A working process rather than a sales funnel. If you follow this and use a different operator, the programme will still be better organised than most. The order of the decisions matters more than any single choice within them.
Four things settled internally save weeks later. Most briefs arrive with two of them.
| Step | Timing | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| Send the brief | D-120 to D-90 | Destination, headcount band, month and duration, work email. Four fields is enough to start. |
| First response | Within 8 working hours | Feasibility and any constraint you should know before going further |
| Detailed proposals | Within 3 working days | Named properties, day-by-day programme, rate breakdown |
| Shortlist | D-100 to D-80 | Three operators. Fewer gives no leverage, more wastes everyone's time |
| Site inspection | D-90 to D-70 | Recommended from 120 delegates |
| Selection and soft hold | D-90 to D-75 | Seven-day free hold on rooms and function space |
That the operator's cancellation terms with their suppliers are no stricter than the terms you have been given. If they are, the gap is a risk somebody is carrying, and it is worth knowing who.
| When | What happens |
|---|---|
| D-60 | Programme detail confirmed. Passport data collected for international delegates. |
| D-45 | Run of show drafted. AV and production specified. Permits filed if needed. |
| D-30 | Second payment. Menus confirmed. Transport schedule built against flight times. |
| D-21 | Delegate communication issued — schedule, what to pack, what to expect. |
| D-14 | Rooming list locks. Dietary requirements, room sharing, arrival and departure flights. |
| D-10 | Final headcount confirmed. Recalculation if it moved. |
| D-7 | Balance payment. Rehearsal schedule confirmed. |
| D-2 | Technical rehearsal. Weather assessment for outdoor elements. |
| D-1 | Setup. Final walkthrough with your team. |
Delegates who flew in that morning are not present in any useful sense. Leave it free.
Tired audience, no days left for the recognition to be discussed. Move it to the middle.
An identified alternative is not a held one. On the day, the difference is total.
It will move. Contract on a guaranteed minimum with an allowance and the movement becomes routine.
Corporate programmes fail internal audit more often than they fail operationally. Specify the deliverables at contract.
From first brief to arrival, ninety to a hundred and twenty days is comfortable for a group of 100 plus. It can be compressed to forty-five days for a smaller group in low season, but compression removes options rather than time.
An agency at home manages the relationship and the travel; a local operator holds the contracts and runs the programme. Many groups use both. What you should not do is use an agency that subcontracts to a local operator without telling you, because then nobody owns the day.
Three. Fewer and you have no comparison; more and the quality of each response drops, because operators can tell when they are one of eight and allocate their good people accordingly.
What their cancellation terms are with their suppliers, whether the weather fallback is contracted or identified, and who specifically will be on site during the programme. The answers tell you more than any proposal document.
None