A first-week checklist for new joiners in event management and wedding services

A new production coordinator joins on a Monday. By Wednesday evening she is told to be at a mandap site by six on Thursday, speak to the florist about marigold strings, count the chairs, and check the genset. She does not know the florist's number, has never seen a run-of-show, and cannot tell whether the baraat arrives at seven or at nine. A wedding date cannot be moved, so a slow orientation is a luxury. That is why week one needs a written sheet.

Use the sheet below at event houses, wedding planners, exhibition organisers and concert promoters. Trim it to suit your own crews. For group context, read the event management and wedding services hub.

Name, role, reporting manager, joining date: ____
Day 1: ID card, phone SIM or number added to the crew WhatsApp group, travel claim form given: yes / no
Day 1: Shown the gear store, extension reels, walkie-talkies, gaffer tape, lanyards and badge printer: yes / no
Day 1: Vendor list received (decor, florist, sound, light, caterer, tent, generator, security): yes / no
Day 2: Read one old run-of-show and one site plan with the manager: yes / no
Day 2: Sat through the client brief call for the next live event: yes / no
Day 3: Visited the venue with the lead for a recce, with photos of power points, loading dock and green room: yes / no
Day 3: Learned the cue sheet shorthand and the radio channel list: yes / no
Day 4: Shadowed one live set-up and one strike (dismantle): yes / no
Day 4: Advance payments and cash handling rule explained, with the petty cash slip format: yes / no
Day 5: Joiner explains in his own words the next event schedule, vendor call times and who to call if the site is blocked: yes / no
Day 5: Manager and owner sign: ____

The reporting manager holds the sheet. She ticks each line in the evening of that day, not on Friday. The joiner reads it too, so nobody is surprised. On day five, the owner or operations head spends fifteen minutes with the joiner and reviews it. If three or more lines are unticked, the first week is extended by two days.

A new joiner learns more in six hours at a live event than in six days at the desk. Put her at a registration desk, the artist green room or a stage-left cue post beside a senior. She should see load-in at dawn, sound check, guests arriving, the unexpected rain, the stage manager's calls and the strike at midnight. Keep her away from any cash or vendor payment in week one.

• Wedding crews: baraat timing, sangeet cues, pheras, mehendi seating, guest transfers and room blocks.
• Corporate crews: registration desk, branding checks, AV rehearsals and stage cue calls.
• Exhibition crews: stall allotment, shell scheme checks and visitor passes; read the exhibition organizers page.
• Concert crews: barricade lines, artist hospitality, backline and the gate count.

1. 1

   Contact gaps

   A joiner who does not have the decorator's number on day three cannot fix a missing backdrop. Check the contacts list is saved.

2. 2

   Time confusion

   Call times differ from event times. Teach the difference between vendor arrival, doors open and guest arrival.

3. 3

   Cash errors

   Never let a new joiner pay a vendor in cash without a slip. Teach the petty cash form first.

4. 4

   Safety blind spots

   Show the exits, the fire extinguisher, the first-aid box and the genset room before the crowd arrives.

To compare how other types of firms bring people in, see the corporate event companies page and the wedding planners onboarding process. For general design, our employee onboarding process page outlines the approach.

Jot a few lines on what the joiner handled well and what still wobbles. In week two, schedule a one-to-one with the reporting manager. Send her to the second live event with a different senior. By day thirty, the joiner should have worked at least two events with different team leads, so that she is not tied to a single person's habits.

Give each joiner a laminated card with the venue's loading bay timing, the vendor entry gate, the security desk number and the green room location. Hand over the accreditation badge or wristband for the event, and explain which zones it opens. Brief the joiner on the advance float for local purchases such as cable ties, batteries and tape, and on how to bring back the bills. Many first-month disputes start with a crumpled receipt left in a pocket.