To celebrate The Event Group's 20th Anniversary, each month this year we are looking back at some of the milestones that brought us to today. This month we look at a few of our more complicated events.

The Event Group at 20: Dealing with the Unexpected

After 20 years of producing events, we’ve had our fair share of experience with Murphy’s Law. We know that every show we host will include something unexpected. That’s why we go into every event as prepared as possible - so that when we are thrown a curveball, we can react and ensure a seamless experience for our attendees.

Medical Emergencies

One of the most serious issues that can happen at an event is a medical emergency. Several years ago during a large financial conference for more than 2,000 people, our executive producer received word in her earpiece that two medical emergencies were happening simultaneously.

The first emergency was a heart attack onsite, which made our first priority getting the EMTs the information they needed to get to the right spot in a large convention center as quickly as possible. We stationed staff along the route to help guide the paramedics to the patient.

At the same time, we received word that another attendee’s parent had just had a stroke and been taken to a nearby hospital. In this case, our focus was on finding the attendee and immediately scheduling a car to bring them to the hospital so that they would not need to drive in distress.

And incidentally while these two emergencies were happening, we were also on stage stalling for a keynote presenter who had mixed up the time of their presentation and had yet to leave the hotel.

Unfortunately, this was not the only time we have dealt with a medical issue at a large event.  At another large conference, an attendee suffered a heart attack away from her home city, so we made arrangements to get her to the hospital, got her things transferred from her hotel, communicated with her family, and helped arrange their transportation. It’s not something most people think of when they picture the role of an event producer, but part of the job description is being prepared to act when there is an emergency.

Our own staff has been affected as well. A few years ago, our director of events suffered a death in the family and had to leave in the middle of a major event. Fortunately, we create detailed master documents, which allowed other members of the team to step in and pick up her duties.

September 11

Everyone remembers where they were on 9/11, and for The Event Group it was no different. On that day, we had a conference opening in Nashville with attendees from around the world. When air travel was shut down, we had exhibitors onsite and about 30 percent of the attendees had arrived. Other attendees were stuck at various locations around the globe. In the midst of all the confusion, we had to make a decision about whether to move forward with the event. Our client’s initial reaction was to cancel it. However, there were a large number of people who had already arrived and couldn’t leave. Additionally, the client had opted not to take the insurance we recommended, and thus exhibitor and sponsor money would have been refunded, literally bankrupting the client.

Instead of cancelling, we counseled them to go forward with the event, which involved an emergency phone call with the board. We set up a command center to provide hourly updates on what was happening. Behind the scenes, our staff in Minneapolis began securing alternative methods of transportation for people to get out of Nashville.

After the event, attendees provided feedback that they felt connected and care for because of the way the event was handled.

Remaining Calm

In these situations, our goal is to remain calm and create the best possible experience for the audience while getting people the help they need. In each of these cases, our client was glad to have a professional event company onsite who was able to address the emergency without derailing the event.

If you missed any of our previous 20th Anniversary milestones, you can read about them here: TEG Milestones