What an Event Manager is, duties and skills of a fast growing profession

The figure of Event Manager has become a key component in certain companies and  brands that find in corporate events a source of business aquisition or improvement of their work relations.

Consequently, we would like to shed some light on this figure of the Event Manger whose talent is highly sought after in a social context where creativity and modernization are key in the MICE sector.

Main picture: The Climate Reality Project on Unsplash

What is an Event Manager ?

An event manager is the person responsible for the process of staging a corporate event. This figure includes all work scenarios, starting from the strategic vision and the initial idea, through to production, execution and supervision and lastly, collating the conclusions. The event manager takes full charge of organizing, coordinating and directing events such as conferences, meetings, congresses, fairs, exhibitions, concerts, festivals etc.

Among their tasks we can find labour related ones such as the selection of providers and the coordination of all necessary aspects for its completion. They are also responsible for making sure that the event is aligned with the objectives of the company, the budgets are respected and that the event is carried out in a successful way. This involves detailed coordination between other departments of the company, namely: accounting, administration, communication, marketing and human resources.

The Event Manager is a figure in ever greater demand in a context where face to face communication is vital for achieving commercial objectives in certain company profiles. They are the ones who execute the plan of action in order to accomplish the success of the events entrusted to them by the brand.

What are the responsibilities of an Event Manager ?

Based on the definition we have given in the previous point, it may be understood that the Event Manager carries out all of the organizational duties derived from this process. Let us consider them:  

• Initial strategy: The Event Manager is present in the strategic conception of the Event. He is part of the decision making process regarding the objective of the event, the developmental phases and the KPIs which will be used to measure the success of the event.
• Planning: It is the task of the Event manager to envisage everything that he hopes will take place during the organization process and the subsequent  handling of the event: estimation of timings, suppliers, guests…
• Participation in the communication plan: His experience in the management of events is of great help when it comes to executing a strategy of solid and effective communication. 
• Managing the material resources: The optimization of resources and the final result obtained through these is a good yardstick for the performance of a good Event Manager.
• Coordination of the professionals involved: A great event is the result of the work of many people. The Event Manager is responsible for managing, supporting and supplying those involved with the necessary tools for its execution. 
• Oversee the smooth operation of the event: The manager must be present at the event, checking that everything takes place in the way that it has been planned. 
• Assessment of results: Lastly, a memorandum and report will be drawn up which will allow us to interpret in detail if the results obtained can be described as good.

What are the qualities an Event Manager must have?

We have seen that an Event Manager carries the responsibility of a collection of diverse tasks. It is therefore important that he must also possess certain aptitudes. 

• Be organized and forward-thinking: An event is simply the future planning for a series of elements which coincide on a particular day and time. Organization and planning are vital.  
• Be sociable and communicative: All Event Managers must be prepared to live in a constant flow and exchange of calls, meetings and communications. Sociability and communication skills  are therefore indispensable. 
• A skilful negotiator: Not always do all the participants in an event have the same intentions and objectives. This is where  the ability to reach compromises in which all sides obtain satisfaction, comes into play. 
• Possess strategic capacity and long-term vision: Organizing an event is planning for the future. To have the ability to fix dates, coordinate elements and people, and all of this to fuse into a common objective requires a strategic component.
• Teamwork: More than half the work of an Event Manager consists of coordinating companies and professionals of different backgrounds who are working for a common objective. The capacity to communicate with them is vital.
• Ability to improvise when faced with problems: Flexibility and disposition to change is crucial. Long term plans always involve unexpected scenarios. What is the ability of the Event Manger to adapt to them and improvise?

Project Manager service in your Event Space

Fortunately for us, at Grand Luxor Mice we have excellent Project Managers ready to help companies to hold a successful, memorable and unique event at our facilities. Thanks to our service, we can help company event organisers to carry out together all the tasks related with their function in order to make the event a memorable one. We do this in the following way:   

1. We take note of the objectives of your event and together we establish a time line with milestones depending on the tasks which have to be carried out in the time available. 
2. We assess the resources your company has at its disposal and we manage them in line with the designated requirements in order to exceed the expectations. 
3. We create a detailed project plan together and make sure that the timings and tasks are observed correctly.
4. We identify and control carefully the possible risks the project may have. 
5. We help to coordinate the tasks related with the organisation of the event.
6. We oversee the whole process with you and fine tune the project and tasks together where necessary.
7. We help you to create reports with the information which is available to us.  

How about you? Which of these qualities do you have ? Can you improve in some of them to become an excellent Event Manager?