Event Operations

  • Golf meetings hit the rough

    Over the years, golf has proven to be the one true “recession-proof” game as the die-hard duffers continue to play the game in record numbers.

  • Determining your meeting requirements

    One of the best ways to figure out your requirements is to develop a preliminary schedule. The schedule should be a general outline of what will happen and approximately when. The following list of considerations will help you think through these things.

  • Hidden gem

    It actually looks like a gigantic colourful toy block, as motorists zip by on Highway 400 in Vaughan, Ont., but the Miele National Headquarters & Gallery is actually an event space in disguise.

  • Contingency planning checklist

    The best time to make a contingency plan is when you don’t need it. Here are some guidelines to get you started.

  • Why event planners should ‘start with why’

    The concept is simply this – it doesn’t matter what you do, it matters why you do it. Citing examples ranging from Apple and Harley Davidson to Martin Luther King, Simon convincingly argues that the one thing these and other successful organizations and leaders have in common is that they answer the why questions before the who, what, when, where and how questions. This basic distinction permeates everything they do. For their companies and organizations, this can be seen in everything from their corporate culture to their marketing, and their overall strategic direction, vision and purpose.

  • Mixing it up

    Do you ever get the feeling that your meeting attendees are lost in the land of never-ending PowerPoint slides or listless product demos? Just how many people in the audience are playing with their BlackBerries or cell phones? Simply presenting information through a light projector onto a screen in a dim room will lose your message with a sea of glazed eyes and wandering attention spans. Try making your next meeting a livelier experience with themed sessions, destination events, and company logoed gifts as part of the meeting mix.

  • Selecting a unique venue

    “Selecting a unique venue tells attendees that the message being relayed is important and you want it to register,” says Jonathan Fruitman, director of marketing and venue guru for EventSource. “It communicates that the meeting isn’t a waste of the delegates time, or being held simply because ‘it’s that time of year’, but rather speaks volumes about the company hosting it, in essence saying ‘we’re different, we’re fun and we’re dynamic.’”

  • Sustainability – the new buzz word or the real thing?

    We’ve now moved from ‘green meetings’ to ‘sustainable meetings’ which have a much deeper meaning. Sustainable meetings go beyond waste management, carbon off-sets and using bamboo rather than paper plates.

Venue & Supplier Profiles