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CHAPTER 5

EVENT
PLANNING
What is planning?
Planning
 In its simplest form, the planning
process consists of:
 establishing where an organization is at
present;
 where it is best advised to go in the future;
and
 the strategies or tactics needed to achieve
that position.
Planning
 In other words, the planning
process is concerned with end
results and the means to achieve
those results.
Planning
 To engage productively in the
planning process, an event manager
needs to keep a range of matters in
mind.
Planning
 Central among these matters are the
need to:
 monitor and evaluate progress;
Planning
 Central among these matters are the
need to:
 coordinate decisions in all areas so event
objectives are progressed; and
Planning
 Central among these matters are the
need to:
 communicate with, inspire and motivate those
responsible for carrying out the various
elements of the plan.
Planning for events
Where does the event
planning process
begin?????
Planning for events
 Depends on whether the event is being conducted for the
first time or if it is a pre-existing event.
Planning for events
 In the case of a new event, the event manager may be
required to first work through the broad concept of the event
with key stakeholders and then undertake a feasibility study.
If this study shows that the event is likely to meet certain key
criteria (such as profitability), they would then move to
develop a plan for its creation and delivery.
Planning for events
 In instances where an event is pre-existing and open to
the bidding process (for example, a conference or sporting
event), an initial decision needs to be made as to whether
(after a preliminary investigation) it is worthwhile making a
bid or proposal.
Elements of the strategic event
planning process

 Concept or intent to bid


• In the context of new events, this stage involves
making decisions (often in consultation with major
stakeholder groups) concerning such matters as the
type/form of the event (for example, festival, parade),
duration, location/venue, timing, and key programme
elements that will serve to make the event unique or
special.
Shanghai Tourism Festival 2015
Elements of the strategic event
planning process

 Feasibility study
• Before committing to an event, its organizers need to
determine how feasible or otherwise it would be to
conduct that event.
• There are many considerations that may be taken
into account in conducting a feasibility study.
• These may include (depending on the event) likely
budget requirements; managerial skill needs;
venue capacities; host community and
destination area impacts; availability of
volunteers, sponsors and etc.
Elements of the strategic event
planning process
 Bid preparation
• This step is required in instances where it is decided to
bid for an existing event based on the outcomes of a
feasibility study.
Elements of the strategic event
planning process
 Decision to proceed or cease
• In the case of new events, the outcomes of the
feasibility study will directly determine if and when the
event will proceed. In the case of events involving a
bid, this decision will depend on whether a bid is
accepted or rejected.
Establishment of organizational
structure
 Following the decision to proceed with an event, an
organizational structure will need to be created through
which the event can be delivered.
o Simple structures
o Functional structures
Establishment of organizational
structure
 Simple structures
o A simple structure has a low level of complexity. All
decision making is centralized with the event manager,
who has total control over all staff activities.
Establishment of organizational
structure
 Functional structures
o A functional structure departmentalizes (that is, groups
related tasks) in a way that encourages the
specialization of labor (paid/voluntary). Benefits of this
form of structure are that individuals or groups (such
as committees) can be given specific task areas, thus
avoiding any overlap of responsibilities.
Developing a strategic plan

 Once it has been decided to proceed with an event, or a


bid has been won, the event manager moves on to
develop a strategic plan to guide their next stage of
decision making.
 Purpose, vision and mission statements
o At a minimum, a clear statement of purpose and vision
should underpin every event.
o This statement in turn will be conditioned by the needs
of the various stakeholder groups with an interest in the
event. Such groups may include client organizations, the
local community, government at various levels, potential
attendees and participants, sponsors and volunteers.
 Goals and objectives
• Once an event’s mission has been decided, the event
manager must then move on to establish the event’s goals
and/or objectives. Goals are broad statements that seek
to provide direction to those engaged in the organization
of the event.
 Objectives should be:
o specific: focused on achieving an event goal (or, if no
goals have been developed, its purpose)
o measurable: expressed in a way that is quantifiable
o agreeable: agreed on by those responsible for achieving
them
o realistic: in terms of the event organization having the
human, financial and physical resources to achieve them
o time specific: to be achieved by a particular time
Example: Sea Britain 2005

 To raise awareness of Britain’s maritime and coastal


heritage

 To encourage participation in maritime sport and leisure


activities

 To promote the UK coast and its islands as a tourism


destination, and travel by sea for European visitors

 To promote an understanding and involvement with the


marine environment and marine conservation
Situational analysis
 A useful process that can be employed to gain a detailed
understanding of an event’s internal and external
environment (or surroundings) is strengths, weaknesses,
opportunities and threats (SWOT) analysis or, as it is
sometimes called, a situational analysis.
 The external environment is usually assessed first, and
consists of many factors, such as; political/legal;
economic; socio-cultural; demographic, competitors; and
physical/environment
The main factors include:
 Political/legal: The decisions made by all levels of
government become laws or regulations that affect the
way in which people live in a society.
 Economic: Economic factors such as unemployment,
inflation, interest rates, distribution of wealth and levels
of wages and salaries can impact on the demand for
events.
 Social/cultural: Changes in a population’s
ethnic/religious make-up or leisure behavior can act to
influence event demand.
The main factors include:
 Demographic: The composition of society in terms of
age, gender, education and occupation changes over
time.
 Competitive: Other events that attract a similar
audience need to be monitored.
 Physical/environmental: Concern over such matters
as pollution and waste generation within the broader
community is affecting the way in which events are
conducted.
 Thorough scanning of the full range of factors that
make up the external environment will reveal the
event’s target market(s), its range of activities,
and opportunities for promotion, sponsorship
and fundraising. Similarly, threats to the successful
operation of the event can also be identified.
 When the analysis of the external environment is
complete, the next step in the strategic planning
process is to undertake an internal analysis of
the event organization’s physical, financial,
informational and human resources in order to
establish its strengths and weaknesses.
Identification of strategy options
 The environmental scanning process gathers crucial
information that can be used by the event manager in
selecting strategies to achieve the event’s vision, mission
or purpose.
 Strategies must use strengths, minimize weaknesses,
avoid threats and take advantage of opportunities that
have been identified.
Strategy evaluation and selection
1. Appropriateness/suitability – strategies and their
component parts should be consistent.
2. Feasibility – the proposed strategy should be feasible.
3. Acceptability/desirability – strategies should be capable
of achieving the event’s objectives.
Event evaluation and feedback
 Evaluation is a neglected area of event planning; yet, it
is only through evaluation that event managers can
determine how successful or otherwise their efforts
have been in achieving whatever objectives were set
for the event.
 It is also through this means that feedback can be
provided to stakeholders, problems and shortcomings
of the planning process can be identified and
improvements suggested if the event is to be repeated.

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