Most people look through only one lens, their own. When you are handling an event, it is important to look through a multitude of lenses, it’s important for your team to walk into a room and attempt to see more perspectives than just their own. The first step to setting up a meeting room is to think ahead. We have provided a list of “lenses,” or viewpoints, to look through to ensure that you are set up for success and do not have to reset later.
The Technician Lens
The first lens I look through when entering a room is that of the technician view. It is important to make sure that the equipment is setup correctly and is working properly. This includes double and triple checking that all the audio and video works as needed. From an audio standpoint, one needs to test all the microphones and the computer audio adaptor. Make sure that the levels are good and that you have plenty of headroom before a presenter would have any feedback. From a video standpoint, it’s imperative to test each video input to make sure that the computer image appears on the screen. Make sure that the image is in focus, fills the screen, and is keystoned correctly.
An area that is often forgotten or overlooked is the lighting in the room. In most ballrooms and meeting rooms, there are many downlights. If these lights are over the screen, the light will wash out your video image. Often, these lights can be adjusted so the light does not splash on the screen. If this does not correct the issue, the bulbs can be unscrewed by the engineering staff. Once, while walking through a convention center past another group’s meeting, I noticed that the lights were still over the screens, which made it difficult to see the image projected. This could have easily been taken care of if the right team had set up the room properly and had been proactively looking through these lenses.
The Presenter Lens
The second lens that needs to be taken into consideration when entering a meeting room is that of the presenter. Having spent 18+ years working with high school youth groups and athletic teams, I have presented plenty of times. This gives you a different perspective than that of just a technician. No matter how many times someone has presented, nerves are still a common occurrence when it comes to the presentation. They think, “will my presentation work, will the microphones work, will I be able to see the screen, and where should I stand?” Looking through this lens gives you the perspective of what is needed to help the presenter stay confident when they are preparing for their presentation.
Although others may not be concerned about the presenter, I believe that a large part of our job is to do everything possible to set the presenter up for success. Check to make sure the screen is in a good spot so the presenter has an area to present from. It’s also important to make sure there is power set up at the lectern or head table so that the presenter’s laptop can stay charged. Set up the video cable so that it is easy for the presenter to access and it is always nice to be in a room where a presenter can say that they felt relaxed due to the room being set up in such a user friendly way. Often presenters remember our names and share how we helped make their presentations a success.
The Attendee Lens
The third lens to look through when setting up or checking meeting rooms is that of the attendee. The audience is at that meeting to learn. If they cannot see the screen or hear the message, it becomes a negative experience for them. When in the room, sit in the chairs, and look at the screens. Are any of the chairs set up in a way that blocks the screens or mutes the audio? Are there any obstructions, or is the screen too low to see the image? Look at options when setting the room to alleviate any audience concerns. Your goal is to make sure that everyone in the audience receives the message and has a positive experience. What looks good on paper does not always work out well on site. When the venue sets the room with tables and chairs, they do not always think of what is best for the audience, they often set up the room per diagrams based on what they have done in the past.
An example from a personal experience is: during a meeting when my team and I walked into a room to set up a projector for a board meeting, the table for the screen and projector was placed near the entrance meaning that when the audience would walk in, they would first see the back of the screen and projector. They then had to walk around the screen in order to be seated at the conference table. Thinking about the attendees, we decided to switch the position of the conference table to the entrance while positioning the screen and projector toward the back of the meeting room. As you can see, it only took a few minutes and a shift in perspective to create a more positive experience.
The Meeting Planner Lens
The final lens to look through is that of the meeting planner. It helps the meeting planner and their team when they know that you have their best interests in mind. The meeting planner not only worries about whether the equipment works or if the tables and chairs are set, but many other things as well. They worry about if the presenters will show up, whether the rooms are set up according to safety guidelines and Fire Marshal approval, if the food and beverages are ready, so on and so forth. It is important to make sure you look at the room from their perspective, if you are doing “meet and greets” before the meeting begins and there is no presenter, let the meeting planning team know. If there are any safety hazards or if an emergency situation occurs, immediately tell who’s in charge. Check to see if the food and beverages are set up by the appropriate time. Become part of their team doing this will help you become set up for success.
Several years ago, when I arrived after the meeting had concluded, I noticed that a number of the hotel staff were sitting in the room eating snacks that were provided for the afternoon break. Thinking like a meeting planner, I knew that the snacks were being billed on consumption. Every item that was being eaten was costing the meeting planner, I then took pictures and made the meeting planner aware of the situation. For the rest of the meeting after that point, a member of the food and beverage team, along with a member of the planning team would do a count at the conclusion of the meeting. As for all the previous breaks, the venue did not “bill on consumption” since the venue could not ensure that any prior attendee counts were accurate.
When planning, setting up, or servicing meetings, it is important that the team looks through multiple lenses and through different perspectives. These four lenses are a part of the building blocks that our organization was built on. Having our name as the company name, makes it paramount that we do everything to take care of our clients and ensure their success. Our culture has helped to develop long term relationships with most, if not all of our existing clients. We look forward to meeting our next long term friend, feel free to call us at (407)973-3372 for all your event management needs!