Division 1: Large Chapter (201 or more members) Kaleigh Maclaren, Executive Vice President, IABC Ottawa

Transcription

1 Chapter Management Awards 20 CHAPTER IABC Ottawa REGION Canada East CHAPTER BOARD TERM July 1 to June 30 TIMELINE July 1, 2015 to November 15, 20 DIVISION CATEGORY CHAPTER CONTACT Division 1: Large Chapter (201 or more members) Kaleigh Maclaren, Executive Vice President, IABC Ottawa evp@ottawa.iabc.com 1. BACKGROUND AND CONTEXT IABC Ottawa connects over 200 members and the greater Ottawa marketing, communication and creative community to learn about best practices, develop skills, create connections and access resources in a welcoming community. Established in 1976, the Ottawa chapter of IABC has a rich history of striving for effective chapter management to benefit our members, community and leaders. Our focus is on building a strong community, developing and supporting inspired leaders, and positioning our members as experts. We focus on helping our chapter members grow in their career by providing them with the skills and connections to succeed in their jobs. IABC Ottawa creates a demand for membership through a diverse slate of focused quality events, workshops and professional development opportunities. We also create innovative communications content, such as our popular podcast, The Voice, available around the world. The Voice helps listeners keep on top of the industry s hottest topics at both the local and international level. Chapter History/Challenges Despite stable membership and successful programming for the past six seasons, IABC Ottawa saw a decline in membership over 2015 and into 20, which also impacted event attendance. To attract new members and retain current ones, we refocused and revamped our PD portfolio, offering more price sensitive and value driven events that addressed audience needs. Additionally, we have added an emphasis on the value IABC Ottawa can have in developing leadership roles and invested in our leaders. To sustain and develop the chapter, we continue to ensure that we focus on the things we do well, achieve our goals and deliver the most value to our members. 2. OVERVIEW IABC Ottawa focuses on helping our chapter members grow in their careers by providing them with the skills and networks needed to succeed in their jobs. The local chapter is a vibrant community filled with knowledge, experience, ideas and a generous culture of sharing. Hosting monthly events is a key priority for the chapter and it ties directly to our overarching goal of building a stronger community. Members and the greater community continue to attribute our events as a key factor in their continued involvement with our chapter. Our events include professional development events, networking events, and specialty events. We focus on having a targeted number of events a season to ensure both quality and a variation of topics. At present, IABC Ottawa is pleased to have approximately 200 members and 300 non-members who regularly engage with the chapter through our events. The Events Team at IABC Ottawa plans and develops the innovative content delivered through our event activities by listening to member feedback, living the IABC brand, quickly adapting to challenges, and instituting effective planning process. Our approach helps ensure overall success both in terms of finances and attendee satisfaction. The Events Team is comprised of two VPs of Professional Development, who also sit on the IABC Ottawa Board, as well as two volunteer Director of Events, one Director of Partnerships, and one regular on-site event volunteer. IABC Ottawa Chapter Management Award Submission: Events 1

