Rob Hard

Rob Hard, Guide to Event Planning, has spent more than a decade planning hundreds of corporate events throughout the U.S., including conferences, seminars, organization milestones, employee training, sports hospitality, executive retreats, theme parties, holiday events and other special events. A highly experienced event manager, he will help you understand venue selection, negotiation, budgeting, contracting, managing outside services, planning the itinerary, onsite management, hosting and evaluating your programs into a memorable experience.

Rob is an event manager and communications consultant who understands how to create event programs that reinforce an organization's critical messages and help influence how others perceive that organization, its products and services. He has worked with meeting planners and administrative professionals to plan incredible events while helping to manage the expectations of internal clients. Rob is also a member of Meeting Professionals International.

The basics of event planning require strong organizational, planning, negotiation and people skills. But there are a thousand small details that must be considered along the way, and the effective event planner should be calm and ready for anything. This includes the tenacity to anticipate those details in the least obvious places: inspect bathrooms on a spontaneous site visit for cleanliness and supplies, walk through the kitchen and the service corridors behind your meeting space to consider noise levels, find out if and when the property last renovated, and interview a venue's management team who will handle your program (such as the bell captain, spa manager and others), before signing a contract. Follow me and I'll share more of the tips I've learned along the way.

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