Integrated Project Issues - Research Paper Example

Integrated Project Reflective Report Name: Unit: Course: Professor: Submission Date: Contents Contents 2 1.0 Introduction and Background 3 1.1 Aims and Objectives 4 1.2 Reflection on the group project 4 2.0 Discussions 5 2.1 Methodology 5 2.2 Research 7 3.0 Results 8 3.1 Main Drawbacks of successful event planning process 8 3.2 Ways in which the event would improve its results 9 3.3 Views on the event organisation 11 3.4 Views of the event planners towards actualisation of the event 12 5.0. Individual roles 13 6.0. Group dynamics 14 7.0. Poster presentation 15 8.0. Conclusions 15 9.0. Recommendation 16 References 16 1.0 Introduction and Background This integrated project reflective report comes from attending a conference organized by the Lebanon bank in the effort to bridge the gap for the Lebanese emigrants. Evidence indicates that the Lebanon economy has experienced a moderate economic growth mostly coming from the contribution of Lebanese on. According to a world bank report, there was an approximately $7.6 million remitted to by Lebanon in 2013, this called for immediate action to bridge the gap which led to the event that we attended as a group on 15 and 16th of December 2015 (iktissadevents, 2016). Other participants that attended the conference included the Lebanese Economic Bodies, the Federation of Lebanese Chambers, Al-lktissadWal-Aamal, the Central Bank of Lebanon, and the Investment Development Authority of Lebanon (IDAL) (iktissadevents, 2016). The event was led by the speaker of Lebanon Parliament H.E. Mr. NabihBerri with the support of Council of Ministers’ president H.E. Mr. Taman Salam cooperating with the Foreign Affairs & Emigrants Ministry. Also, in attendance were the bank leaders and officials, ministers, Lebanon investment and business institutions, and foreign commercial and investment groups (iktissadevents, 2016). As a group, our primary function was to find out ways in which the bank plans to bridge the gap for Lebanese emigrants and how this will be meaningful to the country. The event was programmed with the topics that were primarily centered on the emigrants' needs and the existing gaps towards Lebanon economic development. We carried several interviews and recorded responses from various head and shareholders.. We also conducted an independent interview with several dignitaries from the government, the private sector and the banking sector. The event was faced with various challenges that will be later brought in; in this report. 1.1 Aims and Objectives The aims and objectives of the project were to: a) Review the event planning process and link-up with the actualization drawback. b) Suggest recommendations that focus on the general event success planning and actualization. Objectives a) Investigate main drawbacks for successful event planning process. b) Find out how the event would be able to bring better results than it was. c) Compare and analyse views of those present in the conference towards the success of the event organisation. d) Establish the opinion of the event planners towards the actualisation of the event. 1.2 Reflection on the group project The Sahakian et al., (2015) concept on debriefing was very useful in compiling a reflective report on the experience we had while in the conference. The author defines debriefing as a process where in this case, researchers and their leader re-examine an event, foster the development of a scientific reasoning and judgement skills through a reflective learning process. It was important that we implement various debriefing sessions which are the most critical aspect of the experiences we had at the conference (Sahakian et al., 2015). As a leader of my three person research group, I knew how to conduct the debriefing sessions to allow other group member interpret what they had collected and recorded from the conference. Veal,(2006) adds that for any research project, it is critical to conduct a debriefing session to clear any misconceptions, thoughts and lead the group back to objectivity. Other challenges were also addressed during a debriefing session, as the session was useful in identifying and developing questions and critical thinking. It also enabled group member to review report aims and objectives so that the whole event could link to it, which enabled the conference provide a non-threatening environment that is safe in conducting the interviews and the time used to do so (Baker et al., 2006). The Kuiper Outcome-Present State Model was used to provide structure and enhance reflection in the context of the whole process (Sahakian et al., 2015). The model was important in structuring the debriefing of participants during the conference to enable them make effective gains in the process. Using the model, debriefing sessions were also conducted for participants during each session to increase learning, because the participant’s attitudes were very critical to the success of the report. The facilitator of the event who provided the debriefing sessions had a sense of humour which provided a mentoring and coaching approach that supported the conference program and purpose. During the debriefing sessions, it was also realised that participants had actual preparations. 