1. Getting started
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Why, Who, What, Where, When & How?
Why?
First, it is vital to understand why you want to hold an event.Is an event the best way to attain your goals? Events can serve to:
- Celebrate significant occasions or achievement
- Engage directly with stakeholders, both existing and new
- Showcase expertise and raise the profile of specific work
Failing to establish a clear objective may lead to reputational damage and wasted resources. Organisers should not underestimate the considerable time/budget commitment required for planning an event. Ensure that your department has sufficient resources to manage event organisation from the outset.
Who?
Once you've established your event's aimed, identify your target audience. This may include, Alumni, local Schools, Academic researchers, Staff, Students or the local community.
Understanding your audience helps determine elements like timing, location, format, and logistics.
What?
What will the event cover? What format would you like the event to be delivered in? Considering the following may help you decide on what structure would be best for you:
- What format can be realistically achieved with the budget and resources available?
- What format will appeal most to your target audience?
- What format will help you to achieve your event objectives?
- What format is most accessible and inclusive?
Examples of event formats include: Conferences, Lectures, Panel Discussions, Exhibitions and Tours
Where?
You will need to consider the following factors when deciding on the best location for your event:
- Are there adequate welfare facilities (toilets, parking)?
- Have you got adequate furniture provided (seating, tables, screens)?
- If it is an outdoor event, have you made contingency plans for extreme weather?
- Is the venue accessible (hearing loop, lift access)?
- Is Audio Visual equipment required/provided?
- Is the venue aesthetically pleasing (clean, tidy, formal, informal)?
- What is the maximum capacity of the room (would it accommodate your visitors)?
- Will you need a breakout room/area nearby (for catering, registration, and storage)
The University has a variety of spaces that can be booked. Some campus areas can be reserved via the Room Bookings team, free of charge. However, non-centrally bookable spaces are managed by the Venue Reading team and incur charges. You can see a list of 2023-2024 central rooms. Pay close attention to the maximum capacity of rooms and ensure these limits are not exceeded.
Email: rooms@reading.ac.uk or info@venuereading.com.
When?
The timing of your event is crucial. When your event is scheduled may be dictated by the availability of the room(s), guest speaker, and other external factors that you may wish to consider:
- Are there clashes with University events or any events within the same field? Contact the events team to check or you can view any public University events.
- Are there any public holidays, international/national observances or planned travel disruptions that may impact visitors getting to Reading?
- Do you have enough lead time to plan and deliver the event to a high standard?
- Does the date and time of day work for your target audience?
How?
How will you develop an actionable plan to bring your event to life? Here are practical considerations you will need to consider:
- How are you going to allocate/secure resources (staff, time, budget)?
- How are you going to deliver the event within the timeframe you have?
- How will you track progress, share, and manage tasks?
- How will you navigate challenges? Is there a contingency?
- How will you evaluate the success of your event?