Pre-Event Preparation and Setup
The Pre-Event Team Meeting
Pre-event preparation and setup involves conducting a team meeting. A team meeting is a pre-event service professional team discussion to communicate and align on event specifications. A captain conducts the team meeting.
Best Practices for Conducting a Team Meeting
Prepare for the Team Meeting
Before the team meeting, ensure all necessary prior meetings and discussions have occured. This generally includes a series of meetings or discussions with the client and culinary team to review documentation. It also includes a walkthrough with the service professional team and the client. After this walkthrough, the captain will have a clear sense of key points and action items, as well as updated documentation. Additionally, ensure the client and/or the culinary team is aware of the meeting time so they have the opportunity to attend.
Lead an Engaging, Result-Driven Team Meeting
Gather the service professional team. Provide the client, the culinary team, and other key stakeholders with the opportunity to address the service professional team.
Introduce the client(s) so the team may identify them during the event.
Initiate the meeting. Greet the service professional team and introduce new members by name.
Refer to event documentation and state the purpose and objectives for the event. Ensure team members are aligned with the purpose and objectives, as well as with any client expectations.
Introduce the team to general housekeeping details for guests, including coat check and restrooms.
Communicate the steps of service and proper communication channels. Assign responsibilities to team members. In this:
Distribute responsibilities equally across the service professional team
Assign responsibilities based on strengths and experience
Explain responsibilities and how they contribute to the event
Explain which responsibilities take priority
Assign tasks with specific timing, clear completion goals, and a designated station/location (including where to transition next), so each team member always knows where to be without needing extra check-ins.
Review relevant hand signals used for service
Summarize the key points and action items of the meeting and encourage the service professional team to ask questions. Ensure the team will be given breaks (which is determined by the duration of the event and your local state Department of Labor laws).
Close the meeting by encouraging the team to check or provide feedback at any point during the event.
Tips:
Come to the meeting prepared
Ensure you’re positioned so you can see all team members during the meeting.
Keep the meeting concise
Empower team members to take ownership over responsibilities
Stay on topic throughout the meeting
Summarize the main points of the meeting
Encourage questions throughout and after the meeting
Ensure meetings are held in an area with minimal interruption so the meeting stays productive and the entire service professional team can see and hear everything clearly.