Event Management, Delivery of Customer Service - Essay Example

EVENT MANAGEMENT of the of the Introduction Event management is concerned with organizing a large scale event such as ceremonies, festivals formal parties, concerts and conferences. The process of planning and designing the events is known as event planning. The event manager is responsible for organizing the event. The event manager is assigned with the responsibility of planning and executing the event. He is also responsible for promoting the brand, implementing various communications and marketing strategy for successfully organizing the event. In order to appoint the event manager, his qualification, experience, skills and abilities are required to be considered. The success of an event depends on the efficiency of the team and the team managers in doing their job effectively. The event manager functions critically in fulfilling the expectation of its customers or visitors. The event manager has to keep himself updated according to the needs and preferences of its customers. The event manager is required to possess strong leadership skill in order to negotiate efficiently with its clients, company and suppliers. Main Body Person Specification The person specification required for an event manager is Qualification Master degree or equivalent level qualification Degree in the relevant course or certified course in the related field is advantageous Skill and abilities Personal competencies Continuous improvement in the mind set-finding new market opportunities Planning: to solve the difficult project and task Communication skills: clear written and verbal communication skills Focus on results: achieving the result or the objective within a specific period of time Dedication: Highly dedicated and committed towards the work. Team performance: cooperative and can work decently within the team Adequate and proper listening skill Organizing: Accomplishing the goal by utilizing the resources efficiently and effectively. Ability to interact with customers of all age groups. Enthusiastic and confident personality Comfortable with the flexibility in working hours. Enthusiastic and self motivated (Jones, 2014). Functional Competencies: Knowledge and skill in IT: Well versed and comfortable in Microsoft applications Establishing relationship with corporate partners: Capability of establishing partners with event companies and the suppliers. Management: Performing the role of a project management effectively and efficiently towards the achievement of a specified goal. Ability to work closely with the business development executives Ability to prioritize the work load. Experience Managing the project Dealing with people Experience of organizing both indoor and outdoor events or activities Ability to assess the risk associated with the events Ability to attract the customers Ability to handle the grievances of the customers. Creativity in introducing new concepts for organizing an event. Experience in managing, planning and delivering the major events. Marketing the activities in a cost effective manner. Values Enhancing the value of the organization by conducting the event in such a way that it attracts the visitors Ability to promote the brand of the company. Output To influence the behaviour of the visitors or the customers. Paying adequate attention to the needs and requirements of the visitors. Others Arranging adequate parking facility for the visitors and ability to adjust in various situations. Delivery of customer service Every business organization needs to retain customers. This form of retention is achieved through developing a wide base of satisfied customers. Events are memorable for everyone. Hence event management companies should develop strategies to make guests happy and build a memorable experience for life long. Customer service plays an integral role in event management. There are different procedures through which customers can be given value added service. Firstly, positive impression should be created in order to attract customer attention. An event company’s logo should be visible in all possible communication channels to acquire market presence. Customer relationship forms an essential part of the entire journey (Bowdin, Allen, Harris, McDonnell and OToole, 2012). The event’s attendee need to be dealt with politeness so that they develop a positive brand image. Every possible detail has to be conveyed across event host and other members. In any event, queue waiting time is a major issue. It can be eradicated only through properly managing queues through incorporating computerized system where guest entry can be rapidly checked and preceded. Customer service can also be reliably delivered by imparting proper training to all staff members. In event business, guests should be attended properly since they are the means of generating future business. Staffs have to be well trained, specifically in context of handling guests, executing event operations and time management. This form of training program will enhance skill set of staff members. Service needs to be delivered by staff but with a proper smile on face. There are certain characteristics that create a difference in any kind of event like good manners, speaking tone and open body language. The event staffs possessing people skills are considered to be priceless by an organization. Customer service from event management perspective can be delivered efficiently by following 6Ps (Shone and Parry, 2004). They are passionate, punctual, personal, professional, productive and proactive. A bad service experience can be substituted by delivering a positive service experience. Resolving an issue or query is also regarded as an essential component of customer service. Reliability depends on proper staff allocation for specific duties. This kind of allocation guarantees superior service quality. Customer service quality is an important factor when it comes to customer retention in event management business. Service delivery by event managers Event managers have to ensure that seamless service is being delivered to clients. Any kind of gap prevalent in this service delivery process might disrupt the entire mechanism. Event