Importance Of Special Event Planning

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Executive managers in nearly every industry encounter special event planning. A special event is any event held by an organization that draws more customers or clients than the organization would see on a regular basis. From showcasing a new product, to celebrating the loyalty of the organization’s best customers, there are several reasons that an organization may decide to host a special event. Many different techniques can be used to plan and host special events, and managers must be flexible in the methods they use in order to successfully host a special event.

Because of the flexibility required, hosting a special event demands an immense amount of strategic planning. By reducing the amount of risk and uncertainty faced, strategic planning …show more content…

According to the Institute for Career Research, “Planning special events requires not only organizational skills, but a sense of creativity, even artistry. Professionals in this job may work for a company or facility, even a special events center, or may work as a contractor to other companies and organizations, assisting them with special events” (pg. 11). Professional special event planners must be able to coordinate closely with their clients to choose the appropriate venues, vendors, entertainment, etc... depending on the nature of the special event. Organizations may choose to hire a special event planner as part of their fulltime staff, or they may choose to rely on a special event planning company to meet the needs of the special events the organization is hosting. An advantage of using a special event company to organize a special event, is that they will have experience with planning special events in many different venues and settings. The added experience will help ensure that the guests attending the special event have all of their needs met, and because of that, will ultimately have a better experience at the special …show more content…

Mega events carry with them pressures and responsibilities that are unlike the pressures faced when hosting smaller special events. Whether it be media attention, a higher caliber of clientele, or the length of time in which the special event lasts, mega events require precise research and planning to successfully host. The best example of a mega event in today’s society is the Olympic Games. The Olympic Games have grown dramatically over the last 15-20 years, and this growth has forced executives in the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to reevaluate the methodology used to stage these games. No matter where the games are being hosted, the city is going to receive an influx in tourism and attention that will place the city under a tremendous amount of scrutiny and stress. Organizers from the International Olympic Committee have been pushing for a new sense of professionalism in the way the Olympic Games are planned. From this, the IOC has launched the Olympic Games Global Impact Study project (OGGI) which has the goal of establishing three dimensions of sustainability: environmental, social, and economic values (Leonardsen, 2007). The OGGI project measures qualitative data of the social, environmental, and economic impact on cities that have hosted the Olympic Games in the past in order to establish a realistic estimation of the impacts the new host city will

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