what is event management

1. Lecture 1: What is Event Management?

2. What is an Event?
• An Event is an occurrence happening at a determined
time and place with a start and end date.
• Types of events include weddings, birthdays, corporate
events, profit or non profit events, competitions,
promotional events, conferences, fundraising events,
media events etc.

3. Who is an Event Manager?
• An event manager is someone who is managing an event from
the first initial conversation with the client to the final review
process. Anyone involved directly or indirectly in the
implementation of an event is considered an event manager.
• The reason why everyone in an event company is considered an
event manager is because we want to create a collaborative and
more responsible environment where individuals can act as
generalized specialists which then allows the company to work
in a more efficient manner.

4. Different departments that come
into play in an Event Management
Company
• Front Hand & Back Hand Event Planners
• Marketing Department
• Sales Department
• Accounts Department
• Taxation Department
• Catering Department
• Photography Department
• Vendor Relationship Department
• Client Relationship Department
and many more….

5. Back Hand and Front Hand Event
Planners
Front Hand Event Planner
Front hand event managers are people who tend to manage the
event on floor. They are your first response team. They will be the
first to deal with the client, their guests, and vendor related issues
on site etc.

6. Back Hand and Front Hand Event
Planners
Back Hand Event Planner
Back hand event planners should make sure that reminder calls are
to all the vendors and they communicate while the actual event is taking
place on floor.
They are the organizers of the event and they make sure everything is
going smoothly by making necessary calls and making sure vendors are
showing up on time.
They are supposed to react quickly if there is a crisis for e.g. a vendor
doesn’t show up or if the front hand planner has problematic situation.
They can be the savior and help the entire system come together.

7. Ideal Traits of a Front Hand
Event Planner
• Patience
• Time management skills
• Well dressed
• Well spoken
• Fast reaction time
• Ability to see in the future and plan goals
• Proactive personality
• Attention to detail
• People person and good communication skills
• Ability to lead and manage people
• Ability to calculate and mitigate the risks, and retain the client

8. Ideal traits of a Back Hand
Event Planner
• Organized and respectable
• Ability to react quickly
• Ability to take responsibility for critical decision making
• Pay attention to numbers and statistics
• Ability to read market trends
• Have a clean slate in the market
• Ability to stay up late hours when required

9. Case Study
• Mr. Adam had an event at Golf Midtown Club in which the
generator stopped working. There was a complete black out in
the hall and the entire event went from hero to zero. Mr. Adam
called the owner of the company and started yelling about what
had happened and how the lead event planner had ruined his
event.
• What should the front hand event planer, back hand event
planner, and business owner do in this situation?

10. What should a Front Hand Event
Planner do in this situation?
• The front hand event planner should have been proactive in making sure
the generators have enough fuel from the start of the event. They should
have mitigated the situation by double checking with the vendors that
there is enough fuel to last the event.
• As a secondary mitigation solution they should have 2-3 checkpoints with
the vendors, do rounds of the event to make sure everything is functioning
correctly throughout the event, and always have a backup generator.
• This shouldn’t have taken place in the first place however if this happens
make sure you apologize to the client, be transparent about your plan of
action, and how long it will take to resolve the situation.

11. What should a Back Hand Event
Planner do in this situation?
• The back hand event planner should have mitigated the
situation by making sure the front hand planner had done
their rounds. The back hand planners should make sure
they call the vendor to ask if there is enough fuel available
to last the entire event.
• They should know what type of events are happening
around that specific location so they could call people
within the market to ask them for help.
• Doing all these practices reduces the risk and there is less
damage control taking place at the event.

12. What should a Business Owner do
in this situation?
• Be as transparent as possible
• Apologize for the inconvenience caused
• Listen to what the client is saying
• Analyze the situation
• Get back to them with a plan of action with a realistic
timeframe
• In a time of crisis the owner needs to be patient,
transparent, and honest with the client so you can solve
the matter as quickly as possible

13. How to choose the department of
your choice
• Marketing Department: For people interested in digital
marketing, email marketing, SMS marketing. People with
graphic design background tend to do well here.
• Sales Department: For sales there needs to be a thorough
follow up process. You need to be following up on time with
proper CRM in place to make sure you’re hitting your sales.
• Accounts Department: If you’re good with numbers, are
interested in finance, have good vendor relationships, and
able to manage cash flow coming in and out you will work
better in an accounts department
• Taxation: Someone who is good with laws, numbers,
accounts, and finance can do well here. You need to
understand the laws that come into place within your
geographical location.

14. How to choose the department of
your choice
• Catering Department: People who are passionate about food
thrive here. They should understand how to weigh food, how to
make sure they’re sending the right quantity and quality.
specializations include being a lead chef, QA manager,
who can design the food and cake tables etc.
• Photography Department: You need to have an eye for
photography and videography. Some of the work you will be
doing could be editing, BTS, product photography, photo
bridal photography etc.
• Vendor Relationship: You should be good at understanding
people and able to communicate in an effective manner in
to make them understand the situation in a cohesive
collaborative environment. You should be able to resolve the
conflict in a timely manner and have critical analytical skills.

15. How different departments work
together
• Make sure you try a little bit of everything before deciding
on a specific field. As an event manager you will have an all
around scope of work. You need to understand how
different departments work together in an event
management company.
• When working together an individual can learn a lot
through osmotic communication when they’re sitting
together in a collaborative co-working environment.
• This allows different individuals from different departments
to share their theoretical and practical knowledge which
leads to a more strategic and critical thinking event
planners that can take quick decisions in complex
situations.

16. Different Services in Event
Management
Take a look at DAWAT’s services so you can have an idea
about the different services event management companies
may provide.
https://www.dawatpakistan.com/services/