A few comments. Read all the answers as you may be inspired by the very latest and I can tell by the quality that every single participant made an effort in writing. I am very happy to finally see event professionals exchanging opinions and talking about their experience, you will notice that we will all benefit from this.

Statistically here is what the majority agreed on:

The first answer is the one that I thought to be the best. Best means more comprehensive and spot on according to my experience. Nonetheless, you might find that other answers are more inspiring that is why I decided to post them all.

Kevin Jurczyk - National Marketing Director at Branstrator Sunrooms and Basement Systems of America says:

1) Excellent time management-

The ability to coordinate not only yourself, but the scheduling of the entire team helping with the event. It’s all about planning, and re-planning and scheduling.

2) Resourcefulness-

In my opinion, this is the most important. With years of experience in events, there is always something that requires a creative fix. Whether it be a piece of tape, or re-working a display because the display across the aisle looks too much like yours. You have to be very resourceful and use what you have. Ability to pool together the individuals you need.

3) Communication-

Share your ideas and your vision openly with your team. Communicate on a level that is respectful to everyone. Do not talk down to anyone, regardless of their role. Everyone has their part and it ultimately leads to your success, make sure you communicate clearly and respectfully. Accept criticism and be open to new ideas.

4) Passion-

Without passion you cannot over come the bumps and triumph when all seems lost. I can train time management, but I cannot teach passion.

5) Strong will, but a level head-

You have to be able to carry out your vision and sometimes crack the whip to get it done. Resolve problems and issues quickly. And you must be able to stand calm at zero hour when something doesn’t go your way. Your team should look to you for everything, the last thing they need is a shaky leader that makes rash decisions because they crack under pressure.

Chris Donahue - Regional Technical Trainer at PSAV - Presentation Services says:

1 - Excellent Time Management
2 - Good Communicator
3 - Attention to detail
4 - Ability to creatively solve probelms
5 - Staying calm at all times

Chris Catoggio - Independent Event Services Professional says:

Probably number 1 is great people skills. The Event Manager needs to be communicative, with the ability to listen and understand what the client is looking to achieve, as well as being able to convey that concept when selecting and negotiating with vendors.

Number 2 is organized. The event manager needs to coordinate a number of responsibilites and manage many teams simultaneously.

Third, an event manager needs to be flexible. In any event, things can and will change with a moments notice. The event manager needs to be able to, for lack of a better word, PUNT.

Fourth, an event manager must be responsible. Regardless of what goes right and what goes wrong, the success of an event, and all it’s coordinates, is the managers responsibility.

Fifth, a successful event manager needs to be enthusiastic and passionate about what they do. Enthusiasm and passion brings about creativity and generates excitement. Maybe, this should be #1!

David Schenberg - CEO Busy Event - a div. of Panamedia says:

1. Treats everyone as a peer and with respect.. even under pressure
2. A level of experience that allows the client to sleep at night
3. Ability to diffuse an explosive situation
4. Extensive network of trusted professionals they can count on
5. Active exploration and listening skills that translate into critical knowledge

Nicole Price - Event Guru at McCormick & Schmick’s says:

I feel very excited to answer this as I just yesterday experienced my *worst* ever customer service experience … with me being the customer.

Therefore, I absolutely stand for the fact that #1 is:

1- Flexibility with respect to understanding your customers’ needs
2- Strong organizational skills AND the ability to communicate them
3- Accessibility - to your customers and colleagues
4- Grace under fire!
5- Excellent, well-trained team to help implement and run the event

In a nutshell … able to achieve just about anything in a New York minute while keeping a smile on my face, managing half a million other items at the same time and making it all look easy.

But it IS easy, right? That’s why we do what we do.

Kevin R. Johnston, CMP - CEO, Advantage Event Group says:

I think there are may attributes that would needed to be successful; here are my Top 5:

1) Blackbelt Contract Negotiator - Ultimately, the event measurement is two fold, satisfaction and budget. A great event with superior satisfaction is often viewed as unsuccessful when the finances are all in

2) Must have a huge rolodex - you cant me a master craftsman in all areas. Having the ability to assemble the right players that will deliver consistently is a must.

3) Must be respected - if a producer is not respected by his boss, peers and contractors, the results may be good, but never great.

4) Must double as a janitor or fireman - often, dealing with cleaning up messes and putting out fires is part of the job. Quickly, quietly and efficiently. Get it done, then get bact to the task at hand.

