ABSTRACT
Events take place across the full spectrum of society, leading to differing contexts, goals and objectives. This chapter looks at events from the perspectives of the three major sectors - government, corporate and community - and examines how these perspectives vary and the implications of this for event managers. Governments play a leading role in events, and increasingly employ event strategies in order to guide their involvement, priorities and decision-making. The corporate sector is a major player in events, using them regularly in the course of business administration, staff motivation and training, and as a significant element of the integrated marketing mix in the sale and promotion of goods and services. Events have long played a universal and enduring role in communities, whose prime focus is on their direct entertainment, social, cultural and sporting benefits. In planning events, event managers need to devise and incorporate appropriate strategies for community ownership, participation and engagement. The chapter concludes with two case studies, ‘Edinburgh - “the world’s leading festival city”’ and ‘Putting CSR at the heart of an annual conference’s agenda by Ashfield Event Experiences’.
