Event Architects To Know in 2024 - Colleen Neubauer, Cadence Design Systems
Colleen Neubauer, Cadence Design Systems, discusses how she builds and plans meetings and events in the evolving hospitality landscape of 2024.
Luke Whalin
Jun 10, 2024
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: Colleen Neubauer
Company Name: Cadence Design Systems
Job Title: Events Manager
Can you briefly tell us about your background in event planning and how you got started in the industry?
I started in 2005 as a marketing manager that was thrown into planning our conferences. I liked meeting planning so much that i wanted to do it full-time.
How do you go about selecting the perfect hotel or venue? What factors weigh most heavily in your decision?
Location, dates, accessibility, meeting room layout, service
What does the initial planning phase of securing a venue look like for you? Could you walk us through your initial steps?
What common financial challenges often arise when organizing an event, what strategies do you use to mitigate them, and how do you avoid them?
If it's a hotel, I submit the RFP to the CVB, NSMs, and other sourcing companies. After reviewing the proposals, I conduct a site visit with a site questionnaire.
Rising costs from the original booking is a challenge. You cut back in other areas and increase registration fees. Add sponsorships. To avoid them, you need to lock down almost all pricing in the contract stage.
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)
Using monday.com for project/task management is essential to boost efficiency in all stages. We use vFairs for event management, app, onsite registration, lead capture, and on-demand. SurveyMonkey for surveys. Zoom Events for recording, Vimeo for video editing.
Do you use frameworks, templates, or other tools/documents to help you stay organized and manage the event planning process?
We use monday.com for task management. we use teams for collaboration and file/document management.
Do you have any specific strategies or insights for enhancing the attendee experience at your events?
We always review the surveys to see what worked and what didn't. We attend continuing education to keep up with trends.
Effective communication is crucial in any planning process. How do you ensure you and your event stakeholders are always on the same page?
Weekly check-ins are vital for specific groups, and then every other week for the entire team to ensure cohesiveness.
How do you facilitate networking opportunities among attendees? Are there any specific tactics or strategies that you recommend?
What's your go-to plan for handling emergencies or unexpected situations during an event?
Can you share an example of a significant challenge you faced while planning an event conference and how you overcame it?
We use the app for gamification with meeting new attendees points and roundtables for more intimate networking.
Every company should have an established emergency response plan that is known to all stakeholders and reviewed yearly.
At one training event, the power went out 45 minutes before the sessions began. It was about 45 people. There was a foyer with lots of natural light. We always pre-print the slide decks in case something like this happens. We moved everything to the foyer so we could still have the training. 5 minutes before it started the power came back on.
What are the typical steps you take in the post-event phase?
The attendee post-survey, stakeholder debrief, and vendor debrief.
What key performance indicators (KPIs) do you use to evaluate the success of an event?
Overall attendance, session attendance, mobile app usage.
What advice would you offer someone just starting their career in the meetings and events industry?
Look at the big picture and drill down to the minute detail of how to get the big picture. pretend you are an attendee and walk through the entire event to see what you are missing.