Welcome to the HopSkip Planner Spotlight Series, where we highlight event professionals making waves across the events industry to share lessons learned and raise awareness of their invaluable contributions.
Name: Caitlin Frank
Company Name: SCIEX
Job Title: Senior Manager, Global Events
Can you briefly tell us about your background in event planning and how you got started in the industry?
I started my career answering phones at a Marriott Resort in college, and I had glamourous dreams of owning a hotel one day (oh, to be young and dumb). Years later, I was asked to interview as a Sales and Catering Assistant, and I just thought, "I don't want to sell these same four walls every day. I want to be the client". And that's how I discovered events. I've done everything from weddings and social events to third-party planning, but when I found corporate events, I KNEW this was my career for the rest of my life.
How do you go about selecting the perfect hotel or venue? What factors weigh most heavily in your decision?
The key to selecting the perfect hotel is to truly understand your stakeholder/client. What are they trying to achieve with this event? If it's a 10-hour intense training, then I'm probably not looking for the hotel with the best lazy river in Cabo. But for an incentive trip, that might be a big draw. So know your client... and their budget before you start sourcing venues.
What does the initial planning phase of securing a venue look like for you? Could you walk us through your initial steps?
Step 1: Introductory call with the client to find out their meeting goals, their budget, and the program flow. This call could be up to an hour long and covers everything from meeting dates, number of attendees, meeting space requirements, AV setup, food and beverage needs, and typical concession requests.
Step 2: Create an RFP draft and review it with the client for accuracy. What did we miss? At this stage, I also like to have them prioritize their wish list. What is a must-have vs a nice-to-have
Step 3: Venue research on what has the capacity and amenities to meet the client's needs. This is where NSOs and CVBs are invaluable resources, especially if you aren't personally familiar with the city you are sourcing. A strong event-tribe is the key to success!
What common financial challenges often arise when organizing an event, what strategies do you use to mitigate them, and how do you avoid them?
Every event has its unique challenges, and nothing goes 100% wrong. My best practice is to build a 10% contingency into every budget for the unknown. Depending on the size or complexity of the event, I might increase the contingency budget. The budget items I ALWAYS buffer are A/V, transportation, and shipping/drayage. My secret to cutting my budget in a jam is catering. Hotel food and beverage prices are extremely inflated (sometimes up to 400%), which means they have plenty of room to lower prices and still make a profit. Most hotels will make custom menus to meet your budget if you ask.
How do you leverage technology to boost efficiency during the planning, execution, and post-event stages? What does your “event tech stack” look like? (For example, using Survey Monkey for surveying attendees post-event)
Technology has become increasingly more important as sustainability initiatives are finally being taken seriously by the corporate world. Gone are the days of event planners carrying around a 5" three-ring-binder. However, there are so many tools available now that finding the right ones for your company can be challenging. The best advice I can give you is to embrace whatever technology works for you, even if it's not the newest or best thing available. My current event stack consists of: Wrike and Miro for project management, Qualtrics for post-event surveys, and Tiled for digital literature fulfillment. I also try to use digital signage onsite as much as I can and all my staff has iPads with the GoodNotes app when they are onsite running a program #GameChanger
Do you use frameworks, templates, or other tools/documents to help you stay organized and manage the event planning process?
I have standard work templates for all phases of the event life cycle! Call me old-school, but I am still a strong believer that nothing will ever truly replace EXCEL in the event planning world. At my current company, we use Microsoft Teams as our main communication channel, and I frequently integrate my meeting channels with Miro, which is a digital whiteboarding application that is great for collaborative exercises in a remote environment. There are other project management tools to help with task management and timelines, like Write, Monday.com, or event Microsoft Tasks, which saves planners a lot of time in manually updating an action plan before every call.
Do you have any specific strategies or insights for enhancing the attendee experience at your events?
The attendee experience is all about creating core memories and Instagramable moments. This is where your hotel partners and DMCs can be key to your success Challenge them not to give you the cookie-cutter packages they offer to every client. Can that boring lunch salad be more creatively plated? Can we curate a playlist for the airport transfer to the hotel? Lately, my most successful events have incorporated hands-on CSR activities, which really resonate with attendees.
