Performance & People Take Centre Stage at 2025 MIA Conference

The Meetings Industry Association (MIA) has unveiled the full program for its 2025 annual conference, themed "Equipped to Excel" a forward-thinking event designed to deepen the industry's focus on two critical organisational success drivers: people and performance.

Opening the day will be former RAF combat helicopter pilot Sarah Furness, who will explore how resilience and high performance can be taught and built under pressure, a lesson learned firsthand during Special Forces missions in Iraq and Afghanistan. Olympic gold medallist Ben Hunt-Davis MBE will tackle performance mastery, sharing the transformative mindset behind the GB Men's Eight rowing team's turnaround at the Sydney 2000 Olympics, centered on his hallmark question: “Will it make the boat go faster?”.

Closing the conference, TV presenter and award-winning speaker Dr Jaz Ampaw‑Farr will speak on ‘re-storying’ professional journeys, infusing humour and lived experience to inspire delegates to step boldly into change and leave “10% braver”.

As MIA Chief Executive Shonali Devereaux explains: “Equipped to Excel is about more than inspiration, it’s about action… addressing our most pressing people and performance challenges”. The one-day conference will run from 09:30 to 16:15 on 6 November, at The Belfry Hotel & Resort, leading into the evening’s miaList awards ceremony.

Author: Kizzy Allott
Original Source: Event Industry News
Read full link: Performance and People take centre stage at the 2025 MIA Conference