Haas Retreat 2006

1. Haas Retreat 2006 Building An Annual Calendar And Event Planning

2. Why Build an Annual Calendar • Great view of holes in your plans – both by theme and time period • Allows enough time to address holes • Creates a outline for each board meeting • People work towards deadlines and planning ahead helps establishes deadlines • Allow sufficient time for milestones or sponsor and partners contacts • Event co-promotion: web, acveta, email and at events • Identify areas where alumni office assistance is needed so they have enough time to assist • Allow time Avoid event fatigue – helps avoid a calendar of all the same types of activities or too many close together

3. Balance Activities Types • Cash Generating Events • Professional Speakers • Wine & Food Events • Money Losers • Bar Nights • Dean’s / Professor visits • CAL and Other Joint Events • Outdoor/ Family events • Sports/ School Spirit

4. Balance The Year • Free or low-cost activities and higher ticket events • Look at holidays to avoid • Avoid conflict with Major sports events - Or make them an event itself • Talk to potential event partners months ahead

5. Our Annual CalendarScary when Empty

6. Our Annual Calendar in the works

7. Our Annual Calendar Annual Events

8. Our Annual Calendar Partner Events

9. Our Annual Calendar fill the holes

10. Choosing Speakers and Topics • Review History of Successful Events • Look at other HAAS chapters • Speak to other Alumni Organizations • What Topics are Hot in the News? • Talk to Alumni Office About Available Professors or Alumni (road trip for prior successes) • Before Proceeding Make sure you have enough interest on your Board

11. Event Budgets • Determine Profit goals • Make Money or Break Even or Spend Excess Reserves • Look at Variable Costs Separately from Fixed Costs • Per person food and drink, parking, name tags, acveta fees, etc • Venue, speaker gifts, A/V, comps, etc • Budget for Sponsor donations • Estimate Attendance and set price

12. Partnering With Other Organizations • Partner with CAL Alumni, Boalt Alumni, or UC Alumni • Partnering with other Business Schools • Partnering with Professional organization and associations

13. Sample Event Plan – New Student/ Recent Grad Receptions • Event History • Budget • Geography • Secure Sponsorships (N/A for this event) • Calendar Constraints • Promotional Timeline • Responsibilities

14. – New Student/ Recent Grad Reception Event History • Annual attendance from 43-90 people • Budget of up to $300-400 for FBTT (food beverage tax and tip) • We pay for food and 1st drink / pitchers • Prior Years • 2001 June 27th El Torito Grill Beverly Hills • 2002 June 19th El Torito Grill Beverly Hills • 2003 June 18th Q’s Brentwood • 2004 June 23rd Madame Wu’s Fairfax • 2005 June 29th H. Hamlet Brentwood • 2006 ??

15. Shift in Demographics • Alumni are mostly 310,213, & 323 • New admits are mostly 626 with many 909, 714 & 949

16. New Student/ Recent Grad Receptions Calendar Constraints • Commencement UG’s May 14/ MBA’s May 21 • LA Alumni Board meeting June 14th • Alumni Annual Retreat June 23-25 • Cal So UG transfer Orientation June 29th • UG summer school Session begins July 6th • Alumni Office Request for as late as date a possible to allow for promotions

17. Potential dates for New Student Event

18. Potential dates for New Student Event

19. Potential dates for New Student Event

20. New Student/ Recent Grad Receptions -Ideal Timeline • Feb Finalize date and location • March Invitations with HAAS Acceptance Letters • Apr • Deadline for article in Haas Week newspaper • Website with all locations and dates across the country • Begin 1 line mention of event in emails for other events • May • Begin email campaign of single event emails • Assign phone call invites • June • Complete Phone calls 3-7 days before event • Final Email Reminders • Registration Confirmation Reminders

21. Event Responsibilities - Ideal • Event Champion – overseas all aspects • VP Event Logistics – contracts with venue • VP Communications – Promotions • President – general remarks to the group (and trivia game) • Secretary – Name Tags/ Acteva registration • Membership/ Outreach – handles distribution of phone tree

22. Venue Selection Basics • Geography – the right part of your promotional region • Easy Freeway access • Parking Constraints • Room Sizes/ Configurations (70%/150%) • Ambient Noise • Where are Other Groups Holding Events? • Everyone in our chapter suggests venues, but unless there is a personal relationship negotiations are handled by 1 person.

23. Venue Selection: Sell the idea of working with HAAS • Quality group of potential clients with high disposable incomes • Emails, web page, etc will be in front of thousands of people • Venue listed as an event sponsor and include their logo and a few lines of text describing the place • We are coming on a slow night and represent incremental profit, even if our margin will be lower than their normal or average

24. Every venue has a different negotiations strategy, but generally: • Hungry venues negotiate more than city hot-spots. Choose places that appreciate your business • Downtown lunch spots at Dinner, New Hotels, Weeknight at Restaurants • Private Clubs, Banks, Book stores, Wine stores, Party spaces, Gyms & dance studios

25. Every venue has a different negotiations strategy, but generally: • Room rental fees can be waived • Audio visual equipment must be specified BEFORE contract negotiations are complete or the venue will gouge you. Many add tax and tip to these fees as well. Some charge a plug fee or set up fee for outside A/V equipment. This can be waived if negotiated prior to contract signing

26. Every venue has a different negotiations strategy, but generally: • Food prices are negotiable & menus can be altered to fit the budget. Pasta & antipasto buffets cost less than seafood. If you do not see a menu that fits your budget – tell the venue what you would like to spend & eat • Prices should either be clearly indicated as inclusive – meaning tax & tip are included, or ++ (plus plus) meaning you have to add tax and tip to the quoted price

27. Every venue has a different negotiations strategy, but generally: • Tips should not be negotiated – even when the amounts are too high. If you get the venue to reduce the tip they cut the amount from the portion the staff keeps, and service levels plummet

28. Every venue has a different negotiations strategy, but generally: • Dessert prices – offer to bring in dessert and pay a plate fee. It is often less money than buying a house made dessert. Plate fees are negotiable and can be waived

29. Every venue has a different negotiations strategy, but generally: • Drink: We know that our events average between 1.1 - 1.3 drinks per person, because after each event we review the bar totals • We want to know this even if we are not paying the bar tab ourselves – because we can tell a venue to expect this amount of revenue. Hotels generally require a bar guarantee for each bartender or each bar set up. This is part of their profit for the event, and should be taken into account for negotiations and or costs

30. Every venue has a different negotiations strategy, but generally: • Outside wine and corkage fees – negotiable especially when you are spending enough on the meal. For our annual wine maker dinner the corkage is waved because we purchase 60-85 multi course dinners on a weeknight when they are quiet.

31. Every venue has a different negotiations strategy, but generally: • Deposits: We never put down a non-refundable deposit before people are signed up for an event. • Excuses – can you resend the contract – I have misplaced it • Our board meeting is next week – we’ll get approval then

32. Annual Plan and Event planning Q & A