ORGANISING A CONFERENCE

A multinational is choosing the best location for its next sales conference

Global Food and Drink Corporation (GFDC), a multinational company based in Dubai, is holding an international conference later this year. The Chief Executive, senior managers from the head office and about 100 managers from its overseas subsidiaries and sales offices will attend. The aims of the conference, in order of priority, are to:

• discuss how the company can improve its products and services; 

• thank managers for their hard work;

• give managers the opportunity to get to know each other better.

The conference will take place in July. Participants arrive on Thursday evening, have a free day on Friday and leave on Monday morning. The budget is $4,000 per participant.

Listen to two colleagues in the marketing department discussing the planning of the conference. Make notes about the key features the conference location must have.

TASK

You are members of GFDC’s marketing department.

1 Work in small groups. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of each hotel as the venue for the conference.

2 Rank the hotels 1–4 (1 = the most suitable hotel for the conference, 4 = the least suitable).

3 Meet as one group and listen to each other’s ideas. Make your final choice. Take a vote if necessary.

As Chief Executive of GFDC, write an e-mail inviting the overseas sales managers to attend this year’s conference. Inform them of the dates, the purpose of the conference and the details of the location.