EPMS
Human Resources
More often than not the success of a special event is dependent on the personal
abilities of the leadership and the members of the various teams. No matter
what overall command and control system is in place, the personal qualities
of the event leadership can inspire staff like no 'action sheet' or
'responsibility list'.
Rather than giving the usual HR chapter, I believe it would be far more
instructive to list the thoughts and tips of a variety of successful event
managers. Below is a list of quotes from event managers on these topics;
Volunteers
"I believe that it is terribly important to give the volunteers clear instructions. Particularly what to do if something goes wrong. What might go wrong and what they should do. But to do this in a humorous way so that you don't' scare them." Celia Wade
Qualities of a good event manager
"As well as the expected qualities like leadership qualities, a good team builder and sound basic financial knowledge, I'd add a sense of humour. "Celia Wade
Qualities of someone you would hire
"Clear thinking with a logical train of thought. A team player who gets on with people or at least is comfortable with a variety of people. An ability to delegate - I find that it's always a disaster when they want to do it all themselves. They need event stamina. This means the ability to work intensely and completely focussed for a number of weeks. If they get tired at 3 o'clock in the afternoon, they can't go home and put their feet up. In other words they need to be able to adjust to this intensity." Celia Wade
Profile of event managers who contributed to this list
Celia Wade : Celia is the director of Creative Leisure Pty Ltd. She was the General Manager of the Royal Easter Show, Australia's largest Agricultural show placed in central Sydney. As well Celia worked as the event manager for Darling Harbour and was the manager of Australia's first major multicultural festival, Carnivale.
Copyright W.J. O'Toole 2001