5) Passionate - if it is just a job or a paycheck any event planner will be viewed as average. The passion to make it more productive, more exciting ,more more more is what drives this business. Other wise we’d all be eating on white table cloths with votive candles and parquet dance floors.

Dare to be different, take calculated risks and make sure that you have a great team that has your back (and you theirs).

Cher Lon Malik - Office Manager Informatica says:

1. Passion
2. Multi- tasker
3. Flexibility - do not freak out — there will be last minute changes always
4. Charisma
5. Approachable

Rohit Kumar - Ph.D. Student at Carnegie Mellon University says:

To add a one more:

Cant do everything yourself: Ability to delegate by trusting people, setting benchmarks (past successful events), sharing vision and establishing feedback channels.

Anuroopa Banerjee Gupta - Marketing Communications expert says:

1. Plans for the best -is well prepared for the worst and equipped to turn around the worst to the best advantage. ( I know of someone who was working on a tradeshow. She got the entire booth set up done till 3 am and when next day she arrived at the booth 30 minutes before showtime she realized the Co. president’s profile shot poster has been posted in a manner that his nose got chopped off- She actually got a 7ft x 3 ft poster mounted before the show- she had an extra poster)
2. Has excellent interpersonal skills
3. Is a great negotiator
4. Has excellent time management capabilities
5. Is a driven go getter, self motivated and never crumbles under pressure

Tushar Panchal - Public Relations, Communications, Branding, Corporate Affairs says:

a) Get the Brief right
b) Know your Consumer
c)Work within budgets
d) Time is crucial
e) Never ever lose control

Michael Miller - Director of Sales & Marketing at Tiki’s Grill & Bar / Holokai Grill says:

1. Understanding and exceeding client goals
2. Plan and execute events so that guest enjoy being at the event
3. Follow through
4. Have a critical eye for details (before, during and after the event)
5. Ability to train and retain great staff.

Laura Rivas - Events and Sales Manager says:

1. Attention to details
2. Good organization skills
3. Flexibility to change
4. Excellent communicator
5. Diplomacy (w/ clients and vendors)

James Minella - Event Operations Director says:

I think, just like any position, each person has to identify their strong points and accentuate those assets while identifying their areas of improvement and addressing those on a daily basis. In general, I would say any successful Event Manager is:

1. Be Extremely organized - overly so
2. Maintain a big picture philosophy at all times, meaning you work on ever detail while keeping in perspective the larger impact and goal
3. Be a good - no great - multi-tasker. To successfully run any program you are going need to ensure that 50 things are getting done at once, whether it’s in preparation or execution of the program.
4. Possess strong interpersonal skills. You need to be comfortable realting to and dealing with high level executives, government officials, vendors, co-workers, sponorsor representatives, customers,supervisors, suppliers, full-time staff, part-time staff and more.
5. Be Creative and Flexible. I think these two go together because in the event business things are always changing. Which requires you be flexible to develop a solution and solution comes about as a result of yoru creativity.

Nicole Bennett - Owner, Perry Consulting says:

1. Knows how to listen to understand - your clients are not in this industry and therefore don’t speak the lingo or know what is available. You have to be able to discern their needs.

2. Flexibility - people don’t like block walls, you have to be able to provide options.

3. Enjoy creative problem solving - no matter how well you plan, something will pop up and you must enjoy being able to solve challenges quickly and with the resources at hand.

4. Time management skills - you should know how to multi-task but you should be able to plan your day in a way that gives you blocks of time where you can focus soley on the project at hand. Your end product will be much more thorough. You should also be organized so you don’t waste time looking for things and reinventing forms/files etc.

5. Industry expertise - your clients come to you because they trust you have knowledge in an area they need guidance. You do your customer and the industry a dis-service if you call yourself an event professional if you don’t have the skills/experience to back it up.

Suzan Patrick - Seasoned Meeting & Event Planner says:

Patience is my number 1. Without it, we don’t belong in this arena.
Flexibility is number 2. There are always going to be “fires to put out”, things that change and people who don’t do what they say they are going to do.
3 Listening skills - it’s one thing to listen - and yet another to hear. Hear what’s said and what’s NOT said.
4 Intuition - I think this goes without say many times, but a keen intuition - being able to foresee things, predict what may need to happen (or not)….is very important.
5 Finally, I would say organizational skills. The best planners I’ve worked for/with are the ones with binders with tabs, sticky notes, checklists, to-do lists, etc. We are a rare breed (and we’re not all Virgo’s)! Planning events requires the ability to think on your feet, but remember it all!