2.0 Discussions 2.1 Methodology During the compiling of the report, the group used both the primary and secondary data. Primary data was obtained by using questionnaires which were presented at the end of each day of the conference; the group also conducted oral interviews where each interview session as recorded on tape and in camera for reference purposes. To get a background on the organisation and officials who attended the conference; the group obtained secondary data by accessing the Al-Iktissad website (iktissadevents, 2016). The site provided us with more details about the sponsors of the event, the program, names of personalities and organisations that did attend and a strong background on the purpose of the event. This information was very relevant in the compiling of the report and forming objectives of this report. When it comes to the questionnaire, the group distributed to the participants whom the event was organised for most of whom were Lebanese emigrants. The questions were made simple and close ended for easy analysis. The other reason we decided to do this was so as to avoid language barrier that would have been a challenge in the study. The three of us developed the research questionnaire and the interview schedule from the report objectives, background to the conference and other attitudinal questionnaire instruments. The questionnaire was important as it enabled us to reveal crucial variable in detail. According to Christie & MCAtee,(2006), the verbal material is the most reliable when it comes to measuring perceptions and attitudes, these are obtained from interviews and questionnaires. For this purpose, the group had a structured questionnaire as the primary research tool for the report and the principal instrument for conducting the interviews. The questionnaire contained mostly close-ended questions where it only required ticking the boxes for the most preferred response (appendix 1). Each item in the questionnaire addressed a particular report objective, and they were administered by one member of our group. All participants were requested to complete the questionnaire to ensure the reliability of the report. I did create rapport as the group leader before administering questionnaires or conducting interviews. The questionnaire proved useful as it provided us with a comprehensive view than any other research tool would have since it collected information from participants under anonymity. Together with the questionnaire, our primary tool was conducting interviews. According to Veal (2006), an interview is an administration of a questionnaire or an interview schedule. The group used interview schedules throughout the conference event. According to Veal (2006), an interview schedule is a name applied to a set of questions that are asked and filled by an interviewer, in a face to face situation with the interviewee. As the group leader, I requested maximum cooperation from the participants; this meant that we had to establish a strong rapport with them before the interview (H.Kose et al., 2011). The interview was purposively carried among 50 participants to the conference, 4 of the participants were the organisers of the conference and the venue organizer at the Phoenicia Hotel, Beirut, where the conference was being held were also interviewed regarding their expertise in event organization and the material they follow to be up-to-date with event planning. All the questions were vital in identifying factors associated with successful event planning process (see appendix 1). The questions were also useful in getting clarity of the issues and suggestions on what the questionnaires may not have covered. Observation also played a very important part in the collection of data. This is because observation provided us with passive communication though participants’ reactions to the questions during the interview. Observation of participants’ characters revealed whether they liked or disliked something about the whole event. For example a sneer when discussing about hospitality indicated that they were not satisfied, a simple smile when discussing the importance of the event indicated that they appreciated the conference had been organised. 2.2 Research Given the nature of the event, secondary sources were not hard to find. The group relied solely on the Al-Iktissad events website to get more information concerning the conference. The website also provides a background to the event, providing us with the primary objective of the report. We also looked at the event poster, the statement of invitation and if it conveyed the information the right way. Other secondary data derived from the website included the conference program, hospitality details and conference venue. We also learnt more about people who were attending the conference and roles that each of them played in ensuring the event was a success. Secondary research before the event enabled us to prepare early enough and confirm our participation in fixing interview and questionnaire schedules in the program (Veal, 2006). We also looked at secondary literature about conducting the interview, formatting research questions. As a leader of the group I researched more on group dynamic and debriefing processes, this was essential during the compilation of the report as it ensured group members did not deviate from the objectives of the report (Sahakian et al., 2015). 3.0 Results 3.1 Main Drawbacks of successful event planning process The first question of the interview sought to find out the main drawbacks participants shared from the conference. The question which was drawn to all the 50 participants 35 of whom were the main participants, 5 were the sponsors of the event and 10 were the event organisers, participants were selected to attract different response; however the most popular responses were as follows. The event host said that there was difficulty when it came to communication between the sponsors of the event and the venue host. Communication led to challenges in hospitality issues. As part of these drawbacks, participants also felt that time schedules between the conference sessions and break time were not well coordinated (iktissadevents, 2016). Thirty out of the 50 interviewed felt that the venue chosen for the conference was not worth it and that this was also a major drawback given the type of people who were participating in the event. There were also complaints of lack of proper materials and poor facilitation in some topical areas during the conference. Seven participants felt that facilitators to the event were