Point Of No Return

Seasoned event planners can identify this pivotal moment in time. We can because we’ve bumped into it enough to know how painful and unnecessary it is when we’ve done our due diligence to ask the questions and schedule the conversations, implement timelines, processes, and procedures, and check, double-check, and triple-check the checklists we’ve developed over years and years of professional event planning. It’s the point of no return. There is actually a point in time where you absolutely must stop planning and move into the execution phase of a project. Without adhering to this date, you are simply setting up the event, and the planner, for failure.

There are so many implications to the event, the planner, and the host organization when changes are instituted after the point of no return. The goals and objectives of the event get overlooked. Budgets get blown. Schedules fly out the window. Communication gets messy. Undue stress is placed on the planner and vendors to hit a moving target. Crystal balls and mind-reading become a planner’s most reliable tools. And the ability for a planner and their team to successfully meet the expectations of stakeholders dwindles with every passing new thought.

Planners want every event to be a wild success. It’s our passion. We have captured the client’s vision and laid out a detailed plan to keep everyone on track on their behalf. We have spent hundreds of hours sitting in meetings, sending and answering emails, combing through details, reviewing contracts, procuring resources, and engaging volunteers. We’ve sent updates to stakeholders, performed risk assessments, made purchases, and stored event supplies in every nook and cranny we can find. The client’s “just one more thing…” has a ripple effect that can unravel months of work and change the trajectory of the plan entirely, in one single sentence.

When the planner says they can’t make a change this late in the process, they’re acting as the professional you hired them to be. They are protecting you from yourself. Also, changes past the point of no return deteriorate their credibility and trustworthiness with others. Vendors, venues, and volunteers won’t want to work with this planner if they feel there will constantly be last-minute changes on the horizon, especially ones that alter the program completely.

Hopefully, you’ve hired a Certified Meeting Professional (CMP). There are only 12,000 in the world. This person has studied and tested and proven themselves in the industry. If you’ve reviewed their resume, trust their experience, and are confident in their skills, why push them over the line? Stop moving the target.

Do you have a story of going past the point of no return? Email me,
I’d be interested to hear how you handled it!

Be sure to leave a comment, like this blog, and share it with those you know who plan events.

Find free resources at tracybaer.com!