Handling Conflict of Interest

I have a question this time, mostly for suppliers. The question I am asking might be answered differently depending on the particular supplier. I am addressing conflict of interest. I pose two different situations, one as an independent planner, and the other when working with a faith-based, nonprofit organization.

In one scenario, I represented the organization who hosted a large 3-day conference with a 150-booth trade show. Our organization had its own vision, mission, and value statements. Vendors who wanted to exhibit completed an application and went through a screening process before being allowed to participate. These vendors included organizations who provided resources and services supporting a specific industry, most of whom also had vision, mission, and value statements. Occasionally when reviewing applications, I noticed that some answers to questions or vendors’ mission statements conflicted with the host organization’s, or even with each others’.

In the other scenario, I worked with an organization who owned a large facility which was ideal for outside groups to rent for events such as touring band concerts, holiday musical concerts and productions, and other large-scale conference-style events since there was an auditorium seating well over 1000 and several rooms suitable for breakout sessions. Mostly when working with touring artists, we noticed they traveled with sponsors. Because the host organization is a nonprofit with its own partnerships, we occasionally encountered a tour who wanted their sponsor to have air-time on stage in front of the audience and table space for merchandise or information about their sponsor in the atrium. The conflict arose because it would take attention away from the host organization’s own partnerships who were also marketing to the same audience attending the event within their walls. One benefit of renting out the space was to have people who may not normally visit enter the building, which provided exposure to new, potential donors.

If you’ve encountered a similar scenario to either of these, how did you handle it? Did you address the conflict or wait to see what happened? Did you allow potential income to walk away in hopes of finding other, non-conflicting sources?

To complicate matters with the trade show, many of the vendors offered similar resources, services, and speakers as each other. As the host organization, it was important to us that our attendees were able to experience and compare the resources side-by-side in one location so they could make the most informed decision as to which product was right for their organization. So, we informed vendors why we were designing the trade show in such a specific way and included a disclaimer in the application process which had to be acknowledged by the applicant that said there was no guarantee of exclusivity at the trade show. By being open with our goals and objectives and sharing our vision for the event, we were able to build a great trade show and avoid a lot of the potential points of conflict.

Another issue to manage on the trade show floor was that some vendors hosted similar events such as ours, but on a smaller scale, and specifically designed to showcase only their products and services. While exhibiting, they wanted to recruit an audience for their own events. One of our concerns was that if an attendee had a limited budget and could only go to one conference a year we, of course, wanted it to be ours. Soliciting our attendees was strictly prohibited at our event and, again, we included language in the application and subsequent contract that indicated this.

Things were a little trickier with a touring band. They are usually contractually obligated to their sponsor to allow them time in front of all audiences to market their cause or organization because they are funding the tour. The conflict arose for us when that sponsor had a cause too closely related to one of our organization’s partnerships. We felt we couldn’t allow them the requested stage time and atrium space because when in our building, we needed people to become aware of and fund OUR need. We always lead with open communication when working with the tour’s booking agent and explained our position. Depending on the group and their need for the sponsor’s funding, we almost always came to an agreement that allowed for a silent presence for their sponsor without having them dominate the event. This gave the tour the opportunity to fulfill their contractual obligation and allowed us as the host to market our cause as well.

We were able to resolve 99% of any conflict of interest with clear, transparent, honest communication. Over time, we built relationships with those we worked with and developed mutual trust with repeat vendors so any future conversations were entered into knowing each party was speaking from a place of compassion and understanding for the other.

I discovered that what appeared to be a conflict of interest was not always a conflict. It was just the first step in a really good conversation, leading to a great long-term relationship.

How have you dealt with a conflict of interest? Share with us here or send me an email!

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