Organising a conference of any kind is a considerable undertaking and naturally, things don’t always go to plan. However, there are steps that you can take to ensure that your event goes as smoothly as possible…

First of all, consider your delegates. Obviously, you need to be sure that you don’t book a venue that will either be half empty or packed to bursting point. Find out how many delegates plan on attending through a process such as pre-registration.

Think about travel arrangements. Is the company footing the bill for attendees? If not, how accessible is the hotel you have chosen? If you have international delegates, is it near an airport? Can you negotiate a group rate on rooms if they need to stay overnight? Also, be sure that everyone knows where they have to go in advance by providing a fact sheet with travel arrangements/directions and relevant contact numbers.

If you already know your delegates well – e.g. they come from within your company – then think about what kind of conference will best suit them. For example, if you are holding a training event for your sales team, then ask yourself whether they will benefit more from a lecture style event or more practical workshopping and choose the venue accordingly.  If you are holding a regular meeting, such as an AGM, then try not to make it exactly the same as last year’s event, otherwise it will lose momentum and you risk boring your attendees.

Talking the Talk

Guest speakers or trainers need to be thoroughly vetted beforehand. Even if someone is renowned for their published work, this doesn’t mean that they won’t clam up when faced with an audience. Meet up with them before you commit to anything and ask if they have any videos of previous speaking engagements. Also, make sure that you won’t just be getting a standard presentation. Outline your needs and check that they can customise their subject of expertise to meet your particular requirements.

It is also important to ensure that the speakers you choose suit the event’s mood. For example, if you are holding a meeting where serious losses will be announced, then you might not want to hire someone who relies on humour, but rather a speaker who is forthright and to-the-point.

Get Organised

Arranging a conference takes a lot of preparation. Not only do you have to find the venue, but you also have to organise speakers/training and timetable events. As well as this, you also have to make sure that the nitty-gritty details, such as seating plans and catering, will come off according to plan. However, you don’t have to go it totally alone. If you are organised, then you can ensure that everything goes smoothly without resorting to 20-hour days and advanced hair-pulling. If you draw up a plan of everything that has to be done, then you can delegate tasks and give yourself time to concentrate on your other responsibilities.

You could even hire an event manager or an event management company to co-ordinate the whole affair – you tell them what you want, they make their own suggestions and together you will come up with a workable plan; however, you won’t have to do the donkeywork! Your event manager will contact the suppliers, delivery services etc, all while working towards your specifications. This leaves you free to further develop your vision while they worry about the finer details.

The Last Word

Remember, organising a conference doesn’t have to be an arduous chore. Don’t timetable too rigidly, for example. In the real world, things go wrong – planes are delayed, projectors break down. If you prepare for this beforehand – i.e. by giving your plans room for change – then you will find that your event will run a lot smoother…