Nicole Jensen - Independent Events Services Professional says:

1 - Fantastic self-discipline. I’m still learning this one.
2 - Expert in listening so that one does not make the event turn out how they want it, but how the client wants. In the long-term this also means market research. Listen to your market and customers.
3 - Flexibility. Management means problem solving. Keep those ideas and options coming!
4 - Time management, naturally.
5 - Personality. You cannot expect to manage people’s “super happy fun times” with a blank character!

Petra Johansson - Independent Events Services Professional says:

In no particular order…

1. Strong organisational skills, ability to multi-task
2. People orientated and approachable
3. Strong communicator
4. Ability to quickly find easy solutions to any problems
5. Have a passion for event organising

Betsy Fowler - Events Services Professional says:

It would seem we all agree you need to be organized and come prepared for the worst. But from step one you need to be able to listen. This will put you in sync with your client and your team and let you stay at least half a step ahead. All that and a sense of humor (and perhaps a little Jimmy Buffett “if we weren’t all crazy we would be insane”) equal a successful event planner

paula entwistle mille - account manager at ketchum says:

besides all qualities related pretty much to working at PR/comm. agencies etc I would add:

-problem solver by nature.
-predict all sorts of problems at the event and look at individual logical solutions to each.
-Know each and every vendor of every little thing to produce even at a personal level.
-creative profile if you are to create the event/the story behind the show and above mentioned characteristics if you are to executive and manage it on the daily basis

Jose Farias - Event resource specialist says:

Learn, Teach, Focus, goal, reward.
To keep relations and create new ones.
to create teamwork with the winning attitude to rice from the competition.

A true leader.

Doyle Slayton - Executive Director & Sales Strategist at SalesBlogcast says:

1. Organized
2. Leadership
3. Steady
4. Creative
5. Connected

Chandrabhan Gupta - Management Consultant & Expert Banks Security says:

1. A great show management skills.
2. On Time Event management skills.
3. Ability to work out and provide best economical infrastructure for the event.
4. A flowless Event coordination skills.
5. A good crowd controller.
Above 5 qualities are required for a successful event manager.

Greg Ruby, CASE CEM CMP - Experienced Event Management Specialist - Baltimore Convention Center says:

1) Be detail-oriented, but don’t sweat the small stuff. Focus on the more important items with the bulk of your work, but do a cursory check on the less important items.
2) Never let them see you sweat! Always remain cool, calm & collected when dealing with other people, while you may be a bundle of nerves on the inside.
3)Have a sense of humor. We are not talking rocket science here. Have fun with the work and the peope you work with, and in most cases they will want to work with you again in the future.
4) Be well connected. You can’t do it all and are going to need help. Have names in your rolodex of people who can help you.
5) Think outside the box. Just because it has always been done that way doesn’t mean that it still has to be done that way. Take risks and be bold.

V I N I T G - ACE / PINNACLE \ MYSTIQUE says:

-Value for money
-Image Enhancement of client
-Crisp & precise time management
-Event Concept to match Corporate goals
-Customized new event -each time

Sanjeev Kotnala - AVP and National Head. Brand Communications. Bhaskar Group says:

SUCCESFUL EVENT MANAGERS are like the events- or alumni of an institute. Its success of their event that get then the tag of being successful and they are as good as the last assignment.

Hence in my view what is needed are
PASSION: The job of event manager at any stage turns out to be a thankless job. The person must have an internal passion and zeal to overcome simple failures and learn fast to be able to work on the newer assignment.

KNOWLEDGE AND BUSINESS SENSE: He must understand the business as well as the covert and the overt business and professional reasons for the event to be happening. And hence must be in a capacity to provide the right input and direction.

SWISSKNEIF: He must be like a multi dimensional multi tasking perosn with no hitch in rolling his sleeves at times to overcome the shortage of resources otr while trying to last minute crisis management.

MANPOWER MANAGER: It’s the main resource that he works with and here his methods to excite motivate or reprimand are essential the tools he plays with. This may in fact be one of the most important factors.

