Welcome to the Event Execution Zone! (Syllabus 5.5)

Hello AS Level event managers! You’ve done the hard part: the planning, the budgeting, and the risk assessment. Now, we move onto the most exciting, and often the most stressful, part: Running the Event (Syllabus 5.5).

Think of this chapter as your guide to 'showtime.' All your hard work comes down to this execution phase. Even the best plan can fail without excellent management on the day. We will focus on key practical skills—from keeping to schedule to solving unexpected problems and proving your success!

Section 1: Precision Execution – Time Keeping

Time keeping refers to the crucial act of ensuring that the event runs exactly according to the detailed project time plan and itinerary you created in the planning phase (5.3 and 5.4).

Why is Strict Time Keeping Essential?
  • Customer Satisfaction: Tourists expect value for their time. Delays feel unprofessional and frustrate participants, especially if they have connecting flights, tours, or transport schedules.
  • Logistical Flow: Many travel and tourism events rely on external providers (e.g., catering deliveries, bus pickups, venue staff shift changes). If you run late, these external services are disrupted, potentially costing you money or cancellation fees.
  • Managing Human Resources: Your team (the 'human' resource) works in shifts. Sticking to the timeline ensures that staff breaks and shift changes happen on schedule, preventing burnout and ensuring safety compliance.
Tips for Effective On-the-Day Time Management

1. Appoint a Time Master: Designate one person (often the Project Manager) to constantly monitor the schedule and give countdown warnings (e.g., "10 minutes until the presentation ends!").

2. Buffer Time: Always schedule small gaps (like 5–10 minutes) between activities. These buffers absorb minor delays without causing the whole event to slip.

3. Clear Signage and Communication: Ensure all customers and suppliers know the timings. Use clear announcements and visible clocks/screens.

Key Takeaway: Time is money, and in tourism, time is also customer experience. Stick rigidly to your itinerary.

Section 2: Customer Care and Feedback

Running the event is the moment you deliver the promised quality customer service (a concept learned in Topic 4). You must look after customers during the event and actively seek their immediate reactions.

1. Exemplary Customer Care

On the day, customer care is about proactive service delivery and responsiveness. This includes:

  • Anticipating Needs: Making sure water stations are filled, guiding customers to restrooms, or proactively checking if a mobility-impaired guest needs assistance.
  • Handling Specific Needs: Ensuring dietary requests (e.g., vegan or gluten-free meals) are met correctly, and that access and sensory needs (e.g., quiet zones, ramp access) are managed.
  • Staff Attitude: Staff must be visible, approachable, and wear clear identification. A smile and a friendly greeting can resolve minor frustrations instantly.

Think of it like being a tour guide: you are responsible for the comfort and safety of everyone in your group from start to finish.

2. Gathering Immediate Feedback

Collecting feedback during the event is more valuable than waiting until it is over, because it allows for on-the-spot problem solving.

  • Informal Chats: Staff should be encouraged to simply talk to guests (e.g., "Are you enjoying the tour? Is the venue too cold?").
  • Quick QR Surveys: Place QR codes at exit points or on tables linking to a short, 3-question survey. This provides real-time data.
  • Observation: Team members should watch customer behaviour. Are people leaving early? Is the queue too long? Observation is a form of immediate, non-verbal feedback.

Did you know? In the travel industry, negative experiences shared immediately via social media (a modern form of feedback) can severely damage your reputation within minutes.

Key Takeaway: Customer care ensures smooth running; immediate feedback provides the insights needed to make instant improvements.

Section 3: Mastering On-the-Day Problem Solving

No event, even one with a great business plan and contingency measures, runs perfectly. Problem solving is the ability to deal with issues decisively and calmly in real-time.

Relating to Contingency Planning

Remember the contingency planning section from the business plan (5.3)? This is where you execute those backup plans! Problems usually fall into three main categories:

  1. Logistical Issues: The bus is late, a piece of hired equipment breaks, or the venue unexpectedly loses power.
  2. Customer Issues: A customer has a medical emergency, someone loses their ticket, or there is a major complaint about service quality.
  3. External/Environmental Issues: Unforeseen heavy rain forces an outdoor activity to be cancelled, or a local road closure delays access.
Step-by-Step Problem Solving (The 4 A's)

A good team follows a rapid, structured approach when a problem arises:

1. Acknowledge: Immediately recognise that a problem has occurred and listen fully to the source (customer, staff member, supplier).

2. Assess: Quickly determine the severity and the scope of the problem. (Is this affecting one person or the entire event?)

3. Act: Implement the prepared backup plan (the contingency). If no plan exists, collaborate quickly with key team members (e.g., the Finance Officer for quick expenditure approval, or the Health & Safety Officer).

4. Announce/Communicate: Inform the relevant stakeholders. If the delay is minor, you only inform the team. If the event is severely disrupted (e.g., a venue change), you must communicate clearly and calmly to all guests.

Common Mistake to Avoid: Panicking! Decisive, calm action is always better than paralysis. Trust the leadership roles you assigned.

Key Takeaway: Problem solving is the activation of your pre-planned contingencies, combined with calm, quick thinking when the truly unexpected happens.

Section 4: Evidence of the Event Taking Place

After the event is successfully run, you need proof! Collecting evidence is essential for the evaluation (5.6) and is a mandatory requirement for your coursework (Paper 2).

Required Forms of Evidence (Syllabus 5.5)

The evidence must show that the event was actually delivered and that your team fulfilled its roles.

1. Official Statements (Crucial for Coursework)
  • Witness Statements: These are official documents, ideally signed by the supervising teacher/examiner, peer team members, and sometimes customers, confirming that the event took place on the specified date and time, and outlining your contribution.
2. Visual and Annotated Evidence
  • Annotated Photographs: These are photos of the event in progress (e.g., the welcome desk, the catering setup, the activity taking place). Crucially, they must be annotated. This means adding captions explaining:
    • What is happening in the photo.
    • When and where it was taken.
    • Which element of your plan (e.g., safety, marketing, catering) it demonstrates.
  • Screen Shots: If your event was online or virtual, or if you used an online booking system, screenshots are vital. They can show ticket sales, live audience figures, or the setup of a virtual conference room.
3. Digital and Communication Evidence
  • Social Media Advertisements/Discussions: Screenshots of your event's Instagram posts, Facebook ads, or posts where customers discussed the event (positive or negative). This proves the marketing took place and generated engagement.
  • Evidence of Group Chats and Blogs: Screenshots of team communication (WhatsApp, group chat, or blog entries). This is strong proof of teamwork, coordination, decision-making, and problem-solving attempts during the actual running of the event.

Quick Review: Running the Event (5.5)

The successful delivery of an event depends on four main pillars of execution:

  1. Time Keeping: Sticking precisely to the detailed itinerary and timeline.
  2. Customer Care: Being attentive and proactive in meeting customer needs.
  3. Problem Solving: Calmly and quickly implementing contingency plans.
  4. Evidence: Collecting verifiable proof (witness statements, annotated photos, digital traces) that the event happened as planned.

Well done! You have now successfully executed the event. The final stage is learning from the process: Evaluation and Recommendations (5.6).