Creating experiences
Claire Gibson , internal communications and engagement manager at KFC UK & I , explains how the fast food chain ’ s event inspires its delegates with the experiential treatment
Claire Gibson delivers KFC UK & I ’ s annual RGM Fest . We caught up with her to find out more about the event , motivating delegates and the increased demand for experiential .
Tell us about the event
When organising your annual conference , what is the first thing you look for in a potential destination or venue ?
We hold our RGM Fest every year , it is our annual opportunity to get all our Restaurant General Managers ( RGMs ) and other key stakeholders from across the UK and Ireland together .
Each year there is around 1,400 to 1,500 participants and the majority of these are RGMs , who are the main audience .
The event is a chance to motivate the team with what is to come in the year ahead , align everyone on the strategy and galvanise them around their part to play – that is the day part anyway . In the evening , we have a giant party and that is our chance to say thank you to everyone for all of their hard work and contribution and recognise some incredible achievements .
The RGM Fest is a very special event for us , so we tend to look for a destination not just a conference venue . We also look at the culture of the destination as delegates tend to spend two or three days there , so we would look at making sure the destination is friendly as well as ensuring there are plenty of things to do that will suit all budgets and tastes .
We also need to make sure there are enough bedrooms to accommodate all delegates at the conference venue or close by . We would also look at bars , restaurants
and places where we can have pre conferences .
One of the things we love about Glasgow , which makes a real difference , is that the whole city wants to help . For example , various travel hubs displayed messages saying ‘ Glasgow welcomes KFC ’ so delegates felt welcome as soon as they arrive - which makes them feel like this is their home for the time that they are there .
The RGM Fest has grown quite big now and due to the way we structure the event we need a lot of space . At the moment there are only a few places in the UK which can accommodate our requirements .
For the venue , we look for flexibility and adaptability of the venue space . We often don ’ t know exactly what the conference will look like at the time we are hiring a venue , so we need to plan for all eventualities . It needs to have plenary space for 1,400 , a separate evening space that can accommodate a mega stage and a gala dinner for more than 1,400 people and it also needs to have five breakouts that can each hold around 400 people .
Catering is very important , we like to go off menu and co-create a concept dinner with the chefs , so the venue has to have a creative team up for the challenge . The space requirements are a pre-requisite but after that we heavily weigh decisions on the event team at the venue . A great team you can partner with , that can work with you and are invested in your event as much as you are is what we look for .
“ We create experiences rather than a conference .”
Opposite above : A Bargain Bucket brigthens up the SEC
Below : Entertainment underway in Glasgow www . conference-news . co . uk