Meeting and Event Planning For Dummies

Susan Friedmann

• Publisher: For Dummies
• Year: 2011
• ISBN:
  9781118053249
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Business
• Subtopic: Riunioni e presentazioni
• Index: Business

Expert advice on how to stage the perfect event every time "A terrific resource of information for anyone in the event-planning business." --James Spellos, CMP, President, Meeting U. Meeting & Event Planning For Dummies is a practical step-by-step guide to the strategies and techniques event-planning professionals use to bring people together. This comprehensive resource covers all the angles from the little details to the big picture to make sure your business meetings and special events come off without a hitch! Praise for Meeting & Event Planning For Dummies "Packed with valuable information in an easy-to-use format. [It] covers all the basics for the meeting planning novice." --Diane Silberstein, President, Diane Silberstein & Associates "A great resource book every event professional should have.... Checklist heaven! We all love our checklists, and this book is full of them!" --Cathy Breden, CAE, CMP

Part I

Been to Any Good Meetings or Events Lately?

In this part. . .

An ancient Chinese proverb states that the journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step. In this part, you take your first step into an exciting, multifaceted arena. Right from the get-go, you find out about the vital components needed to manage an effective meeting or event and the essential questions to ask before you even get started. You discover that there are many different kinds of business meetings and events, both formal and informal, and you see what makes one different from another. When you’re ready to get down to the business of planning, I give you the building blocks to put together a small business meeting as well as a larger event. I highlight the must-knows so that your meeting or event achieves its planned objectives and you come out smelling like roses.

Chapter 1

Gearing Up for Meetings and Events

In This Chapter

Deciding whether a meeting or event is necessary

Distinguishing between meetings and events

Inviting the right participants

Determining meeting length and location

Asking for planning assistance

M eetings and events can be a total waste of time, or they can be powerful and productive communication tools that solve problems, stimulate ideas, promote team spirit, and generate action. The end results lie totally in how they’re run. These days, people seem to be meeting more, enjoying it less, and growing increasingly frustrated that they have so little time to get their “real” work done. Executives can spend as much as 50 percent of their working hours in meetings, and much of that time is unproductive — often it’s wasted discussing irrelevant issues.

Having experienced the wonderful sense of satisfaction from productive sessions, as well as the frustration and anger from ineffective sessions, I believe the key to success lies in preparation and organization, as well as the actual meeting management. In this chapter, I encourage you to make thoughtful choices about when to hold meetings and events, and when to use other means to accomplish your goals. I also begin to lay the groundwork for making your business functions — from small meetings to international trade fairs — productive and fun.

Being Wise About Holding Meetings

Are meetings really necessary? Well, sometimes they are, and sometimes they aren’t. Wisdom lies in knowing the difference.

Humans need a connection with others to survive. I’m sure that, like me, you may occasionally fantasize about being alone on a desert island, far away from the trials and tribulations of everyday life. But people also need to belong, communicate, and share a common purpose with like-minded individuals. In essence, what this means is simply that meeting is a natural function of our existence. In reality, doing things alone for any length of time is counterproductive. Working in partnership with others and pooling resources can lead to getting things done more effectively and efficiently.

People need to come together to share information, make decisions, plan, discuss, argue, question, iron out differences, celebrate, gossip, chitchat, schmooze, and much more. Families, schools, clubs, businesses, and governments are key examples of groups of men, women, and children who regularly come together for specific purposes.

These days, with the plethora of entrepreneurs operating home-based businesses and employees telecommuting or working endless hours in front of computer screens, meetings are becoming even more necessary for people’s survival. The need for human interaction is critical. In addition, meetings can minimize or eliminate many time-wasting activities such as playing phone tag, sending unnecessary e-mails, or exchanging volumes of paper. But, when you consider the myriad business meetings held every year, many should never (ever) take place. The $64,000 question is “When should you hold a meeting or organize an event (and when should you not)?”

Ineffective meetings: Avoiding common mistakes

It’s easy to make mistakes running meetings. However, if you learn to recognize common problems, you can increase your chances for a more successful and effective meeting. Here’s what to avoid:

Taking up more time than necessary

Allowing one participant to dominate the entire meeting

Permitting the meeti...