Coronavirus
DON'T PANIC
Written by Stuart Wood
MANY EVENTS FACE CRISES: from fires
to natural disasters, travel disruptions to
power failures.
But the coronavirus which is currently
sweeping across Asia has caused a
particularly unique disruption to events in
the region, and led to a number of high-
profile cancellations such as UFI’s Asia
Pacific Conference and IT&CM China.
The International Congress and
Convention Association (ICCA) has used
the opportunity to point towards its
recent white paper, ‘Crisis Management:
operational guidelines for association
executives’. The paper, which was
published in November 2019, was
produced in collaboration with Safehotels
Alliance. It offers tips on how organisers
can manage risk in uncertain situations.
Here, AEN breaks down some key tips
from the 15-page report, the entirety of
which can be downloaded at: http://bit.
ly/3b8JUOl
1. Prepare,
don’t react
ICCA says that “the first key to
successfully managing any crisis is
planning and preparation, and the
second key is being able to respond
and contain a crisis within the first
hour of its arrival.”
2. Create a plan
The best way to prepare is to have
a crisis management plan, which
members of the organising association
have all read. This should outline the
most common kinds of crisis you are
likely to face, and how they will be
dealt with. Staff should all know their
responsibilities.
3. Know your venue
You should be familiar with the
venue your event is taking place
in. That means having a basic
understanding of fire exits, security
procedures, and IT infrastructure.
As the spread of
the coronavirus
continues to
disrupt the events
industry, ICCA’s
Crisis Management
white paper
provides some
reassuring advice
for associations
5. Provide media
training
If your association features
members who will be speaking to the
media in the event of a crisis, ensure
they are media trained. This will
ensure the correct messages, and no
misinformation, are spread.
6. Conduct crisis
practice
Taking your team on a crisis
management training scenario,
a month before the event takes
place, will ensure they know what
they need to do.
4. Talk to the facilities
manager 7. Have a legal
representative
Consideration should be given to
how delegates will interact with
local emergency services, especially if
the event is international and they are
not speaking a first language.
This can be achieved best by speaking
to the security or facilities manager
at your venue. If you are a large association,
you may need a legal representative
who can ensure your crisis
management team are consistent with
local laws. Likewise, an insurance rep
can advise on liability issues in the
event of a crisis.
www.aenetwork.co.uk
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