01 Oct returning to in person events: 3 ways to follow compliances
it has been a long-awaited return to in-person events and not just for those of us who work in the meetings and events industry. this extends over to hospitality, security, venues, and various other suppliers, not least of all, the attendees themselves. we’ve all missed that face to face contact, seeing our colleagues, friends and family, and whilst most of us are looking forward to how busy our calendars are getting it’s still worth remembering that for a lot of the population, they are apprehensive to be moving away from the online event platform and meeting others again for a number of reasons.
as part of our event management service, it is our duty to ensure the level of compliance, so that guests are not only safe but also feel secure in returning to the face to face world, which brings us on to a few ways to make this happen.
compliance means to follow a rule or to keep in line with legislation, and when running an event this has always been something to consider for event planning companies.
covid planning
this brings me on to the first way to follow compliance with the return of events, which is covid planning and risk assessment. arguably one of the most difficult but prevalent in 2021, as this is a new risk and involved in this is the introduction to new guidelines by the government on what is and isn’t allowed when hosting an event now, in order to keep guests safe. there are various ways to keep guests safe, including social distancing, hand sanitiser readily available, keeping masks mandatory and generally keeping contact to a minimum. at one of our events approaching which will take place in a lecture theatre, we will keep capacity at a level to allow for every other seat to be free, which is just one example of how to keep compliant in this new world.
bribery
a level of compliance that has been around for a long time in many an industry, to avoid bribing professionals to recommend certain brands despite the proven track record, reviews or even scientific results. an example of this can be seen in the pharmaceutical industry of which carry a number of rules on ensuring we don’t influence a health care professional (hcp) into prescribing a drug or using a medical device, as a result of being taken to a five-star resort and taken to lavish dinners. in fact, the compliance in this industry is so high, that depending on the country the hcp comes from, as well as where the event should take place, the monetary value per person on a hotel stay or meal varies. the maximum star rating of a hotel that can be used is four, and must not carry the word resort in its name. often in europe, a three-course meal including drinks cannot go over €60 per head for the fear that the hcp is choosing the wrong brand that isn’t performing as well medically, putting patients at risk. as event professionals organising in person events again, we must make sure that we re-educate ourselves with the most recent rules, as virtual events have not carried the same level of physical experiences.
gdpr
third and finally, general data protection regulation (gdpr) is a level of compliance ensuring that we do not store personal information without giving permission, and that information cannot be passed on to third party organisations. now it may be argued that this rule never went anywhere, as attendees attending virtual events were still required to enter their personal data signing up online. however what is important to remember is that the data requested for a face to face event, will not only be different but also could be taken through different means. its more likely that an attendee could sign up to an event as they arrive at a venue for example, which is written on a piece of paper, or a storage method not previously used for virtual events. we may ask for dietary and access requirements and be passing these on to a caterer or venue, so it is about ensuring that data is destroyed from our suppliers that we haven’t been using for the past year and a half.
there are many different levels of compliance, relevant for different events, and whilst these are three examples, the most important thing is reminding ourselves of the differences when organising face to face events and remembering everything that is needed to be considered.
we can help you here with our event management services and to find out more get in touch with us today.