Keeping ‘Em Mean

I resolved recently to use the “Customer Service that Sucks” experiences as lessons learned in life. This new philosophy has been treating me well, and instead of wasting time with those providing bad service, I’ve been moving on. For example, instead of moaning about the diabolical service from Sage when trying to update QuickPay for the 2008 tax year, I’ve moved on to PayBack - an alternative payroll solution who really seem to care about their customers. What a weird comment - I see you thinking - how can a software company show care for their thousands (nay hundreds of thousands if they are lucky) of customers?

They show they care by a) Making it easy to understand what it is their product does and doesn’t do; b) Providing an up to date online forum where issues are discussed openly and resolutions posted; c) answering the phone rather than inflicting an automated answering routine that I can’t help answering back; d) Calling a spade a spade - December comes, the budget means changes have to be made to the payroll software, somehow those changes have to get in real quick and be paid for. PayBack charge an annual fee instead of buying the software forever and having to purchase a “support contract”.

Anyhow, I may have paid my “support contract” fee to Sage for this year, but I see it as an investment in learning… When you have a bad relationship with a supplier, move on. What’s a bad relationship? It’s one where the supplier receives the “Muppet of the Week” nomination more than once in any 3 month period. And the really good news is that when you do move on, the sense of freedom is wonderful!! And Payback rocks, by the way - really good payroll software. (and no, no fee has been charged for this promotion…)

Blogging to Beat Breast Cancer

Every now and again I come across blogs that are so amusing I have to subscribe to them - this causes me great grief as it means I then have to enjoy myself reading them instead of writing my own, doing the work I should be doing or god forbid having a life… I found Sabrina Dent recently - and have even subscribed to go the Ladies Tea Party (aargh! Ladies!) before the Irish Blog Awards primarily to meet this creature (and her co-organiser Ina). I so enjoy her musings and am green as all hell at her design work - just beautiful.

However, the point of this post is not to give so much about myself away (or to promote Sabrina who I would far prefer to become a penniless artist so desparate for work that she’ll work with us for peanuts), it’s to point out the power of blogging and to promote the fantasmagorically named Two Tits and a Vote campaign. We all know that the Irish Health Care system is in tatters around us, and that something has to be done. Sabrina is behind this initiative which:  is intended to make it easy for women to take action and instigate change using the power we do have: our influence as voters, and our strength in numbers. By organising women around specific issues and providing a template for achievable action, we can make an impact with politicians.

Starting with the Campaign for Better Access to Breast Care, which you can support at http://twotitsandavote.com/ Two Tits and a Vote is taking off rapidly - due to the power of the blogosphere, cheeky branding which works, a hugely professional website - all in all an excellent example of the 5th P in marketing - Participation. Get on over to http://twotitsandavote.com/ and send a postcard or sign the petition.

Event Management Educators

I find it fascinating that within the field of event management that it’s the educators who are really leading the field in helping to further professionalise and organise the industry. It used to be that educators led the way in all sectors, but in recent times they seem to my (highly untrained, it has to be said) eyes that educators have had problems keeping up with the speed of developments, and incorporating them into their curricula. (That was a big word! - but maybe it ought to have been curriculi? I look forward to the corrections…)

In Ireland the events management degree courses in DIT and DKIT are about to start sending out 50 - 60 degree educated event managers every year. In DIT the course remains the most popular choice of all their courses. In Dun Laoghaire Institute of Art, Design & Technology, the Post Graduate Diploma in Cultural Event Management is a real signifier. Here the industry is being sectorised even further than the few associations such as NEO Ireland, SITE, IAPCO, AOIFE and others.

The Association of Event Management Educators - AEME - is a UK based organisation which has strong representation from Irish educators - including NEO Ireland and a couple of the commercial training organisations as well DIT and DKIT. AEME have just posted the date for this years conference - 19-20 June in Sheffield. In Leeds Bradford University this year, their intake trebled from about 100 students to 300, and there are 40 other colleges or universities in the UK offering events management degree courses.

 Australia has led the way in organising the Events industry though - they have recognised the huge benefits of business tourism - both incoming and domestic - and have fantastic supports for events organisers. IADT are hosting a Master Class on February 1st - where two of Australia’s front line event management educators are going to share their knowledge and expertise with others. The IADT has kindly extended an invitation to attend to anyone within industry who wishes to go along. Guess you know where I’ll be! Let me know if you need contact details.

Happy New Year!

The new year started with a squeak for me - I managed to catch a cold for the first time in centuries. Like most other entrepreneurs I know or know of, my opinion is that a cold or flu’ is nothing more than sheer weakness on the part of the sufferer. How can one have so little self control as to allow one’s self to catch a bug? Man, am I ever eating that one now! So I’ve been voiceless and running on empty for 5 or 6 days now, but beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

This week sees the first of the new Events Industry Skillnet training courses - www.eventsindustryskillnet.com. We’ve had to work incredibly fast (and really without any kind of a safety net!) to get this up and running, but it’s there and we’ve already booked our first trainees. Personally, I can’t wait for this one - I went to one of the Hotbed Skillnet’s networking/training evenings over a year ago and found myself sitting next to one of my new customers in the best training session I was ever at. The trainer was Terry Harmer, and the subject was sales. I’ve been trying to get Terry to come and train us ever since, and this Friday is the day! We’ll have the industry launch of the skillnet on the 15th of January - everybody welcome as we launch into what the Events Industry Skillnet is, and how NEO Ireland is affected by it and just what it is we’re going to do… Should be fascinating. Booking is open at the Events Industry Skillnet website if you fancy coming along.