Policies, Procedures and People

A recent topic of discussion in my financial management class was that of policies and procedures.  Although our focus was on financial policies and procedures, I couldn't help but think of the number of times I was in a situation where had proper consideration been given to creating policies and procedures for people much confusion could have been avoided.

As I have discussed communication previously I wanted to touch on the fact that taking the step of creating actual documentation of processes to follow and sharing it with the appropriate parties is by far the simplest way to decrease on event confusion.  From my experience an area where this is often over looked is when it comes to people (volunteers specifically) on event.

The best part of policies and procedures is that they do not have to be neither fancy or include high level technical language. Simply answering the following questions gives you a great base to go from:

1. Who will play a role on event? (i.e. staff, volunteers, suppliers, etc.) 
2. What tasks are to be completed? (i.e. set-up, tear down, cleaning, crowd control, supplier management, etc.) 
3. What steps needs to be followed for successful completion of each task?

Once these questions are answered, align the person responsible with the tasks to be completed and assign a time line for completion of specific tasks.  Taking this one step further and identifying for each individual what they should move on to upon completion of their task (if their shift on event is longer than what they were assigned) helps to keep them engaged and focused.  If this document is accessible to everyone, expectations are clear and people can be managed and moved from one task to another as the event demands.  

I recognize this is a very simple way to consider the management of individuals on event, but why make it more difficult than it needs to be? I am still building up my experience of course and would appreciate any input from those with more experience than I on what you have found to be successful in this area. 

Supporting Events with Great Files

When creating an event one feature that helps to ensure smooth execution is your supporting files.  How you collect and organize your information can affect the overall experience you have with your event. The event management industry is ever changing, you need to be able to look at your information quickly to make fast and accurate decisions.

Now before I get in too deep here, you may be asking exactly what type of files I am referring to.  Some supporting files can include (but not limited to):

• registration (either ones you create or how the software you utilize organizes information) 
• vendor contact information 
• sponsorship 
• critical path 

If your files are clear and well organized it will allow you to determine the progress of your event, give updates to your client with ease and generally save you time and frustration.  This may seem straightforward, but when you get busy with an event it can be difficult to take that time in the beginning and think about the most effective way to organize your information.  

A few small things to do to help your files stay organized (even if you aren't an excel wiz!):

Create your documents before you start putting in information.  When you take down information for the first time into a Microsoft Excel document for example you aren't really thinking about how you will be utilizing it later on, so building a document around this first take can result in difficult formatting changes later.  Often  there is a lot of information that is great to know and have on hand, but consider what is going to be the most important feature you will be looking at when using that document, make it your starting point and organize your file accordingly.

If creating a document in Microsoft Excel utilize all the features to their full potential.  If you have a long list of suppliers for the various aspects of your event a simple sort and filter can allow you to jump easily through the list.  Additionally, formatting a contact list of participants in such a way that e-mails of those confirmed are exported to one sheet and e-mails of those still on the fence go to another allows you to send mass e-mails to these separate groups without any frustration.  As a bonus, this list is automatically updated as you change their status in the main document!  (TIP: Google is your best friend when it comes to learning how to use Excel functions, there are tons of easy and straightforward videos to show you anything you want to do!) 

And lastly, make it look nice.  There is nothing worse than having stress of an unorganized file add to the craziness that event planning can already be.  Adding your favourite colour here and there can just simply be relaxing.  

If you are having trouble getting organized I'm always willing to give any suggestions I can.

Good luck!