Practical Tips for Event Planning Professionals How to make an event outstanding! It is always a treat to watch grand events coming live. Be it a Soccer League, Oscar awards Ceremony or more of its kind. Watching it in person or on TV creates a feeling of awe in our heart, don’t they? Have you ever for a second thought how these grandeur events were coming alive or about the people who make these things happen? Honestly, “NO” would be the answer. Behind all of these and more, event management professionals work untiringly to create the best experience possible for the guests, the celebrities, the sponsors & stakeholders, and the spectators. I stumbled across this very interesting article from ALIVE – aliveeventsagency.com an Australian based event management company. It highlights how often risk assessment is overlooked and not put under high priority quotient. Read on… Playing It Safe: Why Venue Security is a Top Priority for Event Planners Event management requires a set of professionals working together with complete understanding to co-ordinate a particular event in style and splendor. All the people involved in the team have one notion in common –that is to make the event a grand success. The event manager is like the captain of the crew and he should outline all the requirements of the client to his team with clarity. It is always the responsibility of event managers to perform over and above the expectations of the client to create a goodwill that will go a long way. Event Management has Become Inevitable: Event managers have become part and parcel of any industry – parties, entertainment, finance, government, retail, fashion, sports, and music. Did you know the anchors of some live shows that we dote are all products of event managers? It is a high tension environment and the glitz and glamour we witness is purely the result of the hard work they render in the back stage. Team, Team, Team… Though four or five people may form the core team, you need to do so many outsourcing jobs to complete the task. Say, you are a wedding planner, right from photography, video, food and cocktail to floral decoration, music and guests welcoming- so many things come under your forte. Imagine how many people you might need to successfully make that event happen! It is better to establish contacts with a trusted set of individuals who will never let you down even in a crisis situation. That you will find out from your experience. Creativity is the key Event Management is all about surpassing the expectations of all parties involved in the events. There are three ways to accomplish this: Arrangement of the events (design) The events have to be unique Should suit the taste of the client and his interests. Client’s Co-operation is more important All said and done, the clients have to be clear in what they want – budget, ambience, kind  of events etc.,( In South Indian weddings, the girl’s side has a major financial stake in arranging the events, but the boy’s side has a better say over the matters. So it is better to know the taste and preference of the boy’ side before deciding on events. ) An event manager can never create what he imagines without the support of his team. At the same time he has to be at his best – negotiations between clients, suppliers and company, flexibility, quick thinking, lots of initiative and exceptional decision...

Best HR Apps For Your Business Development We all know how stressful a HR manager’s job could be. It is his department’s responsibility under his guidance to handle employee relations, payroll management, hiring and layoffs, rewards and remunerations, change and culture management. He can be compared to a mom who is always there to settle scores between son and father. Though the job is definitely tiring in nature, time has come for HR managers to heave a sigh of relief thanks to innovative HR apps that significantly reduces their workload.   Apps for Rescue There are now apps that can completely take care of payroll management, network communication, project management, monitoring workforce leave, recruiting and performance management. Think about it, how much of time will be saved if there is some technology that helps you in tracking the sales force performance metrics (especially in IT companies where there are hundreds of thousands of employees), attendance, payroll, etc., Today’s technological scenario is something to be awed at and not to be taken granted for. Small organizations should push themselves one step higher to leverage the functionality of innovative technology for their business development. Download “55 ALL TIME POPULAR HR QUOTES” … Big Data – The Big Boss Data sits at the centre commanding all other entities to obey the rules laid by it. Even giants like Google can no more rely on their intuitions for decision making but rather go for numbers and information. HR is no exception when it comes to adapting new technology. Why can’t companies dare to use new software services – afterall nothing is lost! When you are in a situation to scale up your operations on one end and manage the tight competition on the other, yet you would not opt for a change!  That does not make sense in any plausible manner. Think Fast Act Faster Let me introduce you to some of the interesting and enterprising HR apps (free as well as paid versions) that will give some room for HR managers to go for a long pending vacation with their family! It is better to automate your HR functions and please, please think over and above MS Office. Orange HRM: OrangeHRM offers you flexibility and freedom to select from free and paid versions of OrangeHRM backed with specialized expertise. Their  HR modules cover core areas like payroll management, employee data management and many more. There’s the free option and paid enterprise version. And it’s all open source so if you have developers you can customize it to your heart’s content. App from Hay Group: Allows your managers to create job descriptions from a library of roles or generic templates defined by their experts, or you can completely start from scratch. Suggests the skills and behaviours needed for a role and gives feedback on job design so your managers know they’re on track. Expense on Demand: Expense On Demand will reduce the time needed to process expense claims by at least 50%. Claims are approved electronically and arrive in Finance department  fully coded, validated and approved ready to be paid. Bamboo HR: BambooHR combines  all of your employee information from all of your locations into a single view. You can then access, control, sort, analyze, and take action on the data instantly—from your office, the road or home. Kim Rohrer Head of People Operations / Disqus says “BambooHR frees up more time for me to follow my passion in helping people do their jobs better” Greenhouse: Make recruiting your competitive advantage through this app that optimizes your entire recruiting process. Find better candidates, conduct more focused interviews, and make data-driven hiring decisions. I’m listing a set...

Source: ComputerScienceZone.org I was referred this great infographic on #Startup Evolution by Alex Thompson  that categorically explains how the #startup ecosystem has evolved world over and also about the prevailing trends in the most lucrative industry. Happy to note that Bangalore has had a giant leap forward from the 19th to 15th place in the overall ranking. Don’t miss the interesting information presented down under on the rankings of #startups and #silicon valley case study. Enjoy the Infographic… The Startup Genome Project 2.0 The most comprehensive report on #startup structure, ecosystems, and disruptive industry trends has released a second version for 2015. Here are some of the most compelling facts about startups today. Business challenges The Industrial Era: The 20th century saw the first massive shift in corporate structure. Trying to deal with problems such as: Managing an enterprise over vast geographic distances Building and managing multiple customer segments Building brands to engage the newly emerging U.S. Middle Class The Information Era: 21st century businesses are dealing with an inversion of these issues,including: Instant connectivity between customers and business Plummeting cost of entry for new ventures Global competition Re-imagining new and traditional markets as part of a connected world The new business lessons learned by startups are expected to lead the massive restructuring of all traditional corporate structures by the middle of the 21st century. So What Is a Startup? Traditional small businesses have around 75% success rates over their first two years. Startups–even with VC backing–have a 75% chance of failing. What it takes to make them work: 1.)A-Players: Have the vision, execution, risk-taking profile, listening skills, leadership, and fear of failure to create things no one else has before, often with very little direction. 2.)Close proximity: Early stage startups can change course multiple times a day, with core team members working late into the night. Workspaces are often not even separated so everyone can stay on the same quickly changing page. 3.)Feedback loops: With limited money (time) and exposure in their hands, entrepreneurs need access to customer feedback. Mentors often help with strategizing, marketing, financing, taxes, legalities, and pacing. Entrepreneurs with mentors saw 3.5 times more growth and 7 times more investment than those without mentors. 4.)An ecosystem with built in experience: Certain geographic regions have had decades of drastically higher startup concentrations. Simple Turtle – A Place Where Learning is Simple Silicon Valley Case Study: 1950’s-1978: Defense era Key players: NASA Ames, Lockheed Missile & Space Division, United Defense, Hewlett Packard 1979-1986: Integrated Circuits era Key players: Shockley Semiconductor, Fairchild Semiconductor, Intel, AMD, National Semiconductor, over 50 other semiconductor firms. 1987-1996: Personal Computer Era Key players: Xerox, PARC, SRI, Homebrew Computer Club, Apple, 15+ computer companies 1997-2005: Internet Era Key Players: Netscape, Cisco, Google, SRI, hundreds of internet companies in region. 2006-2013: Social Media Era Key players: LinkedIn, Facebook, hundreds of social media companies. Startup Ecosystems Ranked: 1. Silicon Valley 2. New York 3. Los Angeles 4. Boston 5. Tel Aviv 6. London 7. Chicago 8. Seattle 9. Berlin 10. Singapore 11. Paris 12. Sao Paulo 13. Moscow 14. Austin 15. Bangalore 16. Sydney 17. Toronto 18. Vancouver 19. Amsterdam 20. Montreal Biggest leaps in rankings include New York (5-2), Austin (unranked to 14), Bangalore (19-15), Singapore (17-10), Chicago (10-7) By Metric: Performance Top 10 1. Silicon Valley 2. New York City 3. Boston 4. Los Angeles 5. London 6. Tel Aviv 7. Berlin 8. Chicago 9. Sao Paulo 10. Bangelore Though other ecosystems are expanding rapidly, Silicon Valley still currently has as much capital and exit volume as the other top 20 ecosystems combined. Funding top 10 1. Silicon Valley 2. New York City 3. Boston 4....

