News on 28 November 2000
Almost 100 people gathered at The Four Seasons Hotel on
London's Park Lane last Friday evening for the inaugural dinner of IFMA's
UK Chapter. The event was essentially a social and networking occasion
with the number of guests from continental Europe emphasising the new
Chapter's intention to look outward.
IFMA's UK Chapter, launched in June, is now 70 strong and
attracting new members at the rate of around 10 a month. Keith Pratt,
President of IFMA UK, says the Dinner will certainly become an annual
event and he expects attendance to double next year.
The organisation is also exploring links with the US and Canada through
the New York and Toronto Chapters of IFMA, said Pratt: "Toronto is
particularly appropriate because it's the venue for World Workplace 2002.
We're looking at joint events and the use of video conferencing. On the
domestic front education and training as well as e-commerce are on the
agenda. I see IFMA as the association which gives an international perspective
and we can exist quite happily alongside national organisations."
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| Left to right: Matthew Jacques, Keith Pratt and Reinhold Wischhof |
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| Keith Pratt, speaking at IFMA UK's inaugural dinner |
Keith Pratt presented certificates to Achiever of the Year Matthew Jacques, Facilities Development Manager with Experian; and to Reinhold Wischhof of Siemens and IFMA Deutschland for their work on promoting European links. The European Link programme, which encourages reciprocal visits by members, now includes France and the Netherlands as well as the UK and Germany.
