Event Planning and Management:
Principles, Planning and Practice
3rd Edition
By Ruth Dowson, Bernadette Albert & Dan Lomax
Chapter 02: The Event
Planning Model
Learning Outcomes:
• Explain the value of adopting a systematic approach to event planning.
• Describe the four distinct phases of the event planning process.
• Follow the event planning process to create a structure for your own event.
• Describe the key planning tasks and activities to be carried out at each phase.
• Begin your research to develop a robust event concept.
• Plan the design of detailed aspects of an event.
Dowson, Albert & Lomax Event Planning Model
Dowson, Albert & Lomax Event Planning Model
Figure 2.1 The Dowson, Albert and Lomax Event Planning Process – the planning model
Event Planning Process
• Phase 1: Research, concept development and screening (Ch.3)
• Phase 2: Design and detailed planning (Ch. 4-9)
• Phase 3: Managing the event on-site (Ch.10)
• Phase 4: Evaluation and reporting (Ch.11)
Points to note
• The planning process diagram should only be used as a guide. The key tasks are not
necessarily sequential, and the order will depend upon the type of event as well as how
an event organizer prefers to work.
• There is likely to be overlap between the different phases of the planning life cycle, with
tasks under way simultaneously.
• The amount of time spent on each task will vary depending upon the type, size and
nature of the event.
Phase 1: Research, concept development and
screening
The essential tasks at this phase
include:
• Stakeholder mapping
• Preparing the proposal
• Screening and feasibility
Stakeholder mapping
• Different stakeholders will have different priorities for the same event, and it
is not unusual for the interests of stakeholders to conflict with each other.
• A good question to ask is: How would each of the stakeholders like to see the
largest portion of the budget spent?
Preparing the proposal
• The ‘art’ of proposal writing is extremely important for a professional event
organizer as this can often be how they secure most of their paid work.
• The likelihood is that the client will have invited proposals from several
professional event organizers and will ultimately choose which one to hire
based on their assessment of the proposal.
Screening and feasibility
• In determining the feasibility of an event there are two essential questions:
• Is the proposed event the best solution?
• Is the proposed event likely to succeed?
Phase 2: Design and detailed planning
The detailed planning stage involves:
• Planning the programme
• Selecting the location / venue
• Planning the site layout
• Event production and operational planning
• Recruiting the event team
• Event marketing
• Financial planning
• Sourcing suppliers and contractors
Phase 3: Managing the event on-site
• Ensuring that the movement of people, equipment, goods and services are delivered safely
on time and to the right location.
• Getting all aspects of the site ready for delivery in the load-in phase becomes one of the
most detail-driven and time-consuming aspects of event delivery.
• Crowd management, safety and security, medical and welfare services, hygiene and
cleanliness, and risk assessments. For outdoor sites, monitor weather conditions.
• Event load-out.
Phase 4: Post-event: evaluation and reporting
• Evaluation includes feedback from event stakeholders including participants,
client, suppliers.
• Debrief meetings within the team, with key suppliers and partner
organizations.
• Follow-up on feedback and say thank you. Avoid bombarding people with
emails.
A final word on the event planning process...
• There is no one right way when it comes to the step-by-step
process for planning and organizing an event.
• Even the most experienced event organizer will adopt a more
systematic approach to planning an event, especially larger or
more complex events.
Summary
• The success (or failure) of any event is largely down to what happens long before
the day of the event; in other words, how well it is planned.
• Planning any event involves a certain amount of repetition because there are
various key activities and tasks that are carried out for most events.
• Prior to the commencement of detailed event planning, it is essential to clarify the
event concept, objectives (including stakeholder objectives) and budget as well as
considering the feasibility of the event.
• Creating a professional and thorough proposal document is essential to gaining
support for an event – whether for an external or internal client.
Summary
• The design and detailed planning of an event involves a whole host of different
activities, and for larger events it is likely an event organizer will need to delegate
certain tasks.
• Post-event activities such as the event evaluation need to be planned well in advance
in order to provide useful lessons for future events.
• Developing your own bespoke event planning model can help ensure a standardized,
more consistent approach to planning events and will make sure that you don’t
overlook anything important.
Questions for reflection
1. Discuss why using an event planning model benefits events managers.
2. Why is the research phase so important, and how can it support events managers working
smarter and utilizing resources more efficiently?
3. Is there a phase of the model which is most critical to the delivery of your event?
4. Why?
Explore further
• See the online resources available at the Kogan Page website for this book, including over
35 case studies from previous editions of the book – especially the case study on working
together to develop a bespoke event planning model by Ken Brown and Ruth Dowson.