Event Manager
An event manager is the individual, who on the day of the event, is responsible for overseeing every aspect of the day’s progression including set up and clean up. They are usually the manager of every person at the event except the chef who has authority over the food and their culinary staff. The event manager receives all vendors and is the one who does the follow up with any person who is off schedule. If a vendor is running late; it is the event manager who should call to find out where they are. The event manager is expected to know the ins and outs of the operation and ensure that everything goes according to plan. They are responsible for the operations of every member of the event staff and are the client’s point of contact on the day of the event.
The event planner is responsible for solving problems that might occur at the last minute and for making sure that the client is satisfied. It is very important that the event manager remains in constant contact with their staff and that all concern and questions are directed to them.
The “event planner” could be synonymous with “event manager” depending on the type of event that is being held but does not have to be. If the event manager is a different person from the event planner then they would have received a banquet event order or BEO from the event planner. The BEO would list everything the event manager would need to know such as:
- The map of the venue
- The placement map of the tables and chairs
- The delivery and pick up times for each vendor
- The menu
- The quantity of items to be delivered by each vendor
- Contact information of vendors
- The timeline of the event
The BEO is the authoritative document on the event. The BEO should be very clearly written so that the event manager can use it and nothing else to run the event. If the event manager is also that event’s planner then there would still be a BEO but the event planner would be able to function without it. The event planner would be familiar with the items that were ordered, their expected arrival time, the timeline of the event and all other crucial information.
