Redefining Yourself in this Economy

It's been awhile since I've posted. I've been pursuing various positions related to meeting planning and exhibits management.

I have to say in this economy you need to get creative in your approach to the market. This goes for those selling their services to the market as well as those situated in a planning position.

What may have been called meeting planning or exhibit management in the past may now need to be reframed as Project Management or Program Management. The act of coordinating the logistics alone may no longer be considered relevant in a multitasking world, where managers are seeking "jacks of all trades" who can deliver value in defining objectives, delivering corresponding services to meet those objectives, and critically evaluating lessons learned to improve upon services in the future.

I have been retooling my resume to reflect more relevantly upon my experience in this economy. This means using more current vocabulary, emphasizing how I've saved money or increased productivity, and tightening my descriptors to respect the shorter attention spans that employers can focus upon me, as one of many candidates from whom to choose.

I've also been working on a companion website called Bobtheplanner.com which will unveil in the New Year. That should provide me an opportunity to showcase some of my past experiences through portfolios of past projects, as well as provide heightened visibility in this digital arena.

Stay tuned!

Moving Forward

In today's economy, no matter how hard one works or how much one tries to be adaptable or prepare for every eventuality, situations arise over which we have no control.

As event producers this is hard for us to accept, since we are used to always having a Plan B or even a Plan C.

One of the situations that has recently arisen for me, personally, is that my corporate position has just been eliminated. Beyond allowing myself to experience the typical stages of grief over the loss of this position, I find myself more motivated to "move forward" and consider new opportunities and to keep myself open to change.

A friend of mine, Bill Ganz, whom I have recommended in prior posts, has counseled me to consider moving "beyond" the event production world to the online world. He likens the online world to a "well" that we will all be going to for nourishment and sustenance. Just as "all roads lead to Rome," he feels all paths in the future will lead to the online world.

He may be right. In theory, it is possible to reduce all marketing activities to a series of queries to predict human behavior. But the human need for face-to-face interactions, and the many kinesthetic variables that touch upon each of us when we encounter a physical environment, still lead me to believe there is a robust future for the trade show and event world.

I'd be interested to hear your opinions on this.

Meanwhile, I will be hanging my shingle out there as "Bob the Planner" and will be driving folks to this site to discover more of those "tips" I promised earlier. I still remain interested in helping organizations succeed -- particularly in a full-time position. But I'm also open to some project work if that can help us both out.

Perhaps you have a need for a seasoned event professional -- one who can think out of the box and come in under budget. If so, I'd like to talk with you!

If you'd like to carry on a conversation offline, please visit my e-mail at bobtheplanner@gmail.com.

Bob in the News

I was interviewed by Tech-EM (Event Marketer) and the interview appears here:

http://red7media1.bm23.com/public/?q=preview_message&fn=Link&t=1&ssid=148&id=00lu8nt3cv8a232d2jwkunbrqqper&id2=1wj25e0t05tpkd3z7tpeimn5mlb4k

Actions Speak Louder than Words

I've had an epiphany of sorts. In the past, as I've considered new vendor partners, I've relied upon their presentations and their personalities to determine whether I wanted to invest in a working relationship with them.

Now I've tried "pilot projects" in an attempt to draw out a better idea of how they will perform.

What a difference! I can honestly say it helped better define the level of service I could expect with the competing companies, and has probably saved me and our company future heartache by knowing who was the better performing company!

I will share more about this experience in future postings and future articles, but I highly recommend you consider designing "real world testing" into your searches for vendor partners.

Welcome

A blank canvas can be intimidating. Starting a new venture -- a new blog -- a new tradeshow booth or event -- or working with a new vendor -- can all be just as intimidating.

That's what this blog will be about: addressing the ways to handle new ventures in event management, or handling the many details along the way. Perhaps we'll come up with ways to overcome the intimidation factor.

Bob the Planner is a way for me to convey to those stakeholders who wonder, "how should I handle this situation?", or "why are we doing it this way?" when it comes to handling tradeshows and events. Along the way I hope to share tips I've come across, lessons I've learned, resources you may want to consider, and even some philosophy from time to time.

So get your TO DO lists out, mention this site to others, and feel free to visit frequently as I get this site up and running.