Practical Guide to Organising Events

<p>The Practical Guide to Organising Events is a short, accessible and practical guide on how to successfully plan and organise a variety of event types in a wide range of contexts. The core sections of the text are logically structured around the key stages of event management – pre-event, on-site and post-event – offering essential practical insight and guidance throughout the whole process. Topics covered include proposal writing, budget, funding and sponsorship, health and safety, security and evaluation. This is a fundamental resource for all events management students running and organising an event as part of their degree programme. It is also a book for anybody who just happens to be tasked with organising an event such as an office party, a social networking event, Christmas party or family wedding. Based on experience, using real-life case studies and anecdotal examples, <i>The Practical Guide to Organising</i> <i>Events</i> ultimately makes the business of events management appealing, understandable and achievable.</p> <p>List of contributors </p><p>Preface </p><p>Acknowledgements </p><p>PART 1</p><p>Introduction </p><p>1 The culture of events </p><p>1.1 Developed markets</p><p>1.2 Undeveloped and developing markets</p><p>1.3 Sustainable events</p><p>2 The structure of events</p><p>2.1 Types of event</p><p>2.2 Sectors of the event industry</p><p>2.3 The structure of an event</p><p>3 The role of the event organiser</p><p>3.1 Types of event organiser</p><p>3.2 The 'real' event manager</p><p>3.3 The 'real' client</p><p>3.4 Risk and control</p><p>3.5 Staffing</p><p>PART 2</p><p>Management pre-event</p><p>4 The enquiry to confirmation stage</p><p>4.1 Enquiry</p><p>4.2 Brief</p><p>4.3 Proposal</p><p>4.4 Budget proposal</p><p>4.5 Confirmation</p><p>5 Management of the lead-in</p><p>5.1 Lead-in</p><p>5.2 The venue</p><p>5.3 Marketing</p><p>5.4 Funding</p><p>5.5 Theme</p><p>5.6 The client file</p><p>6 Catering and beverages</p><p>6.1 Catering</p><p>6.2 Beverages</p><p>7 Client liaison and communications</p><p>7.1 Tickets and invitations</p><p>7.2 Client liaison</p><p>7.3 Event checklist</p><p>7.4 Administration checklist</p><p>7.5 Production companies</p><p>PART 3</p><p>Management on-site: operational event management</p><p>8 Event organiser responsibilities</p><p>8.1 Checking</p><p>8.2 Hosting</p><p>8.3 The running order</p><p>8.4 Sequence</p><p>8.5 Production office</p><p>8.6 Rehearsal</p><p>8.7 Caterers</p><p>8.8 Theme and decoration</p><p>8.9 Entertainment riders</p><p>8.10 Staff briefing</p><p>8.11 Pre-event briefing</p><p>8.12 On-site briefing</p><p>8.13 Security</p><p>8.14 Final walk-round</p><p>8.15 Fire, health and safety</p><p>8.16 Aesthetics</p><p>8.17 The front door</p><p>8.18 Cloakroom</p><p>9 Inside the event</p><p>9.1 The guest experience</p><p>9.2 The press</p><p>9.3 Event photography</p><p>9.4 De-rig</p><p>9.5 Get-out</p><p>PART 4</p><p>Management post-event</p><p>10 Debriefs and reports</p><p>10.1 Debriefs</p><p>10.2 Complaint handling</p><p>10.3 Guest feedback</p><p>10.4 Final report</p><p>11 Case studies</p><p>Case study 1 by Philip Berners: Garden party hosted by Queen Elizabeth II, Windsor</p><p>Case study 2 by Philip Berners: Artist and VIP hospitality at The BRIT Awards</p><p>Case study 3 by Philip Berners: Worldwide launch of the Bon Jovi album, <i>Crush</i></p><p>Case study 4 by Chantal Dickson: The 2014 Tour de France Grand Départ Leeds</p><p>Case study 5 by Paul Glover: A circus celebration event in London</p><p>Case study 6 by Ariane Lengyel: Grand party at the Palace of Versailles</p><p>Case study 7 by Amira Malek<b>: </b>Reflections on graduating with an events management degree</p><p>Case study 8 by Dr Evangelia Marinakou: An international IT conference in Greece</p><p>Case study 9 by David Titley: Reflections of studying for a degree in events management</p><p>12 Event management as a career choice</p><p>13 The author’s career path</p><p>13.1 Author’s eventography</p><p>Appendices</p><p>I Event enquiry form</p><p>II Example sponsor package</p><p>III Event checklist</p><p>IV Administration checklist</p><p>V Example function sheet (running order)</p><p>VI Final report</p><p>Glossary of technical terms</p><p>Index</p>