The Customized Study Path was held on 8th October 2013 atSBM Block B and D level 5 from 2pm to 5pm . It was planned by Team 2 where Team 2,3 and 4 were all involved on the event for the execution process. The objective of this event is to ensure that students who needs to register their modules and plan their time-table for the next semester of their studies can do it easily and conveniently. What the EMRS students gained was to better understand crowd control management and effective efficient communication with one another.
Our team had about 2 weeks to plan for this event as we were notified about the event early. We took references from the team who did the same event previously. However, there were many changes to be made due to the problem of manpower shortage. Half of Team 4 was unable to assist us hence lesser personnel was appointed to each room as compared to the previous CSP events. Therefore, we decided to let the students register for their queue numbers themselves. They will have write down their name and contact number on a queue sheet after which our crew will provide them with a queue number. The names of the students will be called in sequence by our crew when it is their turn. Below is the manpower allocation for the CSP Registration where students helpers are assigned to more than one room in order to facilitate the smooth flow of registration.
Another solution we had towards handling the manpower shortage was to set up a help desk right at the entrance to Block D. Flyers were made for each diploma and placed on the help desk. Joel is appointed to assist at the help desk area and hand out the right diploma flyers to the students. All of the student ushers in the diploma rooms are given copies of the flyers if they did not enter through the front entrance of Block D. Below is an example of our flyer:
The day before the actual event, Team 2 went around the tutorial to arrange the furniture needed for the event. Students appointed to Block B, Zheng Jie (Logistics IC) and Samantha (OIC) were briefed by a lecturer, Ms.Chua, on how to use the software necessary and the planning process for the students to plan and print their timetables. The purpose of the briefing was to ensure that we can help the students if they have trouble using the software on the actual event. On the morning of the CSP Registration, a briefing was held for all of the students helping out in the event. The purpose of the briefing was to clarify what they would expect and have to do at their respective appointed locations and the entire CSP Registration process. After the briefing, team 2 went to prepare and set up the signage necessary to guide the students to their respective diploma rooms.
30 minutes before the event starts, everyone was deployed to their stations and was provided the necessary items required in the rooms (queue numbers, flyers, registration list and their name tags) Below is an example of how the name tag looks like:
CSP students started arriving at 1:30PM, which was earlier than we expected which was at 2PM. We were slightly flustered as some of the rooms were not ready yet but we managed to pick up our pace and prep the room soon after that. During the event, we faced initial hiccups where one of the counselling rooms were extremely dusty and the course manager was not happy about it. Hence, one of our Runners went to find the cleaning lady and another went to get the broom to sweep the floors so that the room would be presentable for use. Another hiccup that we have encountered is that we place the helpdesk at the wrong place where there isn't much people at(outside the lift area). The solution to this was that we shifted the help desk to the corridors of Block D where the majority of traffic were at.
Our team reckon that the event ended smoothly as no complaints and major problems was made or created. However, the success of this event will only be recognized when the semester starts and the students have no troubles with their timetable and/or lessons.
Key Takeaways
Zheng Jie: I've learnt that event planning is not as easy as it seems because of unexpected situations or scenarios that happen. The management team must be ready to deal with such situations to ensure that the event runs smoothly.
Karen/Amelia: In the first hour, there was a sudden influx of Hospitality & Tourism students. We were at a lost as things got out of control. Some students were called individually by the counsellor; as a result, many of the queue numbers were voided. We should have a process mock up beforehand in order to be familiarise with the entire CSP process.
Samantha: I've gathered that time management is extremely crucial in events management. We face hiccups due to some time delays hence some students had to wait outside the rooms when we were doing our preparations. We should have managed our time better and did our preparations on top of mock ups so that we can do up the full set up early to accommodate to students who arrive early.
Everyone learnt the importance of teamwork and time management. Without good teamwork, the event would not have gone smoothly as communication is key in this event. Without time management, our preparations might be too late as students were already entering the rooms at 1pm instead of 2pm. Although the number of students is a small amount, this event includes high importance as this will allow students to acquire their timetable and start their semesters smoothly. Overall the event was so far a success. We appreciate the help of Team 3 and 4 for assisting us despite being busy with other events. Thank you!
Published By:
Liew Zheng Jie (Team 2)