CONSISTENCY-: He moves through a ladder of confidence- trust-faith and respect. And hence he must- do something like he does everything. It holds back any surprises and builds in a level of trust required to have a successful event.

Communication- networking- keeping all on loop- exploitation of the situation are some other factors- but the top 5 in my view have been listed above.

Ramesh Chetwani - SPEX Manager, Informedia India says:

Well, all qualitites mentioned can be rated as Top 5. However, what are the key qualities that will distinguish an Event Manager (EM) with the rest? What are the 5 stars that shine on an EM’s shoulder?

1. Being Pro-active (I was surprised no one mentioned this quality)
2. Intelligent
3. Excellent Salesman
4. Multitasking
5. CRM: Customer Retention Management!

I can back up all with good examples, but then who will finish my book!

Silvia Malesardi - Events management Assistant at Trentino Tourist Board says:

1 a good planner
2 good communication skills
3 playmaker (in relathionships)
4 manage the complexity
5 high self-control

Rita-Eileen Glynn Smith - Marketing, Event Management & Communications Professional says:

I could reiterate what everyone else has stated (and quite nicely I might add), however, I thought I’d have a little fun with this.

You must be psychic – to anticipate what no one else can imagine; You must be modest – there’s no job “too small” that you wont do; You must be clairvoyant – to intuitively understand what hasn’t been communicated or articulated; You must practice magic – because sometimes you’ll be expected to create something out of nothing, and you must like to smile – because come ‘showtime’ – it’s the best feeling ever.

Emma May - Sr. Events Marketing Manager at Athlon Sports says:

Event managers are some of the hardest working people in business today and there are many more than five attributes that make one successful but here are good starts:

1. Strong & pleasant negotiator
2. Extraordinary work ethic and ability to roll up sleeves
3. Always remember who he/she is working for (the client)
4. Calm under pressure/good poker face
5. Detail oriented/good eye for design

Richard O’Malley - Owner-President The O’Malley Project says:

1. Great relationships with quality vendors.
2. The will to get their hands dirty.
3. Motivational.
4. Attentive to the needs of their crews.
5. Desire to create something great, not just get through it.

Jill McClure, CSEP, CMP - Senior Vice President says:

I’ve known many event managers who can organize their way out of a wet paper bag with the lights off. But, these are the qualities that make someone succeed, and not just survive.

1) Understands the business case and financial outcome required for the event
2) Knows how to be a problem solver; events are vehicles for strategic solutions and not just a list of logistics to organize.
3) Provides leadership for the entire team including vendors, stakeholders, clients, staff, etc.
4) Communicates effectively and delegates efficiently
5) Negotiates with an outcome of fair profits, fair deadlines, and fair expectations for all parties involved.

Christopher Noyes, CMP - Events and Progrmas Director at Greater Reston Chamber of Commerce says:

1. Passion
2. Multi- tasker
3. Flexibility
4. Good with People
5. Resourcefulness

Pai Gee-Janssens - Positively Contributing to a Flatter World says:

Cares about overall quality & event success vis-a-vis all event stakeholders -> including the organising team! (o:
Knows how to prioritise
Thinks on their feet
Great at delegating
Not resistant to doing the dirty work when need-be

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The Cluetrain Manifesto is almost ten years old. I was actually surprised to see it was written in 1999 for two reasons:

- It is amazing to see how it is still relevant to both Internet and businesses. The words of the manifesto sound like a Web 3.0 startup’s mission. They got it right. The people who signed it saw 10 years in advance what was about to happen. Few things are yet to come but I’d bet we’ll shortly experience them.

- Crazy, crazy, crazy. Companies had in front of their eyes the chance to get the most out of the Internet and treat the customer in new, engaging ways. It was there, clearly written and explained. It is SAD to see how only few organizations have embraced these life changing concepts.

The Cluetrain Manifesto is free to read. How the most popular Italian and world’s top 10 blogger, Beppe Grillo, would say, download it, print it and start sharing it around. Give it to your boss, to your colleagues, if possible pass it to the person sitting next to you on the underground.

The Manifesto has a lot of things to say to those involved in events. I went through the 95 Theses and got few that I thought might be of interest.

- Markets consist of human beings, not demographic sectors.
I said before than men are not monkeys. Treating your guests as demographics is a giant step toward looking at them as these animals. The human kind is indeed of the animal genre but of the social one. Social media are a great examples of that. Great conversations, great ideas, great feelings and strong emotions that we wouldn’t otherwise experienced. BarCamp and Unconferences should be the role models of every event manager. Empower and connect, do not try to divide and lead because you won’t be happy with results.

