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Event Planning Software
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Manchester Stop Smoking Service, part of the Manchester NHS Primary Care Trust commissioned a bespoke event management database.
Events and activities managed include trade shows, conferences, workshops, and trips to other countries. The solution is based on a Microsoft Access 2007 Database.
Some events offer attendees the choice of attending several workshops. The database automatically allocates places to available sessions, ensuring available places are not exceeded and no double booking occurs.
"The software from PSS delivered exactly what we wanted, Paul did not stop until we were completely satisfied."
Edna Boampong, NHS Manchester
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General Operation
Users identify themselves from a list, and enter their corresponding password. Users are assigned standard user rights or admin rights.
The database allows shared concurrent multi-user access via a local internal network.
Main Forms
 Event - This form has multiple tabs:
- Details - description, status, title, start/end time/date, key personnel, places available, places remaining
- Task List - description, deadline, completed, person, cost, duration days/hours
- Budget - group, description, quantity, estimated, actual
- Preferences - options available for invitees to choose from
- Fees - specify list of price options for each event
- Invited attendees - add and delete
- Registration - date, fee, method of payment, diet, preferences for sessions, total income
- Session - actual sessions that will be held, automatic allocation attendees to sessions
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Contacts
Holds all possible event attendees details, including organisation, address, contact details, job title and category, previous events invited and attended.
Advanced filter faculty allows selection by organisation and/or job categories and/or locations.
Selected contact(s) can be easily merged in to a list of invited attendees for an event.
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Purchase Orders
Purchase orders and requests for quotes can be sent to suppliers via email directly. The database maintains a full details of suppliers and products purchased. Quotes can be easily converted to orders. Orders are linked directly to a budget.
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Budgets
Income and expenditure for events can be managed against different budgets. Invoices can be raised where events are commissioned by an external organisation.
Messages and Tasks
Tasks can be assigned to team members. These are linked to an internal message and to-do facilities.
Timesheets and Expenses
Hours worked by staff on the event and expenses incurred can be recorded.
A toolbar allows users easy navigation between forms and reports.
Reports
Customised reports can be printed or exported to Word showing:
- Popularity of sessions - used to determine which sessions to run
- Session Allocation - shows which session each attendee has been allocated
- Budget details
- Task list and status
- Invite status - who was invited, who is coming
- Confirmed list of attendees, with sessions, special diet
- Who is attending each session
- Event summary showing event status, budget, and key dates
- Purchase Orders
- Invoice when fees are charged for events
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Setup Form
Allows for easy addition and amendments of configuration data by administrators:
- Expense Groups - Site, Catering, Publicity etc
- Event Types - Conference, Exhibition, Publicity Event etc
- Event Status - Proposed, Planning, Implementation, Complete, no Action
- Job Types - Doctor, Nurse, Educator etc
- Organisation Type - Hospital, GP, School etc
- Payment Methods - Cheque, Cash, Credit Cards
- Employees - Name & Title, Access Level
- General Details - Name & address, phone, VAT number etc
- Contact Source - Where names were sourced
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The Allocation Process
The database can allocate up to 10 workshop sessions for each attendee. Sessions can be split over several days. Attendees can register for whole or part of an event.
On registration the attendee preferences are recorded and the number of overall places remaining for the event is reduced. Each registration is allocated a priority number, such that those booking earlier stand a better chance of attending the workshops higher on their list of preferences. Once the places remaining reaches zero then no more registrations are allowed.
A session popularity report totalises for each option and the number of 1st, 2nd, 3rd ... preferences to determine which and how many sessions of each workshop should be run.
Once the number of actual sessions for each workshop, start times and the number of places available has been specified the automatic allocation process attempts to allocate each attendee with their preferred options. In priority order it allocates the 1st session to each attendee by attempting to allocate their 1st choice, if all sessions for this option have been taken then it will attempt to allocate their 2nd choice and so on. This process is repeated for the 2nd, 3rd etc sessions the attendee will attend. When allocating the 2nd, 3rd etc sessions the process will check that session times do not clash with the previous sessions they have been allocated.
If sessions can not be completely allocated from the chosen list of preferences then any other available sessions is selected.
Once this process has been completed the session allocation report displays how effective the process has been. This lists for each attendee their preferences with their allocated sessions.
The number of places, number of session and timing of the session can be adjusted if necessary and the automated process re-started.
It is possible to adjust the automated allocation and manually assign attendees to sessions.
Confirmation letters showing the workshops allocated can finally be printed off.
Import
Initial contact data was imported from 3 existing databases.
Do you require bespoke Event Management Software?
If you think you could benefit from a comprehensive, easy to use, corporate event planning/campaign management application, contact me to find out how this software can be customised to meet your needs.
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