While global disruptions are beyond anyone’s control, associations can help their members ride out tough times by adapting and getting on board with new technology.
This was the main discussion during the Association MICE Symposium 2026 panel titled Navigating Uncertainty – How Associations Are Responding to Industry Disruptions.
Panellists discussed how their associations rose to the challenge of disruptions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Moderated by Eileen Quek, assistant director, sales (international), of Singapore Expo, the panel touched on important ways associations can weather difficult times, with evolution, technology and focusing on their members as key points
Jackson Yeoh, executive director, Pro AVL Integration Association – which represents businesses in the professional audio-visual and lights industry – shared how his association was able to transform the difficulties in his industry into work.
“Disruption is not limiting,” said Yeoh. He noted that when businesses went remote and events were no longer allowed, the association was able to pivot and support the home-based learning and working environments by encouraging their members to provide the necessary audiovisual equipment. This meant they were able furnish businesses, schools and places of worship who needed to reach their audiences online.
Wendy Foo, vice president of the Franchise and Licensing Association, also agreed that associations have to be flexible in order to support their members. She pointed out that while the pandemic changed the nature of events permanently, the role of associations must be to help their members adapt.
One way her association did this was by upgrading their own technical offerings, enabling their website to “matchmake” businesses and investing in AI SEO to make members more searchable online.
Another panellist, Kelvin Chye, IDEM 2026 organising chairman & vice president, Asia Pacific Dental Federation discussed the inevitability of AI permeating their industries.
Chye emphasised tapping into AI as a strategic tool for efficiency, planning, and inventory control, citing concrete event applications like simultaneous lecture translation at IDEM and AI-driven matchmaking for dental businesses.
Overall, all the panellists agreed that industry disruptions and difficult times must be seen as opportunities to rally members together and find ways to protect their interests.
Foo also reiterated the need for associations to understand their members and support them as much as possible, while both Chye and Yeoh highlighted the need to “make friends, not enemies”, and look beyond their shores and support similar associations in the region.
