DMC Vekol today has an impressive portfolio of hundreds of loyal clients, including dozens of the biggest names in the corporate world, such as STADA, Deutsche Telekom, Walt Disney, KPMG, Microsoft etc., and has received numerous international accolades
It was almost 25 years ago that Tanja Bogdanov embarked on an uncertain adventure as a pioneer on the market of receptive business tourism in Serbia, today her DMC Vekol is recognised as company that has the power to influence the MICE landscape in Serbia and beyond.
You’ve amassed a valuable “collection” of awards and accolades over the course of your career, but this latest one – that saw you declared “The Most Influential Person of 2022” – is nonetheless something special, right? Congratulations!
Thank you. This flattering title and confirmation arrives just in time to wrap up a very important career stage in my life, in which I started to receive wide appreciation as a professional in Southeast Europe.
Being officially recognised as someone who has the power to influence the MICE landscape in Serbia and beyond comes as a great honour, but one with even greater responsibility. Leading one of the very few destination management companies that has made it all the way through the pandemic, I recently met growing interest in telling the world my business story and sharing some valuable learning outcomes and life lessons.
You had an enviable career at a large company. What compelled you to wade into entrepreneurial waters and become one of the pioneers of receptive business tourism in Serbia?
I started my career in a large telecommunications system – which served as a great stepping stone for a young and ambitious lady in the business world. That was a very comfortable position, perhaps even too comfortable for my taste. I very soon felt the urge to pursue my drive for entrepreneurship and felt a need to own my decisions – with all the risks and rewards that entails.
Variety is powerful and a supportive working environment that resonates with your personal values and beliefs represents an endless source of new ideas
And so it was that, almost 25 years ago, I embarked on an uncertain adventure, pioneering the market of receptive business tourism in Serbia, which was then just emerging – learning, growing and progressing with it. Despite of all the bumps in the road, I never regretted it – DMC Vekol today has an impressive portfolio of hundreds of loyal clients, including dozens of the biggest names in the corporate world, such as Deutsche Telekom, Walt Disney, KPMG, Microsoft etc. and, just like you said, I have received numerous international accolades.
The organisation of congresses and large business events for multinational companies is the most challenging job in tourism. Does this mean that business guests are the most valued tourists in developed countries?
Large scale business gatherings are rightfully considered the crème de la crème of international travel. On average, a typical business tourist usually spends between 1,000 and 2,000 euros per day on a destination. This fact alone answers your question.
Do you believe in the development opportunity of congress tourism in Serbia? Do you believe it has the potential to become one of the main drivers of the national economy and thus deserves to be in the national strategic focus?
Serbia is at the very beginning of its life cycle as a modern business destination; it has only just emerged on the international market. I deeply believe that congress tourism, together with an entire chain of MICE-related industries, is on its way to becoming one of the main drivers of our economy and that, as such, it deserves to be in the national strategic focus.
I would like to see the MICE industry being perceived as creating new business opportunities and supporting the local economy, rather than a wasteful, showy distraction for wealthy companies.
For those of us who are not from the profession, the hybridisation of business tourism is a new term, while you realised your first hybrid event way back in 2011. What kind of events and formats does this relate to?
People often tend to evangelise new trends, but at DMC Vekol we entered hybrid mode long before it became a necessity – from advanced mobile apps that helped us design virtual event experiences from scratch to webcasts, live streaming etc.
The MICE industry is creating new business opportunities and supporting the local economy, rather than being a wasteful, showy distraction for wealthy companies
The outbreak of the pandemic only compelled us to accelerate our digital makeover and go one step further by experimenting with the fully online layout of events. In short, events and experiences are no longer bound by physical spaces and we help clients create the unique audience journey that will grow their revenue through the power of experience design.
Despite the advance of technology, you still believe that an idea forms the basis of everything and that creative and dedicated people are the greatest asset of any company, particularly those companies that deal with communications?
Reinvention is what keeps the classics alive. Destination management is a multidisciplinary field and just like in any other service-oriented industry, human talent is key. My core commitment is to push beyond mediocrity – and we do that by hiring only the best and most diverse talent out there. Variety is powerful and a supportive working environment that resonates with your personal values and beliefs represents an endless source of new ideas.
After working for more than 20 years, you’ve also introduced something new: consulting services in the field of business event organisation. That will serve to fortify your market leadership position, but will it also create some new business opportunities?
DMC Vekol Consultancy® is a natural extension to the 25 years of cross-functional experience we have in business travel and a strong solution-oriented mindset that has kept us in the game to this day. Together with my experienced and well-trained team, I offer guidance and actionable solutions to the problems that companies in this or related industries may face in obtaining their ROI and further developing their business processes. Having worked closely with Fortune 500 companies, we offer a “bird’s eye view” into a client’s event, suggest adjustments that will help them take full advantage of different perspectives and a better understanding of their own needs.