management approach is all about focusing on three important criteria’s like planning, implementation and reviewing. Event planning encompasses all activities that are to be executed. These activities have specific time slots and audience. Seamlessness is ensured through effective time management. The activities are so planned by event manager that there exist continuity between activities. Communication with customers is also an essential factor in the entire process. Customers need to be involved all the time in order to determine their taste or preferences. Interactions on a daily basis by event manager eliminate loopholes and build high degree of customer loyalty. Customers should be kept satisfied at every stage and this is mainly due to increasing standard of customer service. Customer needs are ever changing and it needs to be identified by event manager. These needs when explored by an event manager, eventually leads to seamless customer service delivery. Key account managers should be allocated for all clients. It is a tool to facilitate continuous service delivery to clients. Customer retention is a cost-effective process for event organizations. It is difficult to sell service to new customers in comparison to existing customers. Personal service is provided by key account manager to important clients (Ferdinand and Kitchin, 2012). This can be classified as dividing client base as per their individual requirements and assigning them with an account manager. Seamless flow of customer delivery is also achieved by collecting customer information. Regular feedback is gained by event manager so as to monitor level of customer satisfaction and sustain higher customer care standards. Event manager also should communicate information across different business units so that complaints are resolved quickly and customer needs are addressed. Continuous client feedback forms the basis of seamless customer service delivery. Feedback is basically derived from surveys, face to face interviews, etc. Long term customer relationship can be triggered through accessing personal information. Event planning process There are three types of events such as corporate events, career and education events, and social events. All these events have specific activities which are executed to satisfy needs of clients. Event manager can efficiently support wide base of clients through planning, evaluating, marketing and producing an event. 5W concept is encompassed within event planning process. These 5W’s are - why, where, what, who and when. On the basis of these principles an event is planned for clients. The ‘why’ factor denotes - purpose for organizing an event. Purpose can be increasing brand value, promoting any social cause, increasing sales margins of an organization, promoting products or services, etc. ‘What’ aspect indicates activities to be performed in an event. These represent event name, beverage or food name, guest list, entry fees, entry category, promotional campaign, program menu and event budget. All possible costs are estimated through analyzing these activities. Cost and time is plotted with respect to all of these mentioned activities. ‘When’ factor - is the next phase of event planning process. It is about selecting time and date of the event being organized (Allen, 2009). The ‘where’ factor states – a location where an event has to be organized. Venue selection is one of the ways through which extended support can be provided to clients. Client shall feel satisfied only when they are given appropriate venue choices as per their needs and wants. Lastly ‘who’ factor is included within event planning process. This mainly resembles event sponsors, target audience, client base and event partners. Event manager can also support client through collecting additional information related to client requirements. This information shall be useful in designing venue services and selecting a venue location. Security arrangements and parking facilities are common approaches that are included with venue services. Event planning is done in a tabular format to determine key areas of concern. A common event checklist is shown below. Tasks Date Completed Cost Comments Application Form: Form Completed Deposit Submitted Fees paid for remainder venue space Requested Location Exhibitor Form Rentals for audio visual Cleaning Electrical Computer rental Internet Signage Lead Scanners Labour Conclusion As per the study, skills or responsibilities of event manager is aligned with acquiring higher levels of customer satisfaction. Client is satisfied only through delivering superior quality of customer service. Event manager addresses various dimensions of customer service by developing necessary skills and utilizing them in respective zones. To be more precise, event manager is the one who can control event operations and guide other staff members accordingly. Control is exercised by event managers along with proper event planning and scheduling of activities. Time and venue space are the primary activities taken into consideration during event planning. In this study skills of an event manager has been outlined. Seamless customer service is encountered through acquiring continuous customer feedback and then utilizing it in respective areas. Event manager also interacts with client on a regular basis so as to determine their taste or preferences. This in turn makes client feel valued and initiate positive word of mouth. Customer retention is a cost effective strategy in comparison to acquiring new customers. References Allen, J. (2009). Event planning: the ultimate guide to successful meetings, corporate events, fundraising galas, conferences, conventions, incentives and other special events. New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons. Bowdin, G., Allen, J., Harris, R., McDonnell, I. and OToole, W. (2012). Events management. New York: Routledge. Ferdinand, N. and Kitchin, K. (2012). Events management: an international approach. London: SAGE. Jones, M.(2014). Sustainable Event Management, New York: Routledge Shone, A. and Parry, B. (2004). Successful event management: a practical handbook. 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