2 Chapter Management Awards 20 A strategic approach to event planning has been taken in the last 15 months as we identified and addressed challenges connected with a downward turn in membership numbers and engagement as well as a taxed Events Team. These two challenges were impacting event attendance, quality, and finances. To address these challenges, in combination with the continued challenge of a competitive event landscape, we refocused from offering 19 events to 10 events (one per month for the season). With a focused approach on events, we were able to strategically plan content to offer high quality events for the target audiences. The team was able to focus on finding fitting speakers on topics of interest, identify affordable venues and take time to curate content for audiences at each experience level while remaining on budget. 3. GOALS & OBJECTIVES Goals: The overarching goal for IABC Ottawa events are to offer quality events that connect the Ottawa communications community. This goal connects directly to the overall vision of building a strong community and members as experts. Objectives The objectives for the season as well as for the beginning of the season are: To develop useable tools for managing event logistics. To be consistent in event pricing strategy and break even at the end of each season. To make building a relationship with venues a priority to help with logistics. To host 13 diverse events between July 2015 and November 20 and for four of those events to be social networking events. To ensure a positive event experience by taking careful consideration of audience needs in event planning. To increase attendance to attract 50 to 120 attendees at all events and receive good to excellent on event satisfaction from post-event surveys. 4. BUDGET The events budget is completely covered by the registration fees and the overarching goal is to break even at the end of each season. Occasionally event sponsorship is secured. Generally, expenses include venue, food, promotion (Facebook Ads), and event platform fees. For most events we do not pay speakers unless it is a one-day workshop where there is a profit-sharing agreement. Between July 2015 and June 20, total sales were C$22, and total profit by fiscal year was C$ Between September 20 and November 20 total sales were C$ and total profit was C$ IMPLEMENTATION ACTIVITIES In organizing events for the season, the Events Team considers many factors including logistics, promotion, sponsorship, speaker caliber, overall event experience, and post-event activities. Each of these activities is underpinned by an overarching event plan for the year as well as individualized event plans for each specific event. Event Planning In the season, the Events Team had two co-vps who set up the season by leading events in alternating months by planning four to six weeks in advance with two to three weeks of planned promotions. Both co-vps were new to the role and transition into the role proved challenging due to a lack of onboarding tools and templates. While the season was successful as far as metrics go, being solely IABC Ottawa Chapter Management Award Submission: Events 2

3 Chapter Management Awards 20 responsible for an event every second month was a time challenge for the Co-VPs. To help alleviate this challenge, the co-vps for the season, one of whom was from the previous season, restructured the Events Team with focus on a collaborative approach that emphasized mentorship of volunteers, even distribution of work, and, above all, teamwork. While the co-vps remain responsible for key objectives such as building the overall event calendar, confirming speakers, and signing on sponsors, the new Events Team volunteers are responsible for operational tasks such as building run sheets, coordinating with venues, and managing event-day operations. In addition to the restructure, a Business Continuity Manual was created for the team to assist with all future role transitions. This how to guide contains all protocols, checklists, templates, and passwords for the PD portfolio and has only added to the success of the team. In its development, there was an opportunity to coordinate with previous VPs who had strong event seasons for insights and information that had previously been lost in transition. Finally, to help alleviate workload challenges incurred by the VPs, the team focused on planning an entire event calendar in advance based on input from previous surveys and input from the Board. A set plan at the beginning of the season outlining the types of events as well as timelines is imperative to the success of this portfolio. Speaker and Topic Selection Careful consideration, led by the co-vps with oversight from the board, goes into speaker and topic selection for all IABC Ottawa events. The criteria for speaker selection includes: well regarded in their field, high-caliber and engaging speaker, and excellent fit into the topic of the overall events calendar. One key challenge faced by the Events Team in recruiting speakers is mitigating speaker fatigue or topic fatigue. We aim to have a diverse selection of events in type and covering a range of topics. Thus far, the Team has been successful in recruiting high-caliber speakers on a wide range of engaging topics such as government relations, change management, crisis communications, and measurement. These speakers add to event learning and creating a well-rounded interesting event. Event Logistics Well executed events comes down to solid logistics planning. This is one factor that is of the utmost importance to the IABC Ottawa Events Team. While the events season was IABC Ottawa s most successful season to date, feedback from post-event surveys highlighted the need to explore new, quieter venues that were conducive to both networking and a learning environment as well as venues with better AV support. Recognizing these challenges, the Events Team created a comprehensive venue database complete with contact information, notes on experience, and pictures of the event spaces themselves. Efforts have been made to find spaces that are both dynamic but well-suited for a professional development experience. Additionally, the Events Team now requests the presence of an AV technician at all events. Ensuring these details and logistics are worked out well in advance requires a great deal of forethought on the part of the Events Team. Over the course of the last two seasons, several protocols were put in place. For example, the event lead creates an Event Plan approximately 6-8 weeks in advance and presents the plan at monthly Team meetings. This allows the entire Events team to give real-time feedback to the lead while ensuring that many logistical challenges can be overcome well in advance. The creation of run-sheets for the day of the event, extra copies of speaker notes, and testing all equipment before the event only serve to add to the success of events. Event Promotion One new challenge that has surfaced in the last few months, and perhaps is particularly prominent for the IABC Ottawa Chapter, is the competitive events landscape given the upcoming celebration of Canada s 150th anniversary in To help mitigate this challenge going forward, the Events Team has worked with the Marketing and Communications Team to increase promotion around events - particularly on Twitter - and has purchased Facebook advertising to promote upcoming events. The Events Team also provides the MarCom Team with event details and key messaging at approximately two weeks prior to tickets going on sale. The creation of a Slack account has greatly facilitated team interactions and sharing of files this season. This has allowed more time for planned social media promotion and more creative IABC Ottawa Chapter Management Award Submission: Events 3

