Events are usually categorized according to the scale (number of attendees), type (private, corporate or charity) and situation (theme of event). Proper planning of the event is important to ensure the success of the event because the outcome of the event represents the corporation’s or individual’s image and reputation.
There are generally a few steps undertaken when planning an event. For a corporate event planning, firstly, corporate need to recruit employees from the relevant departments to form the event planning team. Secondly, the date, time and duration of the event must be set. Thirdly, the goal and objectives of the event must be established. Corporates must spend more time on this first step to firm up the goals and objectives. This is because the list of tasks to perform in the subsequent steps and the measuring factors and progress tracking of these subsequent steps will be measured against these goals and objectives. Next, the list of tasks to performed including the administrative work must be detailed down in the plan, including milestones. The marketing personnel in the event planning team will concurrently workout on the branding and publicity aspect.
For individual event planning, the steps are like corporate event, but there is no need to have branding and publicity. This step is replaced with designing of the invitation and sending out the invitation to their list of guests. The list of tasks to perform depends largely on the event category, that is scale and situation.
For all event planning, one important area that should not be taken lightly is the food and beverages. This is because the attendees’ experience with the food and beverage offered will affect their opinion of the how well the event is organised. Hence, event planner usually outsource food and beverages to the catering companies.
The catering companies will be involved at the different stages of the event planning, working closely with the event planners, to ensure the food and beverage experience is an exceptional one. Before the event, they will have a preliminary meeting for the event planner to share more details about the event, including theme, goals and objectives, date and time, budget, number of attendees and number of meals to be catered. During this meeting, the catering companies will also enquire on the dietary requirements and the preferred cuisine. If the event planner does not have any specific cuisine in mind, the catering companies will use their knowledge and expertise to select a suitable cuisine to match the event and come up with a few menu options and table setup arrangements in the subsequent meetings. For certain events, the catering companies may even visit the location to recce the place for table setup planning purpose.
The catering companies’ involvement mentioned above also holds true for somber events such as funeral event. Funeral catering are just as important, with the funeral caterer there to help the event planner, which in this situation, the bereaved family members. During funeral event, the bereaved family members will ensure that the food is palatable to the attendees, as a way of saying thanks to the attendees.
With great partnership between the catering companies and event planners, the event will be a success.
Mindfulness Practitioner and avid traveller, who enjoys writing and sharing one’s life experiences.