The Practical Guide to Organising Events

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, The Practical Guide to Organising Events ultimately makes the business of events management appealing, understandable and achievable.

Philip Berners graduated with a degree in hospitality management from the University of West London where he later returned as a lecturer in events management. He is presently teaching events management and researching for his doctorate on the development of the events industry in a post-communist society: a case study of Poland. Philip spent ten years in Poland as an events consultant and founded an events training school in Warsaw. He also taught event management for Collegium Civitas University at the Palace of Culture and Science. Philip has organised every genre of event in the UK, Italy, Portugal and Poland; he was venue manager at the London Hippodrome, Camden Palace and Thorpe Park; and he has been the in-house event manager for corporations including the Daily Mail Group. His client portfolio includes the Queen, Prince Charles, Bon Jovi, Shania Twain, Jennifer Lopez, The BRIT Awards, MOBO Awards, The Publican newspaper, London Fashion Week, the British Red Cross, Xerox, Virgin Atlantic, British Airways, Formula 1, Panasonic, Max Power magazine, PC Zone magazine, Alternative Hair Show, Kent Institute of Art and Design, Schweppes and Diageo. Philip's qualifications are as follows: Bachelor of Arts Degree in Hospitality Management; City and Guilds in Hotel, Catering and Institutional Management; Postgraduate Certificate in Academic Practice; Fellowship of the Higher Education Academy; and he is about to commence his PhD.

List of contributors Preface Acknowledgements PART 1 Introduction 1 The culture of events 1.1 Developed markets 1.2 Undeveloped and developing markets 1.3 Sustainable events 2 The structure of events 2.1 Types of event 2.2 Sectors of the event industry 2.3 The structure of an event 3 The role of the event organiser 3.1 Types of event organiser 3.2 The 'real' event manager 3.3 The 'real' client 3.4 Risk and control 3.5 Staffing PART 2 Management pre-event 4 The enquiry to confirmation stage 4.1 Enquiry 4.2 Brief 4.3 Proposal 4.4 Budget proposal 4.5 Confirmation 5 Management of the lead-in 5.1 Lead-in 5.2 The venue 5.3 Marketing 5.4 Funding 5.5 Theme 5.6 The client file 6 Catering and beverages 6.1 Catering 6.2 Beverages 7 Client liaison and communications 7.1 Tickets and invitations 7.2 Client liaison 7.3 Event checklist 7.4 Administration checklist 7.5 Production companies PART 3 Management on-site: operational event management 8 Event organiser responsibilities 8.1 Checking 8.2 Hosting 8.3 The running order 8.4 Sequence 8.5 Production office 8.6 Rehearsal 8.7 Caterers 8.8 Theme and decoration 8.9 Entertainment riders 8.10 Staff briefing 8.11 Pre-event briefing 8.12 On-site briefing 8.13 Security 8.14 Final walk-round 8.15 Fire, health and safety 8.16 Aesthetics 8.17 The front door 8.18 Cloakroom 9 Inside the event 9.1 The guest experience 9.2 The press 9.3 Event photography 9.4 De-rig 9.5 Get-out PART 4 Management post-event 10 Debriefs and reports 10.1 Debriefs 10.2 Complaint handling 10.3 Guest feedback 10.4 Final report 11 Case studies Case study 1 by Philip Berners: Garden party hosted by Queen Elizabeth II, Windsor Case study 2 by Philip Berners: Artist and VIP hospitality at The BRIT Awards Case study 3 by Philip Berners: Worldwide launch of the Bon Jovi album, Crush Case study 4 by Chantal Dickson: The 2014 Tour de France Grand Départ Leeds Case study 5 by Paul Glover: A circus celebration event in London Case study 6 by Ariane Lengyel: Grand party at the Palace of Versailles Case study 7 by Amira Malek: Reflections on graduating with an events management degree Case study 8 by Dr Evangelia Marinakou: An international IT conference in Greece Case study 9 by David Titley: Reflections of studying for a degree in events management 12 Event management as a career choice 13 The author's career path 13.1 Author's eventography Appendices I Event enquiry form II Example sponsor package III Event checklist IV Administration checklist V Example function sheet (running order) VI Final report Glossary of technical terms Index