When was the last time you attended an event that you thought was good value for money?
This is what i thought when i left the working seminar on good governance across Europe that I attended in Paris last Tuesday. Even better: I was the organiser! Actually, I was just one of the organisers and it was successful despite my contribution. As john says, I’m an agent of chaos…
Fortunately, the others were well experienced in the topic and facilitation as well. As Hanneke aptly commented: ‘I was skilled in gathering the best team to compensate my tendency to cause chaos’.
We had John, Linda, Olivier, Patricia, Hanneke and Cliff, enrolled at the last minute.
Is there a recipe for the perfect event? I’m not sure, but I can tell you what made the event in Paris a success at least.
These are as follows: Filippo’s 9 special ingredients.
1) Topic: It must be interesting, controversial, a source of lively discussion with a scope which crosses borders and boundaries;
2) Speakers: Chose a few strong, experienced, knowledgeable speakers excluding representatives of ‘whatever’ and limiting EC contributions to attend. Please forget the Tesco model displaying an army of speakers – one for delegate – who end up leaving 5 minutes for Q and A;
3) Format: Stop yelling at people and start being creative and experimental. Taking risks and surprising delegates. We chose the open space format. It can be chaotic but its fun forcing people to engage with each other and organising good things for networks;
4) Venue: Forget the old fashion – peace and love- cheap because we don’t waste money on venue. Chose a flashy one as we did with the Auditorium of La Macif. Treat your delegates as you like to be treated, Jesus would recommend this. Make them feel they are special and their contribution is welcomed. Don’t forget flashy venues are owned by wealthy owners who might be generous and give for free;
5) Food and drinks: Good food, not crappy English we-save-the-money on food style. Follow the French and Italians. Good quality and a lot of it. At the end- lots of alcohol to celebrate. I recommend champagne. Soft drinks for the Muslims. Separate table for the orthodox of any religious group;
6) Interpreters: Don’t even dare save money on this. Pay for the best and you will get the easiest interaction between delegates. With a young audience it might not be necessary but with an aging population we will include this in the budget for a while;
7) Delegates: This is the most important bit. Think about it and select them. ‘For many but not for everybody’ should be your motto. You want smart and motivated delegates. Wankers and pompous participants must be banned;
8) Communication: Don’t forget a press release, pictures and video. You can upload everything in the website. Unfortunately we won’t have one yet….We could afford just to record the sound like in the 30’s. Poor third sector;
9) Follow up: Don’t forget to follow up with a report using delegates’ contributions and possibly use the event to build a coalition for your next project. Delegates will feel they are part of a community leading on a project rather than just a participant at an event soon forgotten. Make it a part of history.
By the way, if you want to read more about the event see:
