This guide outlines important factors and tips for anyone organizing a corporate conference or meeting for up to 500 delegates. Many people organizing meetings have other responsibilities, limited time available and no formal training. This guide is designed to point you in the right direction, help make it a successful, effective and a worthwhile expense. Oh, and also make you look good!

• How to organize the meeting in 10 steps
• The 10 Step Guide in detail
• The Meeting Planner's Checklist

If you have appointed or intend to appoint a specialist company to organize your conference, our information and advice will provide a clearer indication of the work that is being undertaken for you as well as providing you with your own check list. Remember - Hotelpacc has 35 years experience in the industry and provides a free service. Why not ask for a quote? There's no obligation.

• Why is the conference being held?
  
This will help you assess the facilities required. It may be all technical exchange or there may be a high content of social activities.
• What are your objectives?
  
You need to know your goals in order to plan the program, speakers and content.
• Who and how many will attend?
  
Sometimes evident, but you will need the information to form a database for sending out invitations/registration and follow up information?
• When will the event be held and how long will it last?
  
Conferences are often held at traditional times of the year so as not to interfere with holidays, busy periods or other events. The speakers and key personnel must be available.
• Where is the best location?
  
This is a crucial factor. Finding the right venue is an important and time- consuming task. The destination needs to be accessible, affordable and provide the right facilities. See choosing a venue.

Sometimes the team is formally agreed (like a committee) and other times it can be fairly loose arrangement with one or two anchor personnel and others assisting when their time permits. The size of the team normally depends on the size and complexity of the event.

Organizing an event requires time so make sure those involved can provide the time when it is required and there is sufficient additional support available when needed. As a minimum you will need a Conference manager, Program manager & Administrative assistant(s) as well as a Conference chairperson.

• Decide meeting title and theme
• Agree meeting objectives
• Set the program
• Organize budgets and finance
• Determine policies on attendance
• Organize registration
• Liaise with delegates
• Appoint professional assistance and liaise with them
• Organize the venue
• Evaluate the meeting

Even if you have assistance it may be an advantage to employ professional help. It is best to do this early and make use of the knowledge, experience and advice from the outset. A conference company will assist with finding the right venue, dealing with accommodation and appointing other companies as necessary (audio visual, registration services etc). See Tips for Choosing a Specialist company.

• A conference organizer to assist you with venue finding and/or event management. Hotelpacc provides a free service - Ask for a free quote.
• A company to handle registration management, with real time information which you can extract online, 24 hours a day, for control purposes. Ask Hotelpacc about their registration services.
• A specialist hotel reservation company with Online facilities to source hotels, manage allocations and deal with individual delegates. Ask Hotelpacc about their Hotel reservation services.
• An audio visual company for interpretation and presentation equipment.
• A production company for set build.
• A company for exhibition space design and build.
• A PR company.

Accurate budgeting is a critical issue in planning an event (crucial if the finance director is to be kept happy!)

All financial arrangements must be confirmed in writing. All commitments should be incorporated into budgets. Financial plans and budgets must be reviewed regularly.

You need to know how much the event will cost. Projected expenditure should be split between fixed costs (paid no matter how many delegates attend) and variable costs (paid per delegate).

• Administration costs in planning meeting
• Staff attendance
• Promotion and communication costs
• Print costs
• Fees for appointed professionals
• Venue facilities
• Stage sets, signage, rooms dressing, theming etc
• Equipment hire charges at venue
• Speakers fees and expenses
• Staff transportation and travel costs
• Security
• Insurance
• Contingency allowances (possible 10%)

• Accommodation
• Meals and refreshments
• Functions
• Badges
• Presentation cases or folders
• Cost of registration
• Entertainment (where priced per person)
• Other per capita items

Individual delegate costs Add Fixed costs divided by expected attendance Add Any profit required divided by expected attendance You can now establish a financial plan and budget for approval. Other important financial matters to consider include:

• VAT implications especially if event is in Europe
• Cash flow budgets

The right destination and venue are crucial. With so much choice in any one country, let alone worldwide, it is also one of the most difficult and time-consuming tasks and the reason some companies go back to the same old venue year after year! You may well find appointing an experienced conference company / venue finding agency with a large database of information and good contacts will save you a lot of hassle and save you money. Hotelpacc provides a free worldwide venue finding service, discounted prices & quotations without obligation.

1. Hotels - ideal for residential conferences
2. Universities - good value and extensive facilities but available mainly in the vacation periods
3. Conference centres - facilities are often good but can be expensive
4. Unusual Venues - not designed for holding meetings but which may be used as such when available

Important Factors to consider:

Suitability of venue and destination
Consider theme of meeting, atmosphere you wish to create & previous events

Accessibility
How will everyone travel? Are there visa restrictions? Consider airports, stations, car parking.

Venue facilities
Doe the venue have everything you need? Are there any compromises? Check suitability of meeting rooms, syndicate rooms, office, bedroom accommodation, syndicate rooms & their distance from main rooms, wheelchair and disabled facilities.