Effective communication is crucial in any planning process. How do you ensure you and your event stakeholders are always on the same page?
The average person has to see something 7 times before it registers in their mind. So, communicate frequently and consistently. Establish a centralized location where all stakeholders can find the information they need and keep it organized. Establish a cadence of planning calls and send out a recap email to everyone detailing key decisions and outlining any actions needed before the next call. Set milestone dates where you need key approvals from your stakeholders and hold teams accountable to meeting those deadlines. Lastly, have some kind of onsite planning document that outlines key points of contact and general event details so that anyone could pick up and run with your event in case of an emergency.
How do you facilitate networking opportunities among attendees? Are there any specific tactics or strategies that you recommend?
Networking can look different depending on the audience. If attendees don't know each other, then good old-fashioned ice breaker games go a long way to loosening up a room. I also like to place conversation starters on tables during meals or breaks. This could be as simple as an acrylic sign that says, "My biggest challenge last year was..." and then change the prompt daily. We also like to add optional ancillary activities into our program to encourage like-minded people to connect: a 1-mile run before breakfast, a yoga class after the end of the session, or a ping pong break in the afternoon.
What's your go-to plan for handling emergencies or unexpected situations during an event?
Most importantly - STAY CALM! Always have an emergency plan onsite and review this plan with your onsite team, the venue, and any other vendor partners during your Pre-Con Meeting. In your opening session, you should always point out a key contact person for any issues onsite, the nearest emergency exits of the venue, and where your group meet-up point will be in the event of an emergency. Also, post local non-emergency contacts in your mobile app, such as the closest pharmacy, closest hospital, etc.
Can you share an example of a significant challenge you faced while planning an event conference and how you overcame it?
Last fall, I was 1 week away from a large customer meeting in the Middle East when the war in Israel broke out. Our company immediately shut down all non-essential travel to the region, and we were in serious jeopardy of having to cancel the meeting. After several calls with the hotel, my local DMC partner, and my management team, we decided that we could move forward with the meeting, but only 7 "essential employees" were allowed to travel onsite (and I was not one of them). Luckily, with the help of our vendors, we were able to shift to a hybrid meeting where presenters who couldn't attend in person could remote in, and we hired local staff from the DMC to be my eyes and ears onsite. We held a 3-hour training session to review my onsite planning guide, and I managed the meeting remotely through WhatsApp group chats with the onsite staff. While it was the most stressful week of my life, the attendee experience wasn't greatly affected, and we were able to pull off a successful meeting despite the major hurdle.
What are the typical steps you take in the post-event phase?
I try to have my post-event survey out to attendees the day the meetings end. I find I get the highest response rate while it's fresh in their minds, and they have nothing else to do while waiting for a flight. Then, schedule a post-con call with the venue and all vendors. Internally, I will do a Start-Stop-Continue exercise with my planning committee. All that info gets wrapped into a post-event report for stakeholders.
What key performance indicators (KPIs) do you use to evaluate the success of an event?
KPIs are so hard for internal (non-customer-facing) events and are probably the thing I struggle with the most. Success is usually a combination of subjective post-event survey responses from attendees as well as metrics like we were on/under budget. I try to keep my post-event survey questions consistent year-over-year so I can track improvement and have a combination of tier ratings-based questions and open-ended fields for suggestions/improvements. And always read your survey responses after a glass of wine because people love to complain, and you will never please everyone.
What advice would you offer someone just starting their career in the meetings and events industry?
(1) Network and get involved in the industry - MPI, Site, IMEX, etc because you never know where your next job will come from (2) Your reputation will follow you, so lead with kindness and compassion (3) Having experience on the supplier side is invaluable. Spend at least 6 months working at a hotel or DMC, and it will make you a much better planner (4) Seek out the type of events you are passionate about. This industry is so vast, and the work is too stressful to be somewhere that doesn't bring you joy. If you love what you do, then you truly never work a day in your life.
This post is part of the HopSkip Planner Spotlight Series, where HopSkip spotlights planners across the industry to bring awareness of how important the meetings/events community is to our world.