Organize events at EPT - Kunnskapsbasen
EPT - Department...
Organize events at EPT
Local tips and to-do-lists on how to organize conferences/seminars/workshops/webinars at the Department of Energy and Process Engineering.
See also: Organize a conference | Who does what in EPT Admin
Innholdsfortegnelse [-]
- Planning - general
- Outreach and promotion
- Financial planning
- Targeting right audience
- Registration and e-mailing
- Final registration activities/e-mailing
- Logistical matters (physical event)
- Planning and Preparing (physical event)
- Additional information to participants (physical event)
- Convention stationary (physical event)
- Conference pack contents (physical event)
- Venue related activities (physical event)
- Meeting rooms (physical event)
- Photographs (physical event)
- Organize a digital conference/webinar
Planning - general
- Contact EPT’s event organizer as early as possible to plan preparatory meeting.
- Discuss and agree on dates and plans/wishes.
- EPT’s event organizer fills out conference form in order to get a project number for the conference; for this an estimation of the budget + sources is obligatory.
- Recruit/Organize working group: Support within/outside organization.
- EPT’s event organizer will possibly recruit conference assistants.
Outreach and promotion
Contact EPT’s web contacts for web page set-up.
Financial planning
- Determine the budget and ask EPT’s event organizer to make an overview of all costs after she has gathered information.
- Identify sources of funding/income together with EPT’s event organizer: E.g. participant fee/institute support/personal account/sponsors.
- If necessary: Discuss department support with Head of Department.
- Contact (other) potential funders.
- Ask EPT’s event organizer to establish a registration website for participants through Hoopla, where participants can also register other things like which sessions they are interested in, whether they want to attend the social event(s), whether they have special needs and dietary requirements etc.
Targeting right audience
- Think about whom you want to invite and whether and how much fee you want the attendees to pay (different registration groups?).
- Recruit chair persons.
- Invite VIPs and other officials.
- Invite opening speaker.
- Invite keynote speakers.
- Determine who is welcoming VIPs and other officials.
Registration and e-mailing
- Workshop registration – set deadlines for several groups.
- Confirm method for registration through Hoopla.
- Create registration form, think through all essential information required (should be easy to complete and also clear).
- Discuss registration fee (early bird/late registration/discount fees for students/partners of participants/cancellation and refund).
Final registration activities/e-mailing
- Ensure all registration forms received have been processed and resolve queries.
- Send final confirmation of registration to participants, if not already done through Hoopla.
- Make final list of registered participants.
- Report updated list of participants to main responsible.
- (physical event) Produce name badges with participant’s first name, family name, affiliation, country and other necessary information. Use colored dot stickers to add distinctions.
- (physical event) Produce name badges for workshop staff (preferably another paper color than white).
Logistical matters (physical event)
- Identify suitable workshop site and venue.
- Identify need for break-out rooms.
- Negotiate equipment for rooms.
- Take options on selected workshop venues; make provisional bookings wherever possible.
- Provide a list of convenient, local accommodation with a range of prices.
- Check transport of transport to hotel/venue. Describe how to get to hotel/venue of conference.
- Check and arrange special transport for VIPs/officials from and to airport.
- Determine catering facilities (coffee, tea, drinks, snacks, lunches, dinners, conference dinner) and likely requirements and contact them at early stage.
- Contact suppliers of promotional items, e.g. bags/pens etc.
- Contact suppliers of gift items and make arrangements.
- Contact local tourist agency for booklets and social activities, if needed.
- Determine events and social activities and plan booking.
Planning and Preparing (physical event)
- Identify and confirm poster set-up.
- Transportation:
- Provide clear route descriptions to the conference site.
- How and where to get ticket for public transport; also give ticket prices.
- Display facilities:
- Identify firm and order poster boards.
- Arrange delivery of poster boards.
- Arrangements to set up and dismantle poster boards.
- Preferred formats of posters: Most likely A0.
- Preparations, venue, style, format and timing of conference dinner(s). Confirm date, location, timing etc. and consider all costs and who will cover them within the available budget.
- Appropriate entertainment.
- Parking facilities, if needed.
- Gifts for invited speakers and chairs.
Additional information to participants (physical event)
- Give info on emergency numbers (police, fire brigade, ambulance).
- Give info on Visa requirements and a clear statement that it is the responsibility of each individual participant to ensure they obtain an invitation letter (as needed in some countries) and the appropriate visa, if necessary.
- Give advice on clothing regarding only conference staff.
Convention stationary (physical event)
- Table cloth
- Badges
- Folders
- Pens
- Paper/Notebooks
- Poster pins
- Scissors, tape
- To consider: Conference bags? Other items?
Conference pack contents (physical event)
- Note paper
- Up-to date programme
- List of participants and their affiliation (send out afterwards; think GDPR!)
- Up-to-date logistical info
- To consider: Copy of evaluation form?
Venue related activities (physical event)
- Signs to meeting rooms and other areas.
- Set up registration desk.
- Prepare stationary box: pens, markers, scissors, tape, paper (small and big), post-its, poster pins, as well as last minute registration forms, city map, city booklets and a list of all staff and their mobile phone numbers.
- Ensure workshop staff is familiar with emergency evacuation procedures, toilets and other services etc.
- Coordinate timing of coffee/tea breaks and meal services.
- Coordinate staffing of the registration desk.
- Coordinate assistance in the meeting room(s).
- Briefing with workshop venue staff.
- Brief chair persons.
Meeting rooms (physical event)
- Confirm requirements for meeting room(s): flip charts, white board(s), special markers, projector(s), pc.
- Check seating and room-layout has been arranged as required.
- Water jug and glasses for chair(s) and speaker(s).
Photographs (physical event)
- Look through the program and consider when and where it would be best to have photos taken. Remember GDPR, see NTNU’s overview of consent in connection with photos – video – audio.
- Use house photographer or contact external photographer.
- Discuss the programme with the photographer and he/she should visit the conference site beforehand to determine shooting sites.
Organize a digital conference/webinar
- Decide on webinar topic, whom to invite, format, date and time.
- Decide on webinar content with webinar presenter.
- Contact EPT Web contact to discuss (possible) website and outreach, i.e. advertising the webinar.
- At the same time discuss the right platform with EPT conference organizer if you have not decided yet. You need to think about how interactive you want your webinar to be.
- Ask the EPT conference organizer to propose a registration possibility.
- You might also want to consider whether you want to be your own moderator (which includes certain tasks) or whether you want a moderator (internal/external) helping you to keep the webinar flowing.
- The EPT conference organizer will organize a test of the technology/platform on the day before the webinar, involving the EPT’s IT department.
- Host your webinar: lead discussions during the webinar, read questions from the chat for presenter to answer, keep an eye on people raising their hand to comment/ask a question during/after the presentation.
- Ask the EPT Web contact to publicize the webinar for you on the web page after approval of the presenter.
- Collect feedback on webinar.