- The Internet is enabling conversations among human beings that were simply not possible in the era of mass media.

What are you doing to allow conversations among the people attending your event. Are you integrating technologies? Are you aware that recruitment now happens on Linkedin? Do you know that there are widgets you can embed in your website to encourage carpooling to your event? Most of the people attending events such as conferences are only interested in networking. Carpooling as well as online forums or wikis enable networking even before the event.

- The inflated self-important jargon you sling around

Be clear, be precise and be real. Rhetoric and Pavlovian stimulus-response tactics belong to the past. It’s good to have demanding attendees because it means they actually care. Talk to them and tell the truth and do not try to persuade. Allow interaction and hold time and space do not try to be the star of the show.

- We are immune to advertising. Just forget it.

How are you talking to your audience. How do you communicate your event. I don’t believe in brochures anymore. Apart from being an environmental disaster (and your customers do care about the environment), I think there are tons of other creative and more engaging ways to get to your audience. Do you have a blog? Have you ever heard of Twitter? Engage, do not try to tell how beautiful your event will be.

- We are waking up and linking to each other. We are watching. But we are not waiting.

There is not much time left. The economy as a whole is changing. As Seth Godin said this week, during recession times the biggest changes happen such as Google did. Change now because it’s not sure you’ll be able to do business tomorrow.

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- How can organized transportation help a corporate event?

Robert Mackasek: Offering transportation to and from an event ensures that guests will arrive on time and avoid travel blunders that can sour an event. Transportation services can also be part of the party theme or branding - guests can be greeted with holiday music, decorations and even a gift presented in the chauffeured car to help get revelers in the mood for the festivities to come.

- Scheduling is important at events, especially when it is being held at a separate venue. Can professional transportation help in this area?

RM: By hiring a transportation service to pick up attendees at a specified time, you can ensure the event starts on time and ends on time. This helps keep the event on schedule and prevents unexpected charges for overtime, extra service or labor costs at the venue. Most transportation vendors can also provide on-site dispatchers upon request.

- For corporate events that are held in large cities with public transportation, what would be the advantage of hiring a private chauffeured sedan service?

RM: Especially in large cities, public transportation may not deliver guests close to the venue. Booking a transportation service prevents the hassle of walking from public transit to the venue, especially in inclement weather. Plus, those who might be tempted to take their own cars avoid parking problems. In the case of multi-location events, relying on public transit to get people from place to place can create unwanted delays, aggravation and even the possibility that some guests lose their way. Hiring a transportation provider guarantees everyone arrives at each location on time and intact.

- A lot of companies serve alcohol at their holiday parties. It would make sense to hire private transportation for those guests.

RM: Exactly. Don’t rely on your guests to act as designated drivers to transport people safely home after a night of celebrating. A transportation service guarantees attendees arrive home safely and without incident. This also helps to protect both guests and the host company from harm and liability. Guests with special needs can also be accommodated safely and easily.

- How do we choose the right one?

RM: If you want to create a unique experience for your guests that starts the minute they embark on their journey, seek out a transportation company that can represent your brand as well as getting passengers from point A to point B. Valera Global specializes in creating customized experiences for event transportation and discerning individual travelers. The company’s Special Events department provides one-on-one support to event planners to help them create, and executive, memorable experiences for their clients.

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What is Openproj?

As for its website

“OpenProj is a free, open-source desktop alternative to Microsoft Project. OpenProj has been downloaded over 150,000 times in the first weeks since it was released and has quickly become one of the most popular open-source applications.”

Now, you can believe me when I tell you I am a busy person and I got no time to waste. I can tell you this software is extremely easy to learn, even if you have no previous experience with project management software. It is a clone of Microsoft Project and it is very intuitive.

Hopefully I convinced you by now. So what you need to do is downloading your free copy of Openproj here. If you’re on Windows download the .zip file, for you Linux mates out there I don’t think you need explanations, just select your platform.

Now you need to download the event template I’ve prepared for you to enjoy. You can find it here.

Now let’s have a look at what you’ll find in the file.