4 Chapter Management Awards 20 cross-promotion of events thereby resulting in higher attendance rates. Additionally, in recent months the IABC Ottawa Chapter President has taken to Twitter and Facebook to share specially curated invitation videos to our events. This is one key example of how IABC Ottawa event promotion strives to cut through the noise in terms of event promotion on social platforms. According to Eventbrite analytics, on average, website integration accounted for 49.50% of ticket sales and Twitter accounts for 18.92%. It is clear that collaborating with the MarCom Team, creating unique content, and ensuring there is a communication plan properly executed on a specific timeline are all steps towards success. On-site marketing materials for events such as banners, membership brochures, and signage promoting the next event are now requirements for all events. Finally, one volunteer is chosen to live tweet from the IABC Twitter account at all events. This showcases the value of the event and serves to encourage future attendees. Speakers are also encouraged to promote their events within their networks. We have found this serves to increase discussion and excitement about the events. Event Experience and Member Value A key focus for the Events team is to ensure a positive learning experience for all attendees. While name tags and IABC Ottawa signage has been a long-time staple of events, improvements have been made over the course of the last season to both recycle name tags and include Twitter handles of guest speakers on the event signs. The latter allows for increased discussion and promotion of the event online. The Events Team also makes best efforts to great each guest at the beginning of the night as well as introduce all speakers to the IABC Board Members in attendance. Overall one of the key challenges for the event experience was parsing out increased member value in events. While member tickets to events are at a lower price than non-members, one piece of important feedback from membership was about receiving extra value through events. To help address these concerns, the Events Team began to specifically look at how we could enhance the experience for members. One simple solution to this challenge was including member ribbons on name tags for events to further create a sense of belonging and community. A second solution was the addition of event takeaways from speakers such as white papers, resource templates, and speaker decks. These takeaways are available to all event attendees but also to all IABC members. A final solution to help increase member value in events was the addition of Member Moderator roles where moderating spots on event panels are offered exclusively to members and promoted through post event s, newsletters, and at events through the MC speaking notes. Post-Event Activities Post-event activities are important to creating a full event experience and be able to improve for the future. Receiving feedback on a previous event is excellent input into future event planning activities. As such we make best efforts to send out post-event surveys the day after each event to gauge attendee satisfaction. While response rate is fairly average (10-12%) it does serve to highlight any significant issues. Paired with this is completing and balancing the monthly event budgets. These two activities allow the Co-VPs to report back with tangible feedback and results to the Board on a monthly basis while staying focused on our overarching goals for the season. Based on previous feedback about enhancing member value through events, we now send out event takeaways to the IABC Ottawa membership at large. This serves to not only enhance member value of the Chapter, but it also encourages attendance at future events. Finally, new to the season is regular Event Team monthly meetings. While these meetings do serve to prepare for future events, they are also an important space for debriefing about successes and challenges of recent events to ensure that all lessons learned can be captured. Partnerships and Sponsorships Strong relationships and partnerships are key to the success of the events portfolio. Early in the season, the Co-VPs secured a very successful partnership with Ottawa Venues. This partnership has led to strong relationships with some of Ottawa s most sought after restaurants and pubs. This is a relationship that has served the chapter well and has successfully carried over into the season. We are also privileged to partner often with other professional groups in the Ottawa area for some of our social events. These groups include Women in Communications Technologies, the Canadian Public Relations Society, and Creative Mornings Ottawa for example. IABC Ottawa Chapter Management Award Submission: Events 4

