Case Studies:Castrol Wider Finance Workshop

Client:	Castrol
Event:	Wider Finance Workshop
Group Size:	55
Agency:	Venues Event Management
Date:	27th – 30th September 2010
Venue:	Norton Park, Winchester, Hampshire

Objectives of the event

Opportunity for delegates to meet other members of the Wider Finance Leadership Team.
To review the Journey E&A finance have been on in the last 3-5 years in terms of change and financial performance.
To share the business strategy for 2010 – 2015
Discuss what continuous improvement is all about
Understanding the role of finance

The Brief

This event is a follow on from the Global Finance Team Conference that took place in June. Attendees were travelling from various European countries and Africa.

This was a three-day meeting that required pre and onsite event support, production, two team-building activities (one to accompany on-site dinner), off site dinner and entertainment.

The venue had to be within one hour’s travelling time of Heathrow airport, provide exclusive use, grounds and relaxed atmosphere.

One final and vital stipulation from the client was that the event had to be memorable.

Challenges

The event had to be organised with only two months notice, which caused a few problems with venue availability. Despite this, the agency still found a number of suitable venues for consideration.

A restaurant for the off-site dinner was also a challenge as many were too small and couldn’t offer a large enough room to seat all the delegates.

A cost effective off-the shelf staging option was also required that could still be customised to the client’s requirements.

Solution

QHotels Norton Park was chosen as it was the right location, has extensive grounds and has a barn conversion which is not part of the main hotel so provides the benefits of privacy normally restricted to exclusive use of a property.

This hotel also offers a very relaxed environment, which is conducive to learning.

The staging solution came in the form of Show2Go, an off the shelf stage set offer provided through our preferred production partner AV Network.

Execution

Delegates arrived at 12 noon on the first day of the conference and the first evening was a free night for delegates. The second day was a full day conference with a team build activity in the evening.

This first team building activity aptly named ‘Perfect Finance’ took place early on the evening of the second day, between 5pm and 8pm. The delegates were split into eight teams of seven and taken by coach to various parts of Winchester. They were given an instruction pack, which included a list of various tasks to complete, a map and a camera.

The final destination of the task was to locate the Brassiere Blank on the map and make their way there, as it was to be the venue for the evening’s off-site dinner.

For the final evening, a medieval night was organised. The Hampshire Barn, which had been used in the day for the conference, was completely transformed into a traditional banquet. Long trestle tables were brought in along with full sized knights and a real court jester! Straw was strewn across the floor and a minstrel band provided the atmosphere.

Delegates were split into the same teams as the previous evening and took part in special tasks and a King Arthur quiz between courses. Prizes were awarded at the end of the evening for the winners.

Verdict

“The Venues Event Management team were exceptionally organised and professional before, during and after the event. Any unexpected problems or issues were dealt with swiftly and the team kept smiles on their faces at all times. The whole event was a huge success, which was in no small part down to Venues Event Management. It was a pleasure to work with them and I look forward to working with them again.”
Gemma Hudson
Personal Assistant to the Finance Manager
Auto Lubricants, Europe and Africa.