Since we advised you of the formation of the VMA COVID-19 Crisis Response Sub Committee, the Committee has met twice to discuss and determine actions and priorities of the VMA in assisting the VMA’s Members.
Initially, five tasks have been prioritised and each Committee member has been allocated a taskforce to manage and progress each task. They are:
Advocacy: Brendan Hines, Phil King, and Steve Harper will engage with other relevant industry stakeholders in an effort to collaboratively identify industry protocols that will seek to address potential new ways of operating and that may be used to influence decision makers on the re-opening of venues at the earliest opportunity.
Education: To provide VMA Members with access to on-line learning opportunities. Phil King will be liaising with the Professional Development Committee who are currently working to establish a series of on-line educational webinars across a range of subjects.
2021 Congress: To determine the feasibility of staging a VMA Congress in 2021. Paul Sergeant and David Krug are liaising with the Congress Committee to research the options for a Congress in 2021, when and where it could take place, its duration, content and financial position and also the appetite for members to attend a Congress in 2021.
Allied Members: To engage with the VMA’s Allied Members to understand how the VMA may assist their business’s. Michael Scott and VMA CEO Michael Brierley are undertaking the coordination and delivery of this engagement to solicit information and ensure the VMA can discover any common threads to drive the VMA’s response.
Communication: To communicate relevant and specific information from the COVID-19 Crisis Response Committee to the VMA Membership. Michael Scott and VMA CEO Michael Brierley are undertaking the communication of messaging to ensure the content is thoroughly researched, relevant and specific in relation to commitments being made by the VMA and will adopt an approach of making communications relevant and distributed only when there is something meaningful to convey.
Updates on progress will be made as and when there is information to share on a task-by-task basis. As each of these tasks are completed, the Committee will turn to any other tasks that have been identified in order for us to deal with issues you believe need the attention of the VMA, so please keep providing us with your thoughts.
In closing, the COVID-19 Crisis Committee and Directors of the VMA are extremely mindful of the impact this crisis is having on our industry and the dedicated people and businesses within it. We are grateful for your continued support and send you our best wishes.
PAUL SERGEANT OBE
Chair, VMA COVID-19 Crisis Response Sub Committee