5 Chapter Management Awards 20 With sponsorship money from CNW we were able to create a full Season Closer event that included our AGM and Awards while allowing volunteers to attend for free. So far in the season, sponsorship dollars were put forward in October by Ingenium Communications to sponsor the future Holiday Social. Sponsorships add to the full event experience by being able to increase the event offerings. TYPES OF IABC AND THEIR UNIQUE VALUE The Events Team focuses on executing four main types of events throughout the season. We work to ensure that event logistics match the unique events formats for an enjoyable event experience. Senior Communicators Dinners, Young Communicators/Professionals Dinners, Professional Development Panels, and Networking Socials. Senior Communicators Dinners are intimate three-course dinner events with one executivelevel speaker (VP level and above) and 12 to 14 attendees with 10 to 15 years of professional experience. We strive to host at least two SC Dinners per season to provide senior communicators with a safe and collegial atmosphere in which to discuss pressing issues among their peer group. Young Communicators Dinners are intimate yet casual events with one or two mid-to-senior level speakers (Associate Director-level and above). Attendees are normally young communications professionals with 1 to 5 years of experience. We aim to host at least one of these events per season and, based on survey feedback, we strive to provide attendees with an opportunity to learn about how to excel and advance in their workplaces and professions. In order to keep prices low for young professionals, we often opt for lighter meals or sharing plates rather than three-course meals. Professional Development Panels are large, multi-speaker events that focus on a particular topic of interest such as crisis communications, measurement, or government relations. Attendees are from all levels and there is ample opportunity for networking both before and after the panel presentations and discussion. It is during these events that IABC Ottawa Members have the opportunity to moderate panel discussions. For these events, speaker and topic selection is of the utmost importance. Venue choice and attention to logistical details, such as AC considerations, is vital to success. Networking Socials are large-scale networking events with mainly a social component. Popular networking socials include the Season Openers and Closers as well as the Holiday Mix n Mingles. The overarching goal of these social events is to build networks and strengthen the community. Key strategies for accomplishing this goal include having on-site activities such as photo booths and draws for prizes as well as partnering with like-minded professional groups such as Creative Mornings Ottawa. Events such as these are also excellent spaces for handing out Chapter awards or recognizing important volunteers. Recognition efforts such as these further reinforce our goal of community building. EVENT ATTENDEE MEASUREMENT The following chart shows all regular and special programs hosted between September 2015 and November 20. Senior Communications Dinners are highlighted in blue, Young Communicators dinners in yellow, Professional Development Panels in green, and Socials in purple. Note that for this timeframe, the Events Team also held one special half-day workshop. This is highlighted in red. Programming is highlighted in green and Special Programming is highlighted in blue. Metrics come from Eventbrite and Survey Monkey. Date Event Name & Program Type Attendance Member/Non- Member* Overall Satisfaction (10pt scale where 1= excellent & 10 = poor) Net Profit/ (Loss) 09/24/ 2015 Season Opener T: 115 M: (30 responses) ($110) IABC Ottawa Chapter Management Award Submission: Events 5

6 Chapter Management Awards 20 NM: 50 S: 21 Sponsored by Shopify 10/22/ 2015 Fireside Chat with Mayor Jim Watson and Guy Laflamme on Ottawa 2017 T: 92 M: 29 NM: 46 S: (21 responses) $ /24/ 2015 Senior Communicator - AMA Government Relations and Public Affairs T: 17 M: 7 NM: /10 (9 responses) ($73.98) 12/02/ 15 Holiday Mix'n Mingle with IABC Ottawa, WCT NCR & Creative Mornings T: 117 M: 42 NM: 46 P: /10 (13 responses ($22.39) 01/28/ Networking in the New Year T: 61 M: 23 NM: 36 S: /10 (17 responses) ($149.44) 02/23/ Exclusive Event for Young Professionals: Project Phoenix T:12 M: 6 NM: /10 (7 responses) $ /24/ Crisis Communications in Canadian Politics T: 91 M: 19 NM: 54 S: /10 (12 responses) $ /11- Senior Communicator - Great Communicators: Great Leaders T: 15 M: 9 NM: /10 (3 responses) ($73.35) 04/28/ Measuring Your Organization s Digital Success T: 71 M: 21 NM: 38 S: /10 (13 responses) $ /26/ Workshop: Engaging Employees To Deliver Your Strategy and Brand T: 12 M: 3 NM: 9 - $ IABC Ottawa Chapter Management Award Submission: Events 6

