Singapore must strengthen talent pipeline of business events industry to stay competitive: Gan Siow Huang
At the same event, former Speaker of Parliament Tan Chuan-Jin gave practical advice on how leaders in the business events industry can inspire the people they lead.
Minister of State for Trade and Industry and for Foreign Affairs Gan Siow Huang speaking at the Singapore MICE Forum 2026 on Jul 30, 2026. (Photo: CNA/Lim Li Ting)
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SINGAPORE: Singapore must continue to grow its capabilities, including by strengthening its pipeline of talent, to remain attractive as a destination as the business events industry evolves, Minister of State for Trade and Industry Gan Siow Huang said on Thursday (Jul 30).
To do so, the Singapore’s meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions (MICE) industry will need to invest in technology, people and innovation, she said.
Speaking at the Singapore MICE Forum, which was held at the Resorts World Convention Centre, Ms Gan said the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) and the Infocomm Media Development Authority have already developed a digital plan for the MICE industry.
The plan provides practical guidance on digital solutions for the events industry, including the use of artificial intelligence-powered planning tools.
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“Of course, technology is only as good as the people using it,” she said, giving the example of how the Singapore Association of Convention and Exhibition Organisers and Suppliers (SACEOS) has trained around 600 professionals in the industry through certification programmes last year.
She noted that as part of the three-day forum, two of the events will bring students and young professionals together to explore careers in the MICE industry.
“I want to encourage the industry leaders here to please engage our students and help to inspire the next generation of MICE professionals,” said Ms Gan.
Her comments come amid Singapore’s shift in focus towards higher value tourism as part of the Tourism 2040 plan, which was unveiled in 2025.
The plan aims to grow tourism receipts to between S$47 billion (US$36 billion) and S$50 billion by 2040, up from S$29.8 billion in 2024, with business events expected to be a key contributor.
Last year, STB said it aims to triple MICE tourism receipts by 2040.
Giving an update on STB’s efforts, Ms Gan said the board aims to launch a request for proposal for the downtown MICE hub next year.
Located near a potential new cruise terminal, the proposed hub will be an integrated development combining MICE facilities, accommodation, retail, dining and attractions.
It will expand Singapore’s ability to host larger events in the city centre, potentially creating new opportunities for business events in Singapore.
Ms Siow added that STB and SACEOS will launch the next phase of the MICE Sustainability Roadmap, which sets out targets and strategies to raise sustainability standards in the industry.
The roadmap was first launched in 2022, and will now expand beyond environmental sustainability to include social and economic dimensions.
BUILDING GOOD TEAMS
Echoing Ms Gan’s call for industry leaders to spur the next generation of MICE professionals, the forum’s keynote speaker, Mr Tan Chuan-Jin, spoke about the importance of leaders inspiring their teams and gave practical advice on how to do so.
In his speech, he acknowledged that the hardware and software needed to run a business is important, but suggested that leaders should also prioritise the “heartware” – the people.
He said if leaders believe people are the key to an organisation’s success, they must consider how to “inculcate that sense of others” in their staff. Contributing to the community regularly is one way that people can be transformed, he said.
Mr Tan resigned as Speaker of Parliament in 2023 over an extramarital affair with a fellow member of parliament. He is now the founder of payments solutions company APG Pay, and an advisor to some organisations.
His speech and participation at a dialogue session at the Singapore MICE Forum is among the first few public appearances he has made since stepping down.
The dialogue was moderated by SACEOS vice president of community Jasmine Ho.
Referring to his past experience in the Singapore Armed Forces, where he had attained the rank of Brigadier-General prior to joining politics, Mr Tan gave the analogy of military planes and equipment as hardware, and tactics and procedures as the software.
“But ultimately, in order to be able to defend a country, what are we expecting every serviceman and servicewoman to be prepared to do? They need to prepare to lay down their lives,” he said.
That is about sacrifice, putting others before themselves and believing in a cause, said Mr Tan.
He then spoke about the challenge of organising relief efforts for the devastating tsunami that hit Aceh in 2004, where there were national and strategic objectives to consider, as well as the psychological and emotional burden of managing the mass casualties.
“Solving the problems is one part, but I think the big part really is the people,” he said.
Mr Tan said one should not wait till a crisis to build the foundations of a good team, and that efforts to create the right culture and environment should be done during “peacetime”.
“If you don’t have those foundation pieces done, those crises will also potentially tear everything apart,” he said.
To this, the session’s moderator Ms Ho said people in the MICE industry also often have to manage unexpected difficulties on the ground, adding that it is important for foundations to be strong as leaders often need to rely on their events teams to resolve issues.
Agreeing, Mr Tan said that if the dynamics are not positive, there would be a lack of trust.
Mr Tan also addressed a question from the audience about how to align these values across different generations in a workplace setting.
He said the fundamental ideas of being valued transcend age.
“We all would like to be trusted, we all would like to engage, we all would like to feel valued,” he said. “The way we perhaps engage at different age groups might be slightly different, but there’s some things that are quite similar.”
Source: CNA/an(nj)
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