One of our readers e-mailed to say that he is planning the schedule for a statewide convention of fire chiefs. To make his mark on the meeting, this planner wants to move from what he calls a “plain and simple” format to one that “raises the bar.” His note arrived just as I was reviewing the agenda for a meeting I’m planning to attend. My observation of that meeting’s agenda is that it seems to get longer each year. For a group of less than 500 members to have a meeting that runs from early on Monday until late on Friday seems to be a bit excessive.

So how can an association looking to add value to their meetings and conventions avoid needless agenda creep yet make their meetings something special? This month and next, I’ll be providing suggestions based on what we’ve learned by attending countless conventions and organizing our company’s annual TEAMS Conference:

Have a vision of the experience you’re attempting to create. Looking at your event as an “experience” helps broaden your overall approach to the planning process. Putting yourself in the place of the attendees is an excellent way to increase the odds of exceeding their expectations.

Here are some key questions to ask yourself: Is the primary purpose of your event education? Is it business development for your members? Is it networking? Is it a combination of some or all of these? How would your attendees answer the primary purpose question? Knowing those answers is the starting point for envisioning ways to enhance your attendees’ experience.

Create a sensible flow for your event. Before you begin scheduling items on your event’s agenda, take a step back and consider what would make the most sense in terms of the event’s flow.

Be careful what you call things. Pre-conference sessions, plenary sessions, post-conference sessions, opening receptions, welcome receptions … Be sure the names you attach to agenda items clarify what the attendee can expect. The name assigned to an agenda item is often the only thing considered as the attendee is deciding what parts of your event to attend.

Make sure your event has a beginning, a middle and an end. The most important aspect of event flow is being able to group the various components of your event so that they flow from start to finish in a logical fashion.

Do you have additional suggestions on how to plan the best possible agenda? Let us know by leaving a comment below (including your name, title and organization).

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