7 Chapter Management Awards 20 06/22/ IABC Ottawa: Building a Stronger Community (End of Season Event) T: 68 M: 37 NM: 25 S: 3 D:3 - ($229.92) 09/27/ Season Opener: Celebrating Canadian Communicators T: 96 M: 41 NM: 35 S: /10 (13 responses) ($243.08) 10/18/ Secrets of Success: Building Award- Winning Communications Plans T: 48 M: 21 NM: 20 S:7 1.14/10 (7 responses) $ /29/ Exclusive Event for Young Professionals: Elevate Your Career T: M: 8 NM: 8 4.5/10 (2 responses) *T=Total, M=Member, NM=Non-Member, S=Student, D=Door Sales, P = Partner $ MEASUREMENT & RESULTS Objectives To develop useable tools for managing event logistics. To be consistent in event pricing strategy and break even at the end of each season. Results Developed a Business Continuity Manual (BCM) for the Events portfolio complete with procedures, checklists, templates, contacts and account information. The BCM was used to train incoming events team members and to support shared knowledge. Many items in BCM were developed and put in place by the Co-VPs to set the next season up for success by learning and developing the basics to build on. Developed an overarching Event Plan for the entire season that was informed by the IABC Ottawa Board and community. Instituted the use of specific event plans, MarCom request forms, and event-day run sheets to manage event logistics. Ensure monthly meetings of the Events Team prior to the monthly event in order to work out any logistical details or challenges. Consistent pricing for all events for season developed to continue the success we had in by having more affordable events while still covering event costs. Event budgets with ticket pricing o $25.00 Early-bird member / $30.00 regular member o $35.00 Early-bird prospective member / $40.00 prospective member o $10.00 Early-bird student / $20.00 student Between July 2015 and June 20, total sales were C$22, and total profit by fiscal year was C$ Between September 20 and November 20 total sales were C$ and total profit was C$ IABC Ottawa Chapter Management Award Submission: Events 7

8 Chapter Management Awards 20 To make building a relationship with venues a priority to help with logistics. To host 12 diverse events between July 2015 and November 20 and for four of those events to be social networking events. Secured a very successful partnership with Ottawa Venues in the season which has led to strong relationships with some of Ottawa s most sought after restaurants and pubs. This relationship has successfully carried over into the season. Developed a comprehensive venue database complete with contact information, notes on experience, and pictures of the event spaces to facilitate future venue selection and help alleviate logistical challenges Season o Successfully held three social events, four professional development panels, one full-day professional development workshop, two Senior Communicators dinners, and introduced one Young Communicators dinner. o Events planned to appeal to the general membership as well as targeted events for Sr. Communicators Season (up to November 15, 20) o Full event calendar for the season was developed, approved and shared in September 20 with topics and slated dates. Topics planned include targeted events for Sr. Communicators and Young professionals as well as general membership. o Plan events 8-12 weeks in advance to set them up for success (i.e. promotion and attendance). Building awareness by soft launching event tickets the day after previous month s event. o Held one social event with a speaker and one professional development. To ensure a positive event experience by taking careful consideration of audience needs in event planning. Event plans and run sheets are provided to speakers, strategic partners and on-site volunteers at least one week in advance of event to elevate event experience, identify accountabilities and ensure smoothly run events. Event takeaways (i.e. white papers, resource templates, one pagers, speaker decks) were introduced in September 20 for all events and are distributed digitally after each event to attendees and to all IABC Ottawa members. Moderator roles are offered exclusively to members and promoted through post event s, newsletters, and at events through the MC speaking notes. To increase attendance to attract 50 to 120 attendees at all events and receive good to excellent on event satisfaction from postevent surveys. For all PD and social events consistently sold between 50 and 120 tickets. One exception was the October 20 event where 48 tickets were sold. Consistently had sold out Senior Communicators and Young Professional events. Received raking of good or higher on the 10-point scale in postevent surveys. IABC Ottawa Chapter Management Award Submission: Events 8