Venue catering facilities
Can the venue cater for your number as required (in separate rooms, standing or seated) meet any religious or special dietary requirements?

Affordability
Check exchange rates and compare prices against budget.
Will delegates find the venue expensive for personal extras.

Safety & security
Check political issues. Verify local and venue security arrangements.
Will other meetings be taking place at the same time if so is there a conflict of interest or a security risk?

Overall impression
Think from the delegate's viewpoint. Will the event be memorable?

Choices of offsite venues for social events
Importance of having a change of scene if staying more than a day or two

Reliability of venue management
Wherever possible always visit the venue and reassure yourself about the facilities and management

Other items you may need to check at the venue:

• Smoking policy
• Creche facilities
• Leisure facilities
• Local facilities and places of interest

Keep in mind the objectives when selecting your speakers. High profile guest speakers can be a draw but useless if they're not relevant to your goals.

All speakers need to be good communicators and their speeches must be relevant, up to date and of the correct length for the time allocated. Speakers' presentation and audio visual aids must be determined and provided. Abstracts of the subject matter together with a short biography and photograph can be useful.

Good speakers are hard to find so identify potential speakers, who will relate to the audience, well in advance. Draw up a short list of first and second choices. If you do not know who to approach then speak to colleagues, consider contacting a university of professional body and check the Internet for experts in the field.

Ensure you check the speakers' costs, including their fee (or possibly a gift in lieu) and any travel and accommodation costs you will have to cover.

Speakers need to be briefed and advised the following:

• The objectives of the event
• The main topics you need them to cover
• The length of time they have been allocated
• The subjects being covered in other sessions especially the session immediately before and after.

The program is, of course, what matters. It is the reason for the meeting and the means by which the objectives are met. The program needs to be topical, stimulating, informative and balanced and the initial plan will need to be flexible to allow for important current issues, at the time of the event, to be featured.

Think about the following:

• Conference framework - the theme, objectives and balance
• Grouping of delegates & type of sessions - when all together in plenary or parallel sessions and when in groups for workshops, syndicates or special interest groups for discussions or problem solving
• Timing of sessions - allow for introductions, discussion feedback and questions
• Methods of presentation - use the best presentation methods for the subject matter
• Balance - remember there is a limit to the amount people can take in at one go so allow for breaks and networking time if it will be productive
• Smoking policy - have you set and communicated a policy concerning times and areas for smoking and does it conform to the venue policy?
• Alcohol policy - do you have a policy on alcohol (e.g. with dinner only) and is everyone including the venue aware of it?

Generally it is a good plan to have an opening session when the chairperson can welcome everyone and cover any 'housekeeping' issues and follow this with a keynote speaker to set the theme for the meeting.

The chairperson plays an important role. They need to ensure the event flows smoothly. They need to introduce speakers, manage questions from the floor and keep an eye on the time. Accordingly they will need to be good speakers themselves and will need to have their own briefing notes.


Depending on the size of the conference, this can be a major management undertaking in itself. If the conference and all accommodation is under one roof then it is much easier and accommodation can be allocated with registration.

If there are several hotels involved, you may decide to subcontract the arrangements to a specialist reservation company. This shouldn't cost you anything and you will probably save money, but you will still need to satisfy yourself concerning the range, prices and quality of accommodation available to delegates. Ask Hotelpacc for details of its free reservation service with facility to make hotels for delegates available online!

1. Are hotels easily accessible from the conference venue?
2. What type of accommodation is needed - range of hotels, university halls etc?
3. Is there a choice of standards and range of prices to suit all delegates?
4. Do contractual terms allow sufficient flexibility for late bookers?
5. Delegates will need to know the facilities available in the hotels including:
• Access and travelling time to the venue
• Will room have private bath or shower
• Self dial telephone
• Fax facilities
• Television in every room
• Hairdryers in every room
• Air-conditioning
• Room service
• Mini bar
• Laundry facilities
• Trouser press and/or ironing facilities
• Its own restaurant or coffee shop & bar
• Sports and leisure facilities
• Car parking
6. Do the hotels have the infrastructure to deal with check-in for large groups?
7. How early must the accommodation be booked and confirmed to secure the right accommodation?
8. Who will manage the allocations and release dates to ensure flexibility but avoiding the risk of financial penalties?
9. What deposits will be required and when must they be paid?
10. Will online booking facilities be available?
11. Will any special rooms or executive suites be required and is suitable accommodation available for speakers and visiting VIPs?
12. Do delegates understand arrangements for settling accounts?
13. Is accommodation held so delegates can arrive early or leave later than the convention period if they wish to make their own arrangements?
14. Will rooming lists and management information be available well before the conference begins?

