by Eliza Pisică, Project Manager M.I.C.E. Division

Universum Events for the Auto Inergy Pitești Division

In light of my recent passion for sporting and semi-sporting events (of course I mean the Hercules Trophy), in mid-July I received a brief for an event which involved organizing light athletic outdoor activities for a company of almost 150 employees.

That’s how I found out about Auto Inergy Pitești Division, one of Dacia’s suppliers, a company that has been involved in the production of fuel circuits for 70 years in Pitesti.

I was happy because the whole event was going to take place outside and that meant we were expecting friendly outdoor set-up and super relaxed guests, and such a mindset was going to give us, the event organizing team, a cheerful mood on a Friday.

Let me tell you what I did too, right?

PRE-EVENT

Communication with one voice

One week earlier, Pitesti

We know how important it is that in a project, no matter how big or small, we have clear, effective communication with one voice from every organization involved. It’s usually an easy decision for us, because we will convey everything we want through the voice of the Project Manager, regardless of which direction (customers or suppliers). But things are not the same in all houses, so sometimes we need to open all the doors to collect the most suitable details and build all the puzzles.

So we started prospecting a week before the event and quickly became friends with Mrs. Rodica from the venue. It’s a nickname quite frequently used in the area, as far as I’ve noticed, regardless of age. Sign of respect and appreciation. It was so hot that we immediately wondered how we were going to stay away from the pool during the event if we were going to have such a hot day?

After an hour of taking measurements, laying out the logistics in the space by eye, and talking to the venue representatives, it felt like it was the first time they knew what was going to happen.

That’s how we found out that on every detail of the event, several people were discussing with the venue at the same time – for the food and drink menu, for the contract, for the activities, for the agenda and so on. We were already the 5th voice with which Mrs. Rodica spoke and initially she was not too pleased.

Luckily I made him an event script on the spot, with all the elements (whether we handled it or not) in place and he loved it. That’s how we became friends and we had a very nice collaboration until the event and hopefully after it as well.

Preparations for a successful event, Bucharest

Our client really wanted to have (almost) sole control of all providers and activities, and we know from experience that this was not the easiest thing for them to do.

Our responsibilities were thus reduced to managing the sports workshops (which were our favourites!).

However, we couldn’t resist and came a little more in support of the client’s team, offering advice both on the set-up of all the workshops and on the agenda, so that we can be sure that we will all enjoy a successful event, in which all the guests feel appreciated and rewarded, the suppliers all know the agenda and set-up details, and the client feels relaxed. Utopian, right? We think it’s perfectly doable.

THEIR DAY

Auto Inergy Pitesti Division – 70th anniversary

Time 5:30, Bucureyou

We have to get to Pitesti on time and we have a team of 8 people to travel, so there is no time to sleep. As I have done on other occasions, I began to call my colleagues and wake them up. A joy for them too, you realize!

It rained all night in Bucharest, can we trust all the specialized websites that have been saying for a week that it will be hot today?

9:30, Piteyou know

With the maps in front of us, we got to work, divided our responsibilities and started to set up the logistics. We aimed to finish everything at least an hour before the event, so that we would have time to go through the entire agenda together and have a second coffee.

There are still clouds in the sky, but a warm light can be seen from somewhere far to the west. We don’t worry anymore, it will envelop us soon.

About halfway through the installation period, other suppliers began to appear in the location, and we were not a little surprised that they were all looking for us to coordinate them. We were happy, because we realized that the confidence we inspired in our client led him to make us the main contact for all suppliers, even though we hadn’t managed them up to that point.

A great example of a client who relies on his staff of organizers is that client who doesn’t feel the need to be present at the location right from the set-up. Once we established a setup outline and an event flow together, we had the freedom to make all the preparation and implementation decisions throughout the event, and this still brought us great satisfaction, especially in the context of who were at the very first collaboration in this formula.

Time 11:30

We were already almost done with all the details when we met for a short status with the client. After a few minutes of discussion, we realized that it was important for someone to introduce the activities and how they were conducted and to encourage the guests to participate in all of them. Our colleague, Sabina, was the most qualified to play the role of an MC. It was a very pleasant surprise for all of us, the team and the client!

Oops! It’s already hotter than the legal limit (there should be one!), we’ll make sure everyone is well hydrated.

Time 13:30 – 21:00

We started the event according to the agenda and we really liked the fact that the guests used one of our workshops as a photo-corner – being an element present less often in events, we were not surprised by the increased interest of the participants.

The whole competition was carried out cheerfully, with a lot of courage in some cases, with a competitive spirit in others, with great curiosity for the never-before-seen workshops, but above all with the joy of the day spent together with all colleagues, during a working day, but in a relaxed environment.

More than a third of the guests were awarded, and this made many of them feel more valued in their groups and departments, thus achieving the goals that our client had set for themselves.

Oh, how could I miss it?! The local ice cream, from Albota, was magical! With fresh ingredients, prepared at home, preserved and served with great care, it stayed right in our hearts! What heatwave? What dehydration?

WOW Moments

We were both impressed and happy by some details that happened at the Inergy Pitesti Auto Division event, and we think it’s important to look at them in the future as well.

The first is that regardless of the scale of a project, we treat it with the same level of seriousness and involve ourselves with the same care and responsibility, because we like to enjoy the joy of the client at the end of the project.

When we work with a client for the first time, we want to reach a common denominator as quickly as possible in communication and in the way we work with him, so that we can be sure that we can achieve all his goals. The sooner we take on board all of the client’s messages, needs, and expectations, the easier it is to unfold across all channels and make things happen unexpectedly beautifully!

We know it’s difficult for clients to hand over control to the partners they work with, that they want to make sure and re-assure that everything will be as they imagined, but we appreciate so much those who see us as consultants (and not just executors) and they trust us to leave the entire event flow and a little more than that! We really enjoyed working with Inergy Pitești Auto Division and we can’t wait to do it again next year, with an even more wow event!

This is how we came to the conclusion together that an event is all the more successful if it has a more beautifully integrated story and a red thread well managed by a single team that knows absolutely all the details of the story.

There are still the surprise elements, which we deal with on the spot, when we meet them. They surprise us, but we kind of like challenges and can’t wait to find new solutions to them!