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Creating an Agenda for Event Speakers

To run an event successfully, you need to prepare a good event program and an event speaker’s agenda—a schedule or protocol for speakers about what they will say and how they will act on the stage, etc.

Before every event, it’s important to think over the agenda, determine the list of participants, and read the reports of all the speakers and other relevant materials. All of this will require additional effort from event planners, but as a result, the event will run much more smoothly.

About an event schedule/agenda

According to various studies, meetings, conferences, or other events can take anywhere from 10% to 50% of the working time of the head of the organisation and other employees involved. To reduce time costs, initiators, organisers, and participants in events should make an agenda for event speakers that saves time and resources while also organising and speeding up the event workflow.

Creating a schedule for event speakers with an effective event management system allows for the monitoring and faster execution of orders, brief protocols, and schedules to help keep track of participants.

Reasons to create an agenda for event speakers

It is reasonable to use an event speaker’s schedule in order to:

  • Discuss the issues that cannot be resolved during the event.
  • Limit the number of event participants.
  • Prepare briefing materials for the event speakers.
  • Make calculations and provide analytical information, tables, graphs, summaries, photo and video materials, presentations, product samples, expert opinions, and any other relevant material well in advance.

Generally, any data that should be provided by specialised experts at the event must be clearly stated in the agenda for an event.

The task of the event planner is to prepare the agenda of the event, check the readiness of the materials, and provide the agenda to the chosen speakers.

How to make an event schedule for event speakers

The day or two before the event should be spent creating a schedule in terms of the chosen event format and the program. Usually, it looks something like the following:

  1. a) Event planners compile a list of all information materials with the help of responsible people who make presentations, etc.
  2. b) They may receive the materials in electronic form (for example, presentations, explanatory notes, etc.) from the relevant people.
  3. c) They may also compile printed abstracts and texts of speakers’ reports on their own.
  4. d) They may do the above mentioned via a professional event planning and management online platform.

Tips for event planners

It is possible to assign one responsible person or even a group of people who will execute the creation of an agenda assignment. Professional event planners often do this themselves to take better control over their workflow. They may also use an agenda for event template to optimise the process.

  • Make operational meetings to discuss the agenda.

Do not waste time on unnecessary preparations. Remember that the main task of each meeting is to discuss the agenda and make decisions about it. Only when everything is agreed upon should you start further event planning. You can arrange a meeting using a phone call, an SMS, an e-mail, or a personal round-table sync-up with the participants.

  • Calculate the timing.

To calculate the duration of the speaker’s presentation, check each statement with the spokesperson, schedule breaks if necessary, and calculate all the time segments on the calculator, adding an extra 20% to the amount received. This will be your backup.

  • Consider the speaking style of the participants.

In the process of preparing the event and creating a schedule for the speeches, it is very important to take into account the uniqueness of each participant. Pay close attention, and analyse the style of the speakers in order to create the right mood for the event. Some people prefer a calm monologue, while others will speak more emotionally and dynamically, which means faster. Some will involve the audience, while others prefer their presentation in a one-on-one debate style, etc.

  • Use new presentation formats.

It is not necessary to hold a conference in the standard format (i.e., one person speaks and the rest of the audience listens). You can use a variety of options for the presentation of information materials.

  • Warm up the audience.

Before the event or in between performances, you can use the announcements to increase the interest of guests. Choose the most interesting things and briefly describe what will be discussed further to boost the attention of visitors. Also, discover how to make an event more fun.

  • Take breaks.

To keep the atmosphere warm and relaxed, fit in some interesting breaks between performances. They can be filled with slideshows of interesting photos with comments that are directly or indirectly related to the topic, or with brief blocks of other interesting visual information.

People have different prevailing types of perception: some of them perceive information better while listening, while others prefer a visual approach. Consider this in order to effectively convey the maximum required data to each visitor.

How Gevme can help you

Work  in the organisation of conferences, exhibitions, awards ceremonies, and trainings in the position of event program manager (the person responsible for organising the program), as well as event marketer and other related positions, will be easier with the help of the expert Gevme platform.

People engaged in PR agencies in positions that involve the creation of concepts, content, and an agenda for event planning will also create a positive and smart event planning experience.

In addition, as an event planner, you will get work experience in marketing areas, space and time management, and business journalism (editing, publishing, and mailing) as well as other activities related to event organisation.

Online event management platforms have all the necessary features for performing the following functional duties:

  • Conducting personal or group research to create an agenda for a variety of events
  • Search, invitations, and confirmation of the speakers at the event
  • Coordination and support of speakers throughout the event and after it
  • Creation of texts for event promotion: email newsletters, offers, short texts to help other departments, etc.
  • Filling the program on the website
  • Creation of an attendees list
  • Check-in
  • Social media promotion
  • Time management
  • Templates
  • Partnership and collaboration and so much more

GEVME can also provide you with the tips and tools you need for event success and helps you avoid common mistakes:

The duration of the event should be regulated. Compliance with these rules can be easily monitored through the system.

When drawing up the program of the meeting, be sure to consider the time required for each speaker to present and discuss each issue thoroughly.

Do not neglect tips on how to write an agenda for event and other theoretical materials.

Work on the event accurately: Development and control of the content scenario as well as interaction with the speakers and technicians who provide sound, light, screen operation, and so on should also be done with precision.

Use an example of an agenda for an event if you are dealing with schedule creation for the first time in your event management practice and experience.

Conclusion

Clearly, there are numerous reasons to create an agenda for event speakers if the general style and the event format allow you to invite speakers to take part.

You can always approach writing an agenda for speakers more creatively. Create an agenda format for an event via Gevme. Use funny ideas or cartoons to create a humorous effect in your program, and assign speakers accordingly. This will help guests to relax, refresh the atmosphere, and give the event more of a dynamic feel.

For effective scheduling, feel free to use an event agenda sample or to ask for personalised help from the Gevme team directly.

You are also free to leave your comments below. Good luck!

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