Event Planning Business of Event Planning

Question: Describe about the Event Planning for the Business of Event Planning. Answer: Introduction For many students, this should be the most memorable night of the year therefore; it should be organized to meet the expectations of the people. Because of this, the planning, coordination, organizing and delegating of tasks should be done in such a way that the end results is a spectacular event worth remembering. When organizing this event we should also check on the costs for organizing, a viable project should be profitable hence this paper will analyse the various costs involved to hold a successful Ball Event (Allen, 2002).This is a proposal that will enable the management of M.I.T to analyse the reviewed venues and services that have been chosen to make the event truly a wonderful night to remember. Objectives of the project The objective of this project is to help organize, fund, advertise and run an excellent and memorable event. The project will help the organizers to put in use the management skills and principles. Additionally, the event should be run at a profit or break even. Another objective of this event is to bring people together; this is the most memorable night of the year for most students. Therefore, a fantastic environment should be created to bring together friends, good food and entertainment at friendly price. The proposal seeks to persuade the management of M.I.T that this is the project is the most viable in terms of profitability by establishing alternative venues for the event which is the C.B.D. Project stakeholders When organizing and planning for this event, there are various stakeholders whose input in terms of ideas will be invaluable. This includes: Committee (organizers) The committee comprises of Chairman who is the leader of the ball committee, who approves everything and has the last say on every decision but he also will bear responsibility should anything go wrong. The responsibilities of the chairman also are to delegate jobs, motivate the team, set action plan and set deadlines (Dalal, 2012). The treasurer is a member of the committee who is in charge of the money, create budgets that are accurate and manageable, track ticket sales and ensure budget is adhered. The secretary is another important member of the committee who ensures that all team members are communicating in an effective manner. The responsibilities of the secretary is to organize team meetings, h handle minor problems, take minutes and keep records of plans and ideas that are accurate (Daniels Loveless, n.d.). The committees ensures that the management principles and doctrines such as delegation, planning and organization among others. Entertainers The entertainers will include a live band and a disc jockey to provide entertainment. Food will be served by an outside caterer; we will buy food and drinks from a local hotel which provides best quality at affordable rates. Security personnel In order to cut cost, the security will be provided by the institution, who will give guidance on how to organize security for the event. We are projecting to use at least three guards. Staff and students This are the people that will attend the ball, hence we will get information from on how they would love the event to be staged, how much they would be comfortable to pay for the tickets, the best mode of transport and many other issues relating to the event. Communication is key for the success of the event. Ideally, meetings will be scheduled twice or thrice a month in the months leading to the Ball, this will also be supplemented to by regular emails communication. This will enable us to organize a fantastic ball. Tasks It is critical to adhere to a chain of command once the tasks are assigned for each member. The chairman ensures that team members do their tasks and adhere to the set deadlines (Jones, 2010). The most critical member of the team is one who is supposed to ensure that the venue is well arranged, lighting is set up, all the service providers are ready to give service. The chairman will definitely ensure that the venue is all set up to hold the event. Venue There are two alternative venues that offer a good place for hosting the Ball. One of the venues is a hotel at the Melbourne C.B.D and the other venue is the m.i.t hall. The factors that we will compare to select the venue include, security, cost, parking availability among others (Kilkenny, 2006). A hotel hall is quite expensive to hire considering that this will be financed by the ticket sales only. However, the hotel will offer food and drinks for the attendants and security but the cost may be more than the revenues collected. The hotel venue cost is $20-$50 per person. On the other hand, M.I.T hall will be provided for free, the security and parking at the hall are guaranteed. However, the costs involved when we select this alternative is set up cost, lighting cost and the food and beverage cost will be more considering that this will be provided by an outside caterer. Comparing the two, the latter is definitely the cheaper option. Therefore, for the venue we will use the institutions hall. Developing a project plan The project parameters in this spring-ball event are, the prices of the tickets, number of people gracing the event, the venues chosen for the project, the time of the event, the performing live bands and entertainment at the spring ball (Jones, 2010)l. The prices of the tickets should not be very high since the people attending the ball are M I T students and staff. Melbourne Institute of Technology (MIT) has a lot of students and it is expected that the number of students will turn up to the numbers. With the number of students being large, the parking space and the venue should be spacious enough. The ball is to be held at Melbourne CBD, and the school compound. To manage the spring ball, there is need to have several project management tools in place. First, for an effective project it will need proper planning. Hiring a project manager, to manage the project in different phases of implementation, to coordinate various functions that that will streamline the project until it is undertaken. There are different phases to be implemented while developing the project. There are various timelines for implementation of the project. First, the ball venue should be identified and realize its capacity to be able to accommodate the project. Tables, Chairs and the entertainment system should be brought three days before the event is conducted. This is especially good for testing the entertainment system and the layout of the venue place. Advertising is not really required since it is a school based event. Bands and Djs should be hired two weeks before for them to prepare in advance. School buses should be hired to transport the students with no cars to and from the balling venue (Raj Musgrave, 2009). Lastly, food and drinks which take a chunk of the budgeted money should be bought in time from different caterers. For implementation of the budget, key personnel are required for the success of the project. This includes; the project manager, who is the coordinator of all functions related to the planning of the ball. He is also the head of the steering committee planning the project. Caterers are also an integral part of the project that includes the waiters and waitresses. Transport manager to coordinate the transportation of students, staff, the band and the entertainment system. The transport manager will also be responsible for relocation of tables and chairs to and from the venue. There are several risk management plans for the event. There should be a fire exit door in case of fire outbreak. Fire brigades, engines and fire extinguisher. There should also be ambulances and paramedics available in case of any medical situation and security personnel to put the place in order in terms of security. Telephone contacts for area police should also be available in case of fights at the event which would require the input of the police. Project budget Venue Hire -$20-50 per person Foods - Inclusive in venue hire Drinks- Inclusive in venue hire Bands-$200-1000 DJ-$200-500 Venue Security-inclusive in venue hire Cloakroom services -$1-5 per person Transport-$2-5 per person Tickets printed -10 per person Others Magicians -$100-$250 Light show -$2000 From the budget at the initial stages, these are the costs after consulting from other members of the ball committee (Wolf Wolf, 2005). The plan for implementation of the project is set in the program of the spring ball day. Conclusion Project management and implementation of MIT spring ball will require adequate preparation for the event to be successful and worth remembering. An event of this magnitude and stature that is usually conducted once a year should be thorough. Program manager and the steering committee will be tasked to coordinate, plan and organize the smooth flow of activities in the final day. There are various phases and timelines for implementation (Wolf Wolf, 2005). With every piece in place, the ball should be better than the previous years balls. References Allen, J. (2002).The business of event planning. Toronto: J. Wiley Sons. Allen, J. (2005).Time management for event planners. Mississauga, Ont.: J. Wiley Sons Canada. Dalal, A. (2012).The 12 pillars of project excellence. Boca Raton: Taylor Francis. Daniels, M. Loveless, C.Wedding Planning and Management. Hardina, D. (2012).Interpersonal social work skills for community practice. New York: Springer Pub. Co. Jones, M. (2010).Sustainable event management. London: Earthscan. Kilkenny, S. (2006).The complete guide to successful event planning. Ocala, Fla.: Atlantic Pub. Group. Kinicki, A. Williams, B. (2008).Management. New York: McGraw-Hill/Irwin. Raj, R. Musgrave, J. (2009).Event management and sustainability. Wallingford, UK: CABI. Render, B. Heizer, J. (2004).Principles of operations management. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson/Prentice Hall. Wolf, P. Wolf, J. (2005).Event planning made easy. New York: McGraw-Hill.