Small-Scale Sport Event Planning

Introduction

Event planning remains one of the core elements for the success of small-scale sports events. In the case of for-profit organizations, small-scale sports events represent leverage for companies to increase awareness of a new product or service. Similarly, not-for-profit organizations also use small-scale sports events to raise concerns or awareness of social and environmental issues. Particularly, local businesses may obtain substantial benefits using small sports events as leverage (Chalip & Leyns, 2002). However, it is important that the sporting event that is being organized is in sync with the mission of the organization and it must meet the expectation of the target audience. Therefore, substantial information regarding the target audience is needed. More importantly, the event managers must ensure that the objectives and the expected outcomes of the small-scale sporting event are SMART, meaning that the objectives and the outcome must be specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and time-bound. By developing SMART small-scale event objectives and outcomes, event managers will be to assess the resources, skills, and manpower needed to achieve the underlying objectives. By developing SMART small-scale sports events, event managers may ease track progress of the event and measure eventually the level of success. By assessing the resources, skills, and manpower needed, the event manager can be in the position to build a solid event team. Once the event team is built, the event manager needs to prepare the sports event project plan, and this must be done with full engagement of team members. A small sports event plan is, in principle, a detailed breakdown of the actions or activities needed to reach the objectives along with the due dates and completion status of each activity. With a well-defined sport event plan, event managers can better assign roles and responsibilities to team members and ensure accountability in meeting the objectives.

During the small-scale sport event planning process, the event manager needs to choose an appropriate venue to host the event. It should be noted that a sports event is unique in its sense; therefore, it must guaranty a memorable experience to the participants. In principle, the event manager needs to conduct a field visit with team members in order to assess the appropriateness of the venue where the event will be hosted. It is important to note that no event plan can be successfully implemented without the help of third-party service providers. Consequently, any small sports event planning must carefully monitor and coordinate activities that are under the control of third-party service providers. It is important that the sports event manager has a shortlist of third-party service providers. While the event manager may consider including one particularly third-party service provider for the delivery of a service, he or she must have an arrangement with a second even a third provider in case their selected service provider fails to deliver their promise. Similar to any projects, a small sports event needs a contingency plan. The contingency plan is crucial because of there a number of events that can affect the success of a small sports event. For example, a third-part-service provider may suddenly unable to deliver a crucial service during the sports event that is being planned. Therefore, the event manager should include in the contingency plan contact the details of the second and the third service provider during the planning process. Simply put, the contingency plan should include the most reasonable cost-effective solution to events that can affect the delivery of one activity or the success of the sports event under creation.

This chapter first addresses the development of small-scale sport event ideas with an emphasis on the role of the event team and also the importance of developing SMART sport event objectives. Second, it emphasizes the importance of the event team to fully understand their target audience. Third, it discusses successively planning small-scale sports events, how roles and responsibilities should be assigned to the event team members, and factors that should be taken into account when making the choice of the venue where the event is going to host. This chapter also discusses the importance of third-Party service providers and how they may influence the outcomes of the event. It concludes with the establishment of the event timelines, the role of the contingency planning, and a case study.