HR for Corporate event companies: what to set up first

Four in the morning, dealer meet day, the registration desk is short of two hosts, the badge printer has jammed and the account manager is asleep because she closed a rooming list at midnight. The founder says, we just need more staff. The problem is older than that morning. The company never decided who runs what, who is paid for which hours, or who stands down after a long load-in.

These pages speak to the owners of corporate event companies: product launches, townhalls, gala dinners, incentive trips and conferences for other firms' employees. Wedding planners and concert promoters have different rhythms, and the event management and wedding services hub covers those.

A corporate events firm usually holds a small permanent core, a ring of regular freelancers and a crowd of one-day helpers. Mixing the three in one pay and rules sheet is the first mistake. Write three short pages instead.

• Core: account managers, production managers, the travel desk, the finance executive. Monthly pay, defined leave, a ladder of grades.
• Regular freelancers: anchors, stage managers, AV technicians, floor leads, photographers. Called by rate card, paid on a fixed day after the event, rated after each job.
• One-day crew: hosts, ushers, registration staff, cloakroom and parking marshals. Briefed on the morning, paid by a simple sheet, offered the next event if they turned up on time.

Every show has a run-of-show, the cue sheet that lists times, scenes, owners and fall-back plans. Make it the HR document too. Against each line, write one name. When a speaker's slides fail at the product reveal, the sheet shows whether the AV lead, the stage manager or the producer holds the problem. Without that, blame travels sideways and the best freelancers stop answering your calls.

1. 1

   Recce and brief

   The site recce note covers power points, load-in doors, green room, lift sizes and venue curfew. The client brief is written down and signed off by the account manager.

2. 2

   Crew plan

   Count heads by function and by hour: registration, hospitality desk, airport pickups, backstage. Fix who reports to whom, in the form of one floor manager per zone.

3. 3

   Tech rehearsal

   A paid rehearsal slot for anyone who touches the LED wall, sound or lighting desk, with a timed walk-through of every scene change.

4. 4

   Show day and strike

   Call sheet at the door, attendance by name, meal and tea breaks scheduled, a named person to dismiss crew after the strike. Truss and cabling are counted back into the truck.

5. 5

   Debrief

   Within three working days: what ran late, what cost extra, which freelancers to call again, which to rest.

Event days stretch. A call at 6 a.m. and a strike at midnight is a different job from a standard desk shift. Decide the pay rule before the season, in writing: the base for a defined block, what happens beyond it, travel home after midnight, and the meals provided. Tell crew the payment day and keep to it. A freelancer paid late once will not return when your biggest launch clashes with another firm's.

Event, venue and date; client contact on site
Load-in time, show start, strike start, vehicle out
Zone, name, phone, reporting-to
Dress code and what to carry
Meal, tea and rest-break timings
Pay basis and the day payment will reach them
Emergency contact and nearest first-aid point
Floor manager's sign-off at dismissal

Rigging crews, genset operators, florists, tent contractors, caterers, sound hire shops and the banquet manager at each favourite hotel: these phone numbers live in one coordinator's mobile. When she resigns, the next show starts from zero. Keep a shared sheet with the vendor's specialty, the contact who actually answers, last rate quoted and a line on how they behaved when the schedule slipped. Ask the coordinator to update it after every show, and review it before each quarter's pitch season.

Strong account managers carry client relationships, vendor bargaining and money. Promoting them into bigger shows only adds sleepless nights. Offer a track with portfolio ownership, a margin review conversation each quarter and a mentor role for newer executives. Producers can move into creative direction or vendor partnerships. Describe both tracks in a role design exercise.

Between the wedding season and the year-end conference rush, hold the debrief reviews, update the freelancer rate card and rehearse the call sheet with new coordinators. Link the follow-up to a clear performance routine and plan a hiring window ahead of the next peak. If you want a structure, send your situation through the requirements wizard.