How long does it take you to plan a meeting? Or perhaps the questions should be: How long do you have…