Higher education event leaders are tasked with getting the greatest value from events held in campus spaces – whether the events take place in sports arenas, theaters, classrooms or music halls. Unfortunately, this is a complex challenge due to the variety of spaces and resources, as well as the quantity of event types. 

Streamlining campus space and event management and improving visibility and communication across teams is critical to ensuring these institutions get the greatest value from their space. Facility teams, event managers and institutional leaders need a centralized way to manage these spaces. 

In this article, we explore the complexities of event management in higher education. We highlight several opportunities for leaders in this space to adopt a foundational digital tool for on-campus events to improve sales and drive the best event outcomes. 

Begin by improving communication and coordination 

Perhaps the most common challenge at these institutions is difficulty communicating and coordinating across teams. The combination of the lengthy list of potential events including athletic games and meets, alumni activities, symposiums and many others, as well as the need to fill spaces and drive revenue, leads to lost opportunities. These can include underutilized spaces and poor event performance. 

That’s why many institutions are centralizing these functions using digital tools. Purpose-built, role-based digital portals allow every team member to visualize available spaces and planned events, whether they are an event coordinator, a sales rep or an administrator. Having access to these details in real time greatly improves team member communication and coordination. 

Define important metrics and key points of interest (KPIs) 

The success of each event depends on event leaders’ ability to both define key performance metrics and align team activities with KPIs in those areas. For example, event leaders might wish to target a certain level of donations for a fundraiser, a corresponding rate of attendance and a level of guest satisfaction at the event.  

Centralizing these metrics, aligning them with key actions and guidelines and equipping teams with the means of reporting on results positions event teams for the greatest possible success. A digital tool can also ensure everyone takes the right actions towards achieving event goals. 

Focus on reducing liability and risk 

 With such a wide variety of potential events, institutions must prepare for an even wider variety of potential risks and liabilities. These may include large risks such as personal injuries or legal concerns, as well as key goal-oriented risks such as performance issues, low attendance and other factors that can jeopardize the event outcomes. 

Fortunately, the right digital tool enables event teams to define potential risks ahead of time and set clear guidelines on how individuals should respond. For example, event team members onsite can use a mobile app to connect to a centralized platform, with pre-defined checklists and reporting tools for each risk or incident should a problem occur. Accidents happen—but that doesn’t mean event teams can’t be prepared to mitigate their impact and ensure proper reporting when they do. 

Align each event with successful reporting and strategy 

One of the biggest leadership challenges associated with events is visualizing event outcomes and improving them in the future. But when both organizational leaders and event teams use the same platform, they can supply key data from each event into a digital repository. Reporting tools enable organizational leaders to visualize event performance, incidents and outcomes in a centralized way. This presents leaders with more opportunities to improve their event strategy and drive better results across all future events. 

Taking the next step is easier than you think 

Adopting new institutional technologies can be a daunting process, especially at higher education institutions. Fortunately, the right digital platform integrates with teams’ existing preferred tools, streamlining both user and organizational adoption. Event teams can quickly drive better event outcomes as a result, and the return-on-investment can be quickly realized across campus. 

Higher education event management software  

Momentus is a purpose-built digital platform for event management in higher education, delivering on the unique needs and requirements of event teams at these organizations. Colleges and universities choose Momentus to optimize coordination, sales, planning and strategy to maximize the success of their on-campus events.