How to Overcome the Challenge of Resistance to Change? I’ve tried to supplement solutions to overcome the challenge of resistance to change in the form of quotes by lot of industry stalwarts and management scholars. It is true that change is the only entity that never changes. “Any change, even a change for the better, is always accompanied by drawbacks and discomforts.” ~Arnold Bennett Change is resisted because it can hurt. When new technologies displace old ones, jobs can be lost; prices can be cut; investments can be wiped out. The best thing leaders can do when the changes they seek pose significant threat is to be honest, transparent, fast, and fair. “He who rejects change is the architect of decay.” ~Harold Wilson Although leaders can’t always make people feel comfortable with change, they can minimize discomfort. Identifying the sources of resistance is the first step toward good solutions. And feedback from resistors can even be helpful in improving the process of gaining acceptance for change. The natural and normal reaction to change is resistance. Top Reasons “Why Employees Resist Change?” 1. Misunderstanding about the need for change/when the reason for the change is unclear — If staff do not understand the need for change you can expect resistance. Especially from those who strongly believe the current way of doing things works well…and has done for twenty years! In times of rapid change, experience could be your worst enemy. ~J. Paul Getty 2. Fear of the unknown — One of the most common reasons for resistance is fear of the unknown. People will only take active steps toward the unknown if they genuinely believe – and perhaps more importantly, feel – that the risks of standing still are greater than those of moving forward in a new direction “Future shock is the shattering stress and disorientation that we induce in individuals by subjecting them to too much change in too short a time.” ~Alvin Toffler 3. Lack of competence — This is a fear people will seldom admit. But sometimes, change in organizations necessitates changes in skills, and some people will feel that they won’t be able to make the transition very well. “Our dilemma is that we hate change and love it at the same time; what we really want is for things to remain the same but get better.” ~Sydney J. Harris 4. Connected to the old way — If you ask people in an organization to do things in a new way, as rational as that new way may seem to you, you will be setting yourself up against all that hard wiring, all those emotional connections to those who taught your audience the old way – and that’s not trivial. “When it becomes more difficult to suffer than to change… you will change.” ~Robert Anthony 5. Low trust — When people don’t believe that they, or the company, can competently manage the change there is likely to be resistance 6. Temporary fad — When people belief that the change initiative is a temporary fad 7. Not being consulted — If people are allowed to be part of the change there is less resistance. People like to know what’s going on, especially if their jobs may be affected. Informed employees tend to have higher levels of job satisfaction than uninformed employees. “The world hates change, yet it is the only thing that has brought progress.”~Charles Kettering 8. Poor communication — It’s self evident isn’t it? When it comes to change management there’s no such thing as too much communication. “If you feel like it’s difficult to change, you will probably have a harder time succeeding.” ~Andrea Jung 9. Changes...

#Social Media Marketing Tips and Strategies I have always felt that gathering information on a particular topic is made easy when you visit the top influencers’ #social network profile in that particular niche. And people are willing to part with useful information now-a-days as it helps them establish trust amongst their followers and also convert them into returning customers or audience. That way Twitter is a great info platform where you are able to locate a topic in a jiffy since the gist has to be limites and catchy as well. That is a blessing in disguise as it helps us to hit bang on target. Social Media Marketing is now synonymous with sales and every marketing firm is in a position to find the best social media #strategy that suits its business activity. Follow @managementguru1 There are lot of social media marketing tools that facilitate the vendors to generate more leads which in turn can lead to conversions. Customers are the focal point and products and services are customized to suit their taste. Data also plays a big role for marketers to capture leads from each and every possible source. Major social media platforms are on a high taking full advantage of the situation by targeting the marketers to leverage the huge traffic to sell their products or services. It becomes a win-win situation for both sides and the customers are flushed with information on new commodities along with product reviews and competitive price info. Read the Social Media & Marketing Daily Here is a curated version of nine tweets from top social media influencers in the Tweeting Circle that gives insight as “How to leverage consumer psychology, how to generate leads, how to reward your social followers, how to boost your #social media engagement, how to carry out a successful email marketing campaign and the essential skills a social manager neeeds!” Curated from Write to Right on Twitter: “How to use the psychology of reviews to improve your social media marketing http://t.co/TwK7y6aYIZ socialmedia http://t.co/BXyPB7alyI” Curated from Jonathan Gebauer on Twitter: “7 Great Ways To Generate Leads From LinkedIn – And They Are Personal http://t.co/g7IFZ7tkTu http://t.co/mTWqnIzd9p” Curated from Kerry Butters on Twitter: “3 Great Ways To Reward Your Social Followers: http://t.co/d2dNJILphi  SocialMediaMarketing SocialMedia http://t.co/5j9FIl3rMh” Curated from Jay Baer on Twitter: “Top 3 Mistakes Brands Make with Influencer Marketing via @Insightpool http://t.co/hNTdBIr24z http://t.co/AbTM9RDEkI” Curated from Marketing Technology on Twitter: “6 Ways to Maximize Social Media for Event Marketing http://t.co/83juwyTBao infographics social http://t.co/rjeTXUicPn” Curated from Tim Fargo on Twitter: “4 Steps to Boost Your Social Media Engagement growthhacking socialmediatools smm http://t.co/nwQj3G2Deg http://t.co/chGgVSTdok” Curated from Qualaroo on Twitter: “7 Email, SMS, & Push Message Hacks To Convert Trial Users Into Customers http://t.co/9LjuGMcfui http://t.co/lGwSjN6iU5” Curated from GrowthHackers SMB on Twitter: “3 Steps to Convert Followers into Users and Customers http://t.co/JxJwTWuriI http://t.co/pLyTb2Icgq” Curated from Jeff Bullas on Twitter: “10 Essential Skills a SocialMedia Manager Needs @somerocontesthttp://t.co/VkOeojHjtH smm marketingtips http://t.co/3eGbHKbByv”...