Tips and Ideas for Planning Last-minute Business Meetings and Events

If you are in the corporate world, you have probably found yourself planning last-minute events or meetings. This last-minute planning can disorient and leave you confused, which can then lead to the flopping of your event or meeting.

Of course, you do not want that, but what should you do? Here are some tips and ideas that will come in handy when it comes to ensuring that your last-minute meeting is successful.

Before you start panicking and trying to sort things out like finding where to rent a stand for your event, you may want to question whether the meeting is necessary in the first place.

Determine all possibilities

Keep in mind that planning a meeting takes time and organization, so you don’t want to rush into something that requires some time and proper planning.

Ask several important questions and find out if the meeting can be held at a later date so that you can schedule the event accordingly.

Understand the Fundamentals 

After establishing that the event or meeting is unavoidable, you want to jump into action by first understanding and planning the basics.

This includes knowing the agenda of the meeting, where it is going to take place, and who is attending, amongst other things.

When you get to the budget, keep in mind that quality is paramount and should therefore not be compromised. Usually, last-minute purchases do not go together. Be prepared and willing to make an investment to ensure the success of the event.

Have a Checklist

When it comes to planning anything, a revision list is your best ally, and it is no different when it comes to business meetings or events. A checklist will come in handy at times like these, and will prevent unnecessary mishaps.

With many pieces making up the event or meeting puzzle, the only way to keep tabs on details and bring everything together is by having a guideline.

List everything you need as well as everything that needs to be done. Have this list at hand the entire time you are doing the planning to tick off things once they are acquired or done.

A checklist ensures that you cover all your bases and as you can imagine when you are thorough, there is a higher chance that your event or meeting will be successful even if it is last minute.

Make a Contact List

Who do you call when you need supplies and services on short notice? These are the people you require to have on your contact list. Think about catering, seating, audio-visual, and anything else you may need, and make a list with email addresses, fax, and cell phone numbers.

It will certainly be of help when you require putting something together within a few hours.

Update it often as well because contact information is liable to change and the last thing you want is to hit a dead end with your planning.

Foster Meaningful Relationships 

It is easy to wait until you need a favour from someone to call them, but that will not always work well. Instead, you want to build a support system or a dream team. This is essentially a contact base of vendors, suppliers and meeting professionals that you can call on for help if you need it.

You want to make it a point to discuss their resources and strategies for handling last-minute meetings, and keep that information somewhere where you can retrieve it fast whenever you require to.

Remember to include co-workers who might be able to help within short notice.

Have a Backup Plan in Place

Since we are looking at last-minute plans here, chances are that some things will not turn out as expected. In that regard, you want to have a backup plan, keeping in mind that your original plan may have unexpected changes.

When that happens, you will have to keep calm to carry out the event. It is necessary to have a supplementary plan somewhere in case you need it.

Final Thoughts

Planning a last-minute meeting is stressful and can make you forget some things, so organize by points, from the beginning of the event to the end of it, so you can be better organized and not overlook anything.

You can also consult resources to plan your event and have a broader view of how to do it.

Try to keep your cool and have a sense of humour while at it. This is an invaluable survival technique that will make you run the event in the best possible way.