below average. Also, 35 participants felt that food and hospitality were below average and that this needed to be improved in future conferences. The venue host was also put to task to ensure that proper conference facilities including translation gadgets should be available in next conference especially for participants who did not have a strong command of English. The group also discovered that there was clear disparity among the event organisers where for example, the Fransabank did not show clarity on their roles in supporting the emigrant in Lebanon. Also, the catering services were poorly coordinate where it was discovered that what was offered was not what was in the blue menu print. Due to distance and poor security, safety issues were a primary concern for most participants, in some instance naked electric cables were running on the floor. There was also poor time management throughout the conference where the timing of speech presentation of the event did not stick to the time of beginning the conference at 9:30 -10:15, but would start sessions at 9:50 3.2 Ways in which the event would improve its results After realising the main drawbacks to the event planning process, it was also important to find out ways in which the event would be able to better its results. One of the ways that the event organisers can better its results is first to enrol each member of the event planning into an event planning training, this would enable them to gain skills to provide the services that they promise to deliver to clients. Because when a client subscribes to a particular event, one expects to get what is written in the program (Key, 2004). It is also important that there is a written contract between the one sponsoring the event and the one planning it as it will ensure that each side sticks to their end of their bargain. For example, during the conference, it was discovered that what was served to the clients is not what was in the blueprint menu, however, if there were a contract written to this effect, it would enforce the host venue to stick to this. The event organiser also needs to practice to foresee the unforeseen, since there is always something that comes up during an event. For example, there could be a power blackout that can highly inconvenience the conference participants. It is important that the event planner organises equipment such as a backup power bank of the generator, black board in case the projector fails and a backup of all other necessities of the event, including a backup menu for participants who may be allergic to the blueprint menu. The main issue here is to ensure that clients remain happy and satisfied all through the event (Kose et al., 2011). During the sessions, we observed that participants were fatigued in the afternoon sessions; organisers need also to ensure that the afternoon schedules are not filled with the boring or highly concentrating topic that will be one way or another be making participants deviate from the event. Make the afternoon sessions more practical or in a question and answer format. It was also important that the event sponsors make arrangement for hospitality; in future, they need to ensure that the event is carried in a safe place with little or no safety and security issues (Christie & MCAtee, 2006). Lastly and most important, it was agreed by respondents and the group that budgeting for the event is most vital in making it successful. Budgeting will depend on the type of experience you have planned for your attendees. The group suggested that the planner needs to list down what participants will learn, do or take away from the venue. For example, during planning, the organiser has to take not of the keynote speakers, sessional games or competitions, product demonstrations, round group discussions, hands-on workshops, debriefing and mentoring sessions and other factors such as meals and accommodation. All these require that one thinks clearly on the event budget unless one is prepared to run out of funds. The organisers need to discuss with the owner of the venue about how much they would want to spend during the event to gain the services they require. The respondents suggested that before the next interview, organisers should budget for the event considering the number of participants and not just meeting their objectives. During the debriefing sessions, the group brainstormed with participants in event planning and estimates of such an event and what their desired budget would have been, this included the cost of facilitators, venue, catering, materials, accommodation and security (Key, 2004). The group agreed with the venue host that this is the only way revenue is generated in a positive way. All these will also not be possible without a proper plan, for this reason, depending on their budget, the event organisers might want to consider reducing the number of the days people spend in conferences or increasing the cost to make the event perfect. The other way to make the even better, it was suggested, is to make the whole experience a creative one. Creativity comes from the way the hall is organised; food is served, sessions are planned, and presentations are designed (Christie & MCAtee, 2006). Creativity will also mean that event facilitators dedicate their time in entertaining participants during a debriefing session. They should make the whole event fun enough to spark interest in another event such as this one. 3.3 Views on the event organisation Regarding participants in the organisation, where the use of a questionnaire collected information, it reveals that the whole event was average. First of all, the main issues were to do with time where most of the participants felt that time for facilitation and break was not well organise. It was also the feeling of the participants that facilitators were not well coordinated, in fact, some of the facilitators felt that topic which should have been discussed in the last sessions came in the first sessions which were a total mess. Participants were not happy with the food arrangement at some point, especially where they realised that what was served to them is not what was in the blueprint menu. However, the overall feeling about the event was average for all participants calling for an improvement to the next event that will be organised by the same organisation (iktissadevents, 2016). It was a feeling of the many that the event venue should be changed to a much better, safer and secure place. 