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Newsletter Archives
Scheduling Software: The
Key to Effective Event Management
The well-coordinated use
of meeting and event space is essential for any organization to function
efficiently. A room and resource scheduling program is an indispensable
tool for any type of facility. Pairing scheduling software with digital
signage and room sign delivery systems allows meeting organizers to
efficiently schedule and coordinate meeting resources and to effectively
communicate important information to attendees.
Meetings, when boiled
down, are essentially two or more people in one place at the same time
sharing ideas. Although that sounds simple, when put in the context of
an organization or large event, a common challenge is ensuring that
space is reserved and prepared for the allotted time and that each of
the attendees is informed with up-to-date information on who, what,
when, where and how:
Who:
Who will be leading the
meeting? Who will be attending? Is attendance mandatory?
What:
What will be
discussed? What is my responsibility in the meeting?
Where:
In which campus, building, room and/or section will the meeting be
held?
When:
What is the day,
date, start time and end time of the meeting?
How:
How do I get there?
How do I contact the organizers? How do I reschedule, if necessary?
Meeting organizers who
rely on scheduling software programs agree that they simplify
coordination efforts and improve the overall audience experience –
whether at an annual trade show, corporate headquarters or across a
university campus. Planners can either use a scheduling database or they
can utilize an online calendaring system to make information maintained
in a variety of formats available on the Web. Regardless of which
scheduling tool is used to manage reservations data, visual
communications systems like AxisTV can transmit the event information to
displays throughout a facility, ensuring that staff, visitors and
vendors are well-informed about upcoming activities.
Worship venues, for
example, tend to focus on allocating space for their weekly services and
other programs, and then generating event listings and calendars for
attendees. A basic scheduling system, like Dean Evans & Associates’ EMS
Lite, is usually preferred in these circumstances because of the ease by
which scheduling can be completed and communicated. In many cases, users
are not dedicated multimedia specialists so user-friendly systems are
essential.
Colleges and
universities find themselves in the challenging position of having to
schedule both academic courses and non-academic meetings and events, all
in the same facilities. The former involves the batch processing of
class schedules in a way that best meets course requirements and
instructor preferences, while the latter is standard room and resource
scheduling. A system that can handle both of these related but distinct
functions, such as EMS Campus, can greatly increase scheduling
efficiency.
With corporations,
healthcare facilities, government sites, community/conference centers,
and other large entities, the higher volume of meetings and the need for
comprehensive resource and service scheduling functionality makes a more
robust system necessary. Systems like EMS Professional allow meeting
organizers to manage multiple meeting rooms and resources, such as
catering and audiovisual support, from a single source. AxisTV then
imports schedule data and can publish schedules on area-wide displays
and/or individual meeting room signs.
Organizations that have
multiple sites often include shared workspace management (frequently
referred to as office “hoteling”) as a component of their overall
scheduling strategy. These planners rely on powerful systems like EMS
Enterprise that include feature modules tailored to manage multiple
locations spread across wide geographic regions, entire countries or
worldwide.
Communicating schedule
changes across organizations in a timely fashion without these types of
efficient tools can be near impossible. With the combination of
scheduling and visual communications software resources, real-time
messaging is not only available on digital signage displays, but updated
calendars can also be sent to student cell phones, iPods®, PDAs and
desktops. After all, information is only valuable if it is accurate and
shared in a timely fashion.
Article courtesy of Dean Evans & Associates: DEA is a Visix business
partner that offers a line of sophisticated software systems for meeting
and event management, academic scheduling, shared workspace management,
and online calendaring. Learn more about EMS scheduling solutions at
www.dea.com
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