Planning backwards – thinking forwards

If you’ve ever been in charge of an event involving participant management, you’ll know the drill: on the day of the event, everything has to run smoothly. Check-in, accreditation, tools. And not just at some point, but as soon as the first participant stands in front of you. The thing is, traditional planning often feels like you’re racing against a deadline that’s getting closer and closer.

That’s exactly why planning backwards is worth it. You start with the fixed event date and work backwards from there through all the steps that need to happen beforehand. This not only brings more structure to the process, but also gives you a more realistic sense of timings, dependencies and deadlines. And that saves you one thing: stress.

With backward planning, you don’t start where a project begins, but at the point at which it must be completed. In our case, this is usually the moment when the first guest receives their badge or goes through check-in. From there, you work your way backwards. Which steps need to have been completed beforehand? Which deadlines arise automatically? And how much leeway do you realistically need?

The great thing about it is that you automatically keep your eye on the goal. You think in terms of dependencies rather than wishful thinking, and you realise quite quickly whether your schedule is too tight or where the bottlenecks are, before things get critical.

But one thing is also clear: backward planning isn’t a cure-all. Not every task can be approached backwards, and some teams need a mix of forward and backward planning. But when it comes to time-critical processes such as print data, guest lists or badges, this method really comes into its own.

Imagine you’re in charge of attendee management at a trade fair with several parallel sessions. One of these is particularly popular, has a limited capacity, requires attendees to be scanned at the entrance, and visitor numbers need to be tracked in real time.

This is where reverse planning comes into play.

The first fixed point is clear: the session starts on Thursday at 10.00 am. By then, the entrance procedures must be in place, the mobile scanners must be ready for use, and the staff must know how the process works.

From here, you work your way back (for example):

• Thursday, 9.30 am
  Technical check: Scanners loaded, Wi-Fi connected, reception staff briefed.
• Wednesday, 3.00 pm
  Final briefing for the admissions staff; final adjustments to session access agreed.
• Tuesday, 1.00 pm
  Participant data finalised and uploaded to the platform. Scanners configured.
• Monday, 11.00 am
  Session access rules set up in the system: who is allowed in, when check-in and check-out take place, how many places are available
• Previous week
  Session invitations sent out, reminders activated, technical infrastructure agreed with the organiser.

The whole thing runs like clockwork. But that’s only because you’ve worked backwards from the end goal. Without planning backwards, you might still be poring over Excel spreadsheets on Wednesday evening, scanning documents on Thursday morning with a half-empty battery, and having to improvise at the entrance. As it is, though, you’ve got everything under control, and the session gets off to a relaxed start.

Before you start planning, you should ask yourself one key question: What information will I need at the end of the event?

Do you want to know:

• How many guests attended which sessions?
• Who was actually there?
• How many badges were printed?
• Or which groups of participants spent how long in the building?

The clearer your vision is, the better you can work out which modules you need. And this is precisely where the added value of reverse planning becomes apparent.

Example: Live session analysis

You will need:

• a properly configured participant data setup
• defined access rules within the platform
• mobile scanners in the right locations
• a functioning live data connection
• and someone to manage the whole process on site

Backward planning helps you not only to define these objectives, but also to implement them in a technically sound manner. You work backwards from the desired outcome to the modules you need to achieve it. You can find an initial overview of our modules – which form part of our comprehensive range of services designed to ensure your guest management is a success – in our FastLane Intro.

When you plan backwards, the key is to identify relevant milestones and understand how they relate to one another. Here is an example structure that you can adapt depending on the size of the event and the tools you’re using:

Event management is all about timing. And if you work backwards from the fixed event date, you gain control, a clear overview and a buffer. Planning backwards helps you to smooth out stressful bottlenecks, identify technical dependencies early on and keep your event team on track. Not everything needs to be planned backwards. But everything that’s critical benefits from it.

Do you want to plan your attendee management systematically?

We’ll support you with the right tools, clear processes and honest advice. No matter how big your event is.