampere Hall and PCO before
joining the convention bureau.
“But I was very surprised
to discover that governmental
meetings were so different and
so complex. I was excited but
incredulous at the same time!”
particularly so, but it was another thing getting to grips with the
hierarchies, the fixed behavioural patterns, the accreditation (never
registration) of delegates, the badging system, the demands made of
hotels and the requisites for selecting venues, even down to ensuring
the set-piece “family photo” was taken at every meeting.
“I feel I know the dimensions of every flat floor space in the country,”
she laughs. “Conference halls, sports halls, old factories…We used
21 different cities in Finland because every minister hosting a meeting
wanted to show off his home town. It was like a huge travelling circus.
Some hotels had to be upgraded or bring in extra furniture or we had
to train them in things like 24-hour room service. There were also
delegations from countries outside the EU and some heads of
government had their own chefs who brought everything in by private
plane, which had to land somewhere, and then took over kitchens.
Generated revenue
“The security was massive. Everybody in every venue was checked by the
police, we had our own security people as well as those who travelled with
ministers and all material was security classified – certain documents
couldn’t be sent by email so we had to use old-fashioned messengers.
“Even sourcing gifts wasn’t always straightforward as public tenders
had to be put out to every EU country, mainly through the European
Commission official newspaper, to ensure fair competition among all
suppliers. There were also clear criteria about the value of the gifts
depending on the meeting. The tax payers of the host country foot the
bill, of course, and it’s an expensive business. On the plus side, while
making our final report, we collected statistics on the revenue
generated - based on the number of overnights during the six months
for 23,000 delegates and other income - which was certainly good
for the country.”
21 different cities
As head of meeting arrangements,
she was part of a team of 28
people which grew to 40 during
the presidency. She knew protocol
would be important and security
Delovna večerja v Lahtiju. • Working dinner in Lahti.
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