The standard of catering can provide a lasting impression of a conference particularly if it is especially good or noticeably bad. You will need to ensure the following:

• There is a variety of food and content is not repetitive
• Special dietary or religious requirements and national tastes have all been catered for
• You have the right format for meals for the time allowed and space available
• You have chosen appropriate drinks to be served with meals and if drinks are on a cash basis delegates are aware of this and facilities are available to provide drinks efficiently and without delay
• Special attention is give to menu and drinks choice and themeing and entertainment for gala or special dinners which should be memorable events
• Final numbers for catering are advised by the due date and are accurate.

Informal networking and getting people talking outside the main conference sessions can be very productive and social activities are ideal for this. People appreciate the opportunity to discuss topical issues and problems with colleagues, or potential suppliers or clients or just those with a similar interest. Activities will depend on the time available, choices available, the delegates profile and budgets and can only be chosen when the conference program has been set.


As soon as the dates and venue have been decided you need to advise everyone involved. You may know who is to be invited or be offering the meeting to a wide audience or need to set a policy and issue a directive for attendance. Whatever the procedure motivate and involve the delegates from the outset. Be creative, make the information look good and the event appealing and exciting.


You will need to confirm:

• The dates and venue for the event
• The title and subject matter to be covered
• Who will be attending and any directive/policy
• The speakers, topics to be covered and outline program
• How to register
• Any costs involved and payment policy
• Cancellation policy and penalties
• Organizing team contact name, address, telephone, fax and email details
• Website addresses, where relevant, for registration and hotel reservations

Registration involves much time and detailed paperwork and is considerably more complicated if payment collection is involved. Try to keep it as simple as possible so the delegates don't need to contact you and ask questions and staff can process the forms easily. To stay in control and avoid unnecessary work it is important to set up an event database.

Ask Hotelpacc about their Online registration service which allows delegates to register easily, 24 hours a day and you organisers to collect information and set control parameters whenever they wish, day or night. If payment is involved then fees can be collected online so you receive the funds quicker.

Delegates will need the following information in advance:

• Venue location map and directions by available modes of transport
• Car parking facilities
• Accommodation arrangements
• Names of other delegates attending? (Can be sensitive or open to abuse!!)

Delegates will need the following information on arrival:

• Document case with program
• Delegate list (unless sensitive!)
• Badge with name
• Tickets or invitations to social and other events
• Information on sessions and workshops
• Venue site plan
• Safety & security information including fire precautions
• Any course or conference attendance accreditation
• Delegate evaluation form

After the event the organizing committee should meet to evaluate and possibly report on the meeting. If delegate evaluation forms were handed out, the results on the returns should be analysed, considered and used for planning future events.

Evaluate the following:

• Were your objectives achieved
• Were the delegates expectations met
• Did the speakers deliver and was the subject matter relevant
• Was the venue a success
• Did the appointed service suppliers do a good job
• Were there any complaints and have they been resolved, if not, what is being done
• Are letters of thanks due and who is responsible for them
• Do we want to publish post conference information in either hard copy or online

Keep all reports, statistics and accounting information - it will all be useful for planning the next time around.

Further information, professional help and expert advice can be obtained from Hotelpacc.

Tips for choosing a specialist company Choosing a specialist company to assist you with hotel accommodation, registration services or conference management may seem straightforward but there are some very important tips.

Generally companies fall into 2 types, those who charge a fee and those who provide a free service as they receive a trade commission or margin not available to you. Establish from the outset which type of company you are dealing with and any fees involved in providing a quote.

Hotel reservation and venue finding services are usually free. Registration services and conference management services normally involve a fee.

Important Tips:

1. Know what you want from the company
2. Check they are experienced in that field. Remember you contacted them because they are a specialist company - so they won't do everything.
3. Be prepared to spend time explaining your requirements in fine detail. The company can only do a good job for you if they know what you want. Time invested at this point helps you and them. If you don't have answers to any of their questions find out the information, don't guess - this could result in a lot of abortive work.
4. If requirements change tell them as soon as possible. They will understand but they won't be happy if you tell them 3 weeks after you knew.
5. For free hotel reservation and venue finding services, only ask one company for a quote at a time. If you ask more than one company to be involved they will all soon find out and will probably bin your enquiry believing they are involved in a time wasting exercise. Furthermore, prices will go up as suppliers will find they have several enquiries for the same facilities. Accordingly, the appointed company will not be able to obtain the best deal for you.
6. Make sure the company are your sort of people. You have to trust them and you will need to get on with the person acting as your contact.
7. Ask yourself:
• Are they established?
• Are they up to date with technology?
• Do they present themselves well?
• Are their prices good value?
• What support will they provide before, after and during the event?
8. Ensure they have Online services that can be tailored to your requirements for registration, hotel bookings, general information or web hosting.

Hotelpacc delivers Venue Finding, Conference Coordination, Meeting Planning, full Hotel Reservation Services, Registration Management Services, Event Management, Social Program, On & Off site Banqueting, Ground Services and Transport. We do not offer Marketing or PR Services

Hotelpacc and its associated divisions does not accept liability or responsibility for the information, or any errors or omissions, set out in this listing, which is designed to be a guide for general reference purposes only.