In the starting screen you can edit this column according to your needs. I must say this list is very comprehensive. It has been conceived with two purposes:

- Giving you budget Items to think about

- Clearing the path to create a comprehensive WBS

On the right hand side you can see the Gantt outline which has a preset time interval of 1 day between every item. You can modify that according to your needs and estimates. Very easy to use…

By clicking on the fourth little box on the right you can decide everything about people working in the project. You got cost per hour, emails and you can divide them in groups of competency.

You can also add machinery cost, even though we don’t really need this feature for events.

This section will allow you to easily allocate resources to tasks and then it will automatically compute costs which will appear in your budget…awesome. Change this section according to your needs.

You also got on the sixth little box an automatic WBS… again super easy.

I’ll let you explore the rest of it.

If you have any question either comment on this post or mail me (address on the right column)

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First of all registration is crucial. It helps in several aspects:

• it gives you an idea on how much people will participate to your event

• it gives you a clear picture of the profile of your participant

• it shows you likes and dislikes of the participant

• it could help you with dietary requirements thus avoiding last minute buffet changes

• if automated it could help the participants to start interacting before the event

Anticipation

In order to achieve all these beautiful things I usually apply my rule of registration. It has to be anticipated as much as possible.

All the data that comes with registration are of utmost importance for the event. Moreover, suppliers will ask you definite numbers with an embarrassing anticipation. My idea is that you can pre-sell virtually every kind of event out there. You just need a bit of will and a deep reading of the rules that follow.

Registration Form

The registration form then becomes crucial to guarantee such precious collection. Remember to be specific when you design the registration process and to ask clear questions. Most of the times asking the age is irrelevant, while asking food preference for a conference is a big part of the buffet setting.

Last Minute Registration

Every respectable event has last minute registration. The laggards are part of our life, not conceivable for us control freaks, but they exists and they need to be understood.

Even if you have a 100 people closed and unaccessible conference, the important friend of a friend will show up. Let’s say you’ve printed out all the badges a week ago, that sounds to me like an issue.

Being a man I know how I desperately want to have a badge as all my mates have and I will get really disappointed if I don’t get one.

It is a very good idea to bring a laptop with you and a printer at the registration desk and maybe design a last minute badge dedicated to laggards.

Educate Participants

As a matter of fact you’ll get a scary number of laggards if you do not educate the participants to register as early as possible. The best technique is definitely monetary. Create an early registration and a late registration fee. Increase the gap between the two by a 30% to 50% and you’ll cut dramatically the amount of laggards. Or at least you’ll have the time spent making last minute badges well repaid.

Another advantage is that you’ll have substantial numbers to give to your suppliers.

Lines and Waiting Period

Lines are a pain in the neck and guess what that applies also to your event.

In order to decrease the waiting period substantially, it is well recommended to rehearse the registration process few times.

Once you’ve rehearsed, identify your weaknesses and take action to solve the issues. If you feel that no matter how much you studied the process there will inevitably be long lines, consider some staff going through the lines asking preliminary questions to speed up the process.

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The thing about events is that it may appear that everyone is capable of planning and executing an event. To a certain extent that is the truth. You may in fact notice that several tools of this blog are very easy to use, do not require any particular knowledge or skills.

I have stressed in the past the argument that the events industry is not inaccessible, on the other hand it is quite easy to get in and to quickly obtain responsibility.

Nonetheless, I am convinced that there is a marked line that divides those working in events randomly or amateurs from successful event managers or planners.

I am not talking about motivation and drive, which of course are basic, but there are few characteristics that inevitably single out a professional. I refer to these attributes as the 3 C’s (ok not original but easy to remember) :

- Control

Both internal and external. To me is the most crucial. You are paid to keep things under control for those not able to do so. This is the event manager profession. Under the category I’d put also the ability to make things look great. This is control. It takes few years to develop the skill to look calm when things around are crushing down. And that happens 80% of the times. I do not think this comes with the personality, but instead it is learned in time.

Last night I went to a conference organized by not very experienced but very motivated people. I previously contacted the event manager giving him all the best luck for the event. I also proposed to meet each other as I am a big fan of networking. Once I got there I was greeted by this stressed person complaining of a location issue. I tried to ensure him of the positive vibe I felt but, no way, the stage issues were dominating the night.

My point is that this person had no control of the situation, but most of all he was lacking of self control not recognizing me as a guest and compromising our networking rendez-vous. At the end of the day this can ruin the whole event because, you know what, nobody will remember that wasn’t enough light on the stage. I will personally remember the way I was greeted, although I am sympathetic to the cause, that sticks to my mind as a sticky note glued with potty.