3.4 Views of the event planners towards actualisation of the event For the event planners, the whole activity was slightly above average. However among those interviewed, they all accepted that schedule and even posters were not well coordinated. They also felt that facilitation was not creative enough to make participants have a fabulous time. It was the feeling of most of the planners that the facilitation needed to be more creative to prevent participants from deviation. Concerning the venue, the event planners confessed that some loopholes were realised especially about the budget plans, organisation and the menu blueprint (Christie & MCAtee, 2006). The gaps revealed that they were not prepared well enough to hold the event calling for better planning for the future conferences. 4.0. Poster preparation Coming up with the design of the poster was not easy. We had several brainstorming sessions which did not bear fruit and group members would always disagree on the theme and the arrangement of the poster. In fact, two members in my group felt that the poster alone would not convey the message without use of electronic media. Due to time factor, with permission from the group members I sought to do the poster alone and await the group’s feedback which was quite commendable. Also, more gratitude was from the instructor, who was impressed by our poster presentation. The size of the poster was also another challenge, some members of the group felt that a poster of over 30 square centimetres that I did propose was too large while others felt that this needs to be added. Some members felt that the poster was too much crowded and even most information remained illegible. However, bearing in mind the significance of having poster we did not give up in ensuring the poster was well organized. At the end we settled on 2 meters and 1.20 meters size, with this size the words could be read from a distance, although in reading some words, the reader would be really straining due to small font size. The poster design also helped us explore various areas from secondary sources on how to realize a successful and well organized poster. By doing this, we learnt a lot from the research and poster designing process. Upon completing the poster construction, we went into one of the empty rooms, to analyse what we had done. Member 1 said that the graphs and diagrams were well fixed and elaborated. Member 2 also commented of the legibility of the information, and pointed that it was a bit crowded, though with vital information. Regarding the overcrowding we sought advice amongt ourselves and agreed that bearing in mind the need views of our lecture, to provide a well detailed poster, and our desire to get excellent grades, we chose to keep the information gathered as a whole. Also, we rehearsed the content in the poster, and each member was assigned a part to present during the presentations sessions. 5.0. Individual roles According to Chong (2007), team roles have various unique characteristics that correlate to the performance of a team. Such elements are cooperation, co-ordination and creativity. It is from that fact that I the group leader, did come up with a whatsapp page, group email thread and organized meetings ones in a while to always update members and receive feedback from the various group members to ensure smooth preparation of the poster. Also, being the group leader, I was tasked with designing the poster and compiling all the information gathered for the poster in a power point slide. Member 2 was tasked with editing the poster and member 3 was tasked with gathering the relevant information from internet sources. Feedbacks were given in time that encouraging timely completion of areas, which made our group, complete the poster in time. 6.0. Group dynamics Various factors affects smooth running of a group. These factors are: communications strategy, type of work, group permanence and members’ compatibility. Besides, small group made of less than 5 people, is fundamental as there is less misunderstandings, easy communication and degeneration of ideas. However, such a small group may have fewer views towards a certain objective. In deciding to have a group of 3 persons we did evaluate the Belbin theory on roles of teams. The theory encourages keen in choosing the team members to ensure that each member is utilized effectively during the task performance. Thus, our group remained bound by our common objective and each member did execute her role successfully and timely (Loganathan, n.d.). Also, optimal interaction within the team is of much significance in ensuring the success of the project as a whole. Thus, member 2 in the group was also tasked with communicating on the meeting times and venue through whatsapp, thus ensuring members do not forget or schedule something else on specified time and date that made our group be always up-to-date with the project process success. 7.0. Poster presentation Upon the completion on poster construction, the presentation did follow. All the group members took to the floor and we started analysing our presentation. Each member did present a specific part as it was earlier agreed. The instructor did comment on how the poster was well organized, legible and objectively correct. Also, the teacher commented on our preparedness to the task and our boldness during presentations; thus, terming our group the best in preparedness and cohesive poster design. Upon completing the presentation the teacher was very pleased by our work. Member 2 did gather our items that we were using during the presentation as we went back to have our seats. 