Survey results overview
Key takeaways
- Almost 84% of respondents received no formal training or guidance before having to plan an event.
- Colleagues at work were the biggest source of advice and support for respondents when event planning with 57% turning to those they work with for help.
- Getting direction/clarity from senior management was the hardest part of event planning for the biggest cohort of respondents at 16%, with comments including: “Getting senior managers' buy-in and commitment to do their actions” and “Knowing what is needed and what to ask from a flimsy brief with not much time…”
- Overall, at 53%, respondents associated more positive words than negative words with the event planning experience.
- 49% of respondents found event planning stressful to a moderate or significant degree.
- Choosing the right venue was respondents’ biggest worry with almost 28% worried about this.
- Despite its growing presence in the workplace, only 10% of respondents turned to AI for advice and guidance when event planning.
- The #1 thing respondents would do differently when planning their next event is start planning earlier.
Results overview
93 professionals from sectors spanning marketing, administration, and sales to HR, operations, and project management, amongst others, responded to the survey, with all respondents having to organise at least one event per year.
While respondents have been tasked with organising a wide variety of events, the most prevalent by far at 31% is conferences/seminars. This is followed by team meetings, board meetings or training sessions at 25% and corporate celebrations (Christmas parties, team building etc) at 22%, with these three event types making up over three-quarters (77%) of all responses.
Prior to event planning
Overall, respondents felt fairly confident when first tasked with planning an event, with 83% ranking their confidence as 7 or above. Indeed, over 16% felt completely confident with a grade of 10 out of 10, while just 4% of respondents felt they had little to no confidence with a score of 2 or 3 out of 10.
This is despite almost 84% of respondents receiving no formal training or guidance prior to planning their event, with only a little over 16% receiving such support.
During event planning
Instead, respondents turned overwhelmingly to their work colleagues for advice and support, with almost 57% doing so. A little over one-fifth (22%) did not ask anyone for advice and support and, interestingly, despite its growing presence in the workplace, only 10% of respondents turned to AI for guidance.
Choosing the right venue was respondents’ biggest worry by a wide margin, with almost 28% worried about this. This is followed by attendance/turnout at a little over 19% and ‘something going wrong on the day’ at just over 18%. Worries about technology were among the lowest at only 5%, while ‘managing vendors/suppliers’ was the area respondents were least worried about overall at 2%.
97% of respondents found planning the event itself stressful. Of these, 39% found it moderately stressful, while almost 10% felt significant stress.
For the largest cohort of respondents, obtaining direction/clarity from senior management was the most challenging aspect of event planning. 16% of respondents highlighted this, with comments including:
“Getting senior managers' buy-in and commitment to take action.”
“Knowing what is needed and what to ask from a flimsy brief with not much time…”
“Trying to pin the format down with my boss so that I knew what sort of venue to look for.”
“My principal kept changing his mind.”
The next most challenging part, at almost 12%, was finding a suitable venue, while managing all elements of the event planning process simultaneously came in third at nearly 10%. Managing both team and delegate expectations was also significant at 8.6%, with respondents feeling they would struggle to make everyone happy.
Comments included:
“Trying to please everyone.”
“Ensuring everything was perfect.”
“Finding a venue that suits everyone.”
“Making sure all of the team would be happy with what I chose…”
“Financial management vs. delegate experience.”
Post-event
Following the event, a greater number of respondents felt that successful event delivery was the area that went better than expected. 29% of respondents emphasised this, with comments including:
“Delivery! Despite the worry, execution has always been better than hoped for.”
“The whole day was a huge success and has now raised the bar for the event next year!”
“Successful event despite the stress of planning.”
Venue experience/support was the second most noted response at 17%, with comments including:
“Service level was exceptional from a venue that didn't have any personal reviews.”
“The venue supporting our needs.”
“Ease of communicating with the venue.”
Both attendance and attendee feedback/response were also highly rated at 16% and almost 14%, respectively, with comments including:
“The enthusiasm for the agenda.”
“Sold-out events with attendees genuinely satisfied with their experience.”
“Engagement - in-person always has such a buzz…”
Looking ahead, respondents would do one thing differently when planning their next event: beginning the planning process earlier, with over one-fifth (22%) identifying this as their top priority. Better organisation / time-management is a close second at 18%, with comments including:
“Set the event start time for one hour earlier to save from overrunning.”
“Have a menu of external suppliers to meet needs.”
“Get more people on stand-by in case of emergencies.”
While event planning is part of the role of almost three-quarters of respondents (74%), almost all of the remaining respondents (24%) were either very likely or somewhat likely to volunteer or agree to plan another event despite it not being part of their role, with 15% ‘very likely' to do so.
This means that only 2% of all respondents would either not agree or decline to plan another event. Indeed, overall, 53% of respondents associated more positive words with the event planning experience than negative words.