- Charisma

This is the basis for control, but again I am not talking about personality traits. The successful event manager has innate charisma, but I’d like to focus on the ability to know what is right and to convince 3000 people of it. Again such confidence and ability to communicate comes with experience and scientific trial and error.

A charismatic person is able to transmit a sense of immediate security to the client as well as the attendees. In the continuous crisis situation that is whatever event you might be involved in, only few people are able to manage things with confidence. To me that is because they’ve been frustrated many times before. These successful people are now capable of managing their frustration and others’ with confidence because they know what is required at a certain time.

Only charismatic people are capable to give bad news or to say no to clients and still make them feel at ease. Absurdly low budgets are becoming a reality in events, as much as expectations from clients are growing. Sometimes charismatic event managers are capable of filling the holes resulting from tight budgets.

- Connection

Events quickly skim the potential audience singling out interested participants, which will ultimately attend. These people will come to your event with one purpose, the ability to understand that purpose is not a common skill

An event is an expression of collective unconscious. Several hundreds of souls get together all united by one interest, sharing the same ancestral experience of the man. The ability of the successful event manager is to connect with participants and understand the underlying dynamic moving this people. Most of the times this unconscious need is shared by everyone, and you will find yourself looked at in the same way or asked the same question.

I have seen few managers that new exactly what was my request before I even addressed them. This is no statistics but emotional connection.

These 3 C’s are not an argument in favor of experience against education. That would be masochistic given my young age. In fact I am convinced that an attentive culture of marketing, psychology and business could suggest my conclusions, nonetheless I stress experiments and trial and error as the best way to thoroughly understand how to become successful.

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Such need is in fact understandable as events require skills from fairly different areas. In my previous post I was considering to focus on what I can do best and outsource all the rest to someone more expert than I am.

Ok, it is a good point and I still believe in that, but on the other hand, clients expect a wide competence in event managers and being unaware of what budgeting is might be a downfall.

So at some stage I am sure I will consider engaging in a university degree. As a matter of fact, I did my BA and MBA and I feel pretty sick just looking at a uni book and my overall motivation toward the course might be at the lowest.

Thank God we have that thing called the Internet and I thought about Online courses. Online courses in fact might be a great solution for the ridiculously busy life of an event planner. You can find quality education when and where you want.

Should I fell in love with a subject, I could commit on a more serious online degree. But I reckon the online feature is what motivates more toward education. I am sure that everyone engaged in events shares with me the thought that there is never enough time, no matter how organised you are. Nonetheless, in events you’d want to be ahead of the game and competitive.

Online education seems to offers a clear solution to such chronic lack of time while still delivering on quality requirements.

I’d be very interested to hear some experience and maybe review of good options everywhere in the world as this blog is read from Malaysia to Canada, so just write me or comment if you feel you can contribute.

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So I decided to have a look around. Bought few books, saw few websites of famous planning agencies and tried to put few ideas down. After that I thought that my blog could have been of great use to help me in organizing my thoughts and maybe share some tips.

Therefore here are the thirst thoughts I had about running an event management company:

> I need to find my specialty. I’ve organized disco nights and congresses with up to 300 delegates. These are my specialties. Nonetheless, I am really interested in wedding planning as I see big potential in the sector. Plus the region where I live in Italy would really fit for this kind of business.

I read somewhere during my MBA that small business need to focus on few specific core competencies and in this case my core competency would be conferences.

> I need people around me able to do what I am not. I am a marketing person and an advanced control freak. In an hypothetic event management business I’d need to cover:

• Creativity skills. For Event Design

• Accounting skills. For Budgeting

• Control skills. For logistics

• Risk Management skills. For security purposes.

• Computer Skills. For ad materials (eg. Brochures, Flyers) and online production (websites)

• Marketing Skills. For pricing, promotion and event delivery

• Selling Skills. To find new clients.

I am positive I could manage few aspects of the above, but what happen to the rest of them. I decided that while I’ll have some time I’d look for quick education with short focused courses. If the areas are particularly delicate, such as accounting, I’ll outsource the function or hire a part time, or better I’ll look at local universities for some student willing to help out.

Well these are my starting thoughts. Any other suggestion?

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