Posted by creativemindsunion (Msg) on 2009-02-24 12:29:04:

Managing Large Scale Annual Events with Non-Profit Resources

How to Plan and Run an Event with BRYCC as a Brick House Benefit

Given my background in working with BRYCC-Brick House and other events including the INFEST Independent Education Festival, PAZ Conference, Forecastle, and more. I can honestly say that many events can be efficiently run with as few as 5-6 key people who work together weekly and fulfill their tasks on a timeline...

I would say that there should not be one person in charge because it is ultimately designed by those who participate in the committee and specialized task forces who meet each of the needs as they arise... I do think meeting facilitators can serve as managers and also that defining a point person for task forces can quickly eliminate a need for at least 3 people to accomplish one well placed goal...

Marketing Via Fan Base or By Unilateral Engagement of Public Interest Groups with Mutual Values

Ultimately there is a 'street team' associated with any sort of outreach proceedings. My thoughts on the concept of street teams is not the modern guerilla warfare tactics that i see used to flyer rock shows but more of a grassroots organizers model which calls for community partnership models where interest groups gather and send a delegate who reps for an entire community who is on call and updated weekly at their own meetings. Mostly the delegate acts as a catalyst for weekly progress and gathers support and resource for his/her mission externally.

Example 1: KFTC is in charge of the 'Meet and Greet' event which sets the list of participants, gathers point person contact info for each group, reviews the details of load in and meal tickets/passes, and then sets a host with a timeline for day off. The point person for this task of organizing needs to have everything in writing as well as a booth person checklist which can be sent out in advance describing set up times, day of event contact, meal tickets and exit procedures (booth fee prerequ.s)

Example 2: Louisville Arts Council takes the task of MC and then promotes within ranks for performance and presentation coordination associated with each award or collective topic which is presented. Point person for this group can change week to week as long as they bring their update report to the dinner committee meeting.

The reality boils out that taking suggestions with regards to entertainment from others or the group does not mean waiting for them to get things done for you but rather taking initiative to call the resource every 2 days until you get a confirmation or you decide upon another source of support/entertainment.

Failure to show up or report with required list of performers or timeline revisions as needed will lead to a new partner as Entertainment Coordination Partner. The role of this point person and their organization is to set the mood and work closely with Publicity as the Outreach Organizing faction of the Dinner Committee.

Promotions/Publicity

Seriously, One person can easily handle the management of speakers, entertainment & program as long as they have a series of promotional deadlines and bottom lines in contracting to share with their talent... this person needs to work closely with the publicity person for the first 3 weeks of active engagement. Maybe the Committee of these 2 folks could be called Outreach and Entertainment since the obvious market to reach is associated with the talent which is chosen.

Publicity is really the one person which John mentioned who is in charge of the overall product being marketed and thus they have the ability to combine text and graphics as adapted features for digital and printed materials... the publicity should start 4-6 weeks out depending upon the audience... 2 weeks out for tight knit community action of an internal nature. This person might be the one who coordinates the internet product including links for various websites and pages.

Ultimately the publicity person should have their job done one week before the event and then become the signage/data collection person at the event who tracks how successfully their 'target markets' responded to the various techniques which they choose to apply to publicity.

Financing and Community Partner Outreach

Primarily Financing is something that should be a think tank for everyone to contribute into at the larger meetings which is then handed off as a take away list of research for feasibility by a group of 3-4 people. Following up on leads is actually pretty cut and dried. Either the desired product is contributed and sought at all possible locations or a new approach to getting the necessities met will occur.

Ticket Sales should be managed by one person for tracking purposes and seating arrangement consistency. Gifts, Pick up of Food or Auction Items, and Thank you cards should be managed by another person who reports back to a treasurer how the In-Kind Donations should be vouchered or documented at the time of pick up.

On-line correspondence including ticket sales or questions as well as phone tree outreach as invitation or requesting donation should be managed by one person keeping a folder in a central place which can be accessed as a response/drop off point for weekly or bi-weekly review and data entry to keep numbers posted.

Financing Task Force Associated with the Dinner Committee should be the driving force of the Publicity and Promotions Take Aways each week. If there were no ticket sales then something needs to be changed or added to the plan. If all tickets have been sold and the people keep trying to get involved then the Meet and Greet hours should be expanded to include some entertainment and actual reception trays of food to accommodate a second crowd or other spill over options such as parking.

Committee VS Task Forces

The reality before us is that we only need one meeting a week to accomplish the management of a large upcoming event which actually calls for equal and unified participation by all collectives in the 'group benefit domain.' The Board of Directors has the power to appoint or approve a committee in our bylaws and has recognized that financing is best done by committee rather than individual effort with limited focus and time considerations.

Once the board approves the committee and agrees to host the event their involvement becomes more of an individual to individual elective consideration. Recognition of a need for financial management and proper funds collection or outlines as a strategy for how money will be raised may need to be reviewed by the finance committee for some consistency of policy or data collection. The same is true for Outreach issues related to data collection and membership details. Generally speaking this would call for working members of the committee to have an outline of tasks and objectives to adhere to as a part of following our proscribed terms of both finance and data collection for long term demographics.

The simple truth is that the vision of the event should be set at the first committee one meeting and reviewed at the 3rd meeting (flexible changes are the norm here) but the first meeting designs the message and the goals as an outreach statement which draws other partners to the table and then the other partners (KFTC, Peace Education, SSNA) should then be allowed to equally own the opportunities and outcomes regarding mailing list mutual benefit etc. Each group sets its goals and stakes out its clearly defined interests well in advance such as Silent Auction, Food standards, storytelling plans for working with kids etc. Example: if KFTC runs the Meet and Greet then they keep the booth fees and will organize their door prizes or raffle the way they wish without our interference.

Ultimately each Partner or work group such as Promotions/Publicity becomes a temporary task force reporting back to the committee who then, in turn, reports back to the board. If there is anything amiss anywhere along the way in event planning such as misuse of funds or negligent management then the board and the committee are the 'upline' policy processors which will be held accountable to change or limit the damages of mismanagement or improper use of resources.

Roles and Responsibilities of the Individual in Collective Action

With specific goals and agreed upon outcomes, there is a certain accountability and process of reporting which makes individual activism transform into proactive process. As the vision of events or tasks emerges it is the responsibility of individual folks to clarify if their approach and set of processes is in accord with the group goal. Furthermore it is the responsibility of the committee and the point person to keep the deadlines and confirm the outcomes. Follow up and accurate reporting of contact information, quantities and specific content (such as the definition of Vegan or something such as Lacto-Ovo Vegetarian Menu Items) is something that defines the outcome.

Staff and Volunteers should be considered resources in the same way that a gift certificate and shopping list should when it comes to use of time and allocation of the energy and effort associated with a one-time opportunity to get free access to something that is otherwise limited and specific in its availability. Specific details of staffing such as 'wear black pants' or take the ticketstubs which keep the name of the person for later use is how the event can continue to be a success in future. Volunteers trust that their time will be well spent and tasks will be organized for a specific goal and outcome when they show up.

Staffing and Volunteer sign up lists and timelines for direct action can begin at the outset of planning the event or occur later in the event if the need for managing a group of people to accomplish something in a short amount of time with a minimal amount of training is necessary. Mostly its best to recycle volunteer effort so that your staff has been adequately trained to represent your organization as both outreach resource and support staff friendly face.

We are all beginners at some point, but it is at the beginning of any process which we plan and decide what and where and who we go there with... to ignore any of these elements of familiarity is to isolate and limit the events potential and progress. I wish everyone the best of luck and I hope that my experience will help you succeed!