8.0. Conclusions In conclusion, event planning requires maximum commitment from the event planners and the sponsors. They need to sit down together and brainstorm all aspects of the event, including the unexpected eventuality before they can finally set a date for the event. Proper budgeting is also important as it is the one which determines whether participants will have a good time and whether the venue will be hospitable enough to meet the requirements of the sponsors. It is also important that after each session, the participants conduct feedback and debriefing, this is because it allows organisers to know where they have failed and how they can improve in the next day of the event. Sticking to the budget and initiate plan is paramount since participants attend events knowing what to expect and the number of days they will spend at the event, unexpected surprises are never welcome. For excellent results team work is very vital, and thus any successful team should work together to a common goal. 9.0. Recommendation Following the integrated project reflective report, the following recommendations were made by the group: 1. The venue organizer should be serviced at the event location, date, time and other requirements days before the date to finalize the necessary arrangements. This is important as it will enable one to know the number of workforces, participants, required materials needed during the event and also make prior meal arrangements. 2. In the case of a delay in timing, the event organizers should provide the attendees with an apology clause which explains the reason for delays, compensations for transport or accommodation if need be and when the event is bound to start. 3. Ensure safety and security at the venue of the event. For example, during this conference it was realised that naked electricity cables were laying around; this is a safety hazard and should be lined up the tapes and covered in high safety standards. 4. Lastly, the overall event supervisor should be deployed to oversee all services provision process, and more so the catering workers to avoid the possible mistakes References Baker, D.P., R.Day & E.Sala, 2006. Teamwork as an essential component of high-reliability organizations. Health Serv Res, 41(4). [Online] Available at: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1955345/ [Accessed 4 February 2016]. Chong E 2007. Role balance and team development: a study of team rol characteristics underlying high and low performing teams. Institute of Behavioral and Applied Management. Christie M. & L.MCAtee, 2006. Events Management, a Practical Guide: A Reference for Event Planning and Production in Scotland, EventScotland, 1-243. Key C., 2004. The Keynote Guide to Planning a Successful Conference, A Keynote Networks Workbook, 1-23. [Online] Available at: https://spie.org/Documents/Students/Conference_guide.pdf [Accessed 4 February 2016]. Kose, H.,M.Argan & M.T.Argan, 2011. Special Event Management and Event Marketing: A Case Study of TKBL All-Star 2011 in Turkey, Journal of Management and Marketing Research, 1-11, 2/8/2016 http://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/11847.pdf [Accessed 4 February 2016]. iktissadevents, 2016. Lebanese Emigrants Economic Conference. [Online] Available at: http://www.iktissadevents.com/events/LEEC/1 [Accessed 4 February 2016]. www.aoifeonline.com/uplds/EventScotlandGuide.pdf [Accessed 4th February 2016]. Loganathan B.P. n.d.Using Belbin’s team role theory to find relation between team roles and team references in order to improve team effectiveness file Sahakian, G.D. et al., 2015. Setting Conditions for Productive Debriefing. In Simulation & Gaming. Sage Publications, Inc. pp.197 - 208. Veal, A.J., 2006. Research methods for leisure and tourism: a practical guide. 3rd ed. Financial Times Prentice Hall. Appendix 1 Consent form To all participants in the Al-Iktissad event, we request your participation to this interview. The interview is made for academic purposes and the need to review this event. The information is fundamental to theevent organizers, attendee and the sponsors. Thus, the information will be solely used for this purpose. You may choose to remain anonymous or withdraw during any stage of the interview. Please sign to agree if you’re willing to participate in this survey. Questionnaire 1. In this event you were (tick one): The organizer Emigrant Supervisor: A general attendee Sponsor 2.0. In your opinion what do you think was the main drawback of this event? (tick your answer(s) Time management Organizers and sponsors disparity Catering and services inefficiency Safety of the venue to the occupants communication failure or ineffectiveness 3.0. As the organizer of the event what do you recommend for proper event planning (tick your answer) Being up-to-date on how to prepare mega events Having an overall event coordinator to oversee the whole preparation and implementation Others specify 4.0. As the attendee of this conference what do you think if employed would have given excellent outcome on the conference process (tick your answer)? The venue organizers should receive events location days before the date to finalize the necessary arrangements increase the number The speakers as well as the venue organizers should provide an apology clause to the attendees incase of failure to owner time and quality The venue organizers should line up the tapes and cover them in high safety standards 5.0 In your opinion, in a 10 scale rate the event planning and implementation? 6.0. In your opinion what do you think should be rectified or considered in a similar event like this one in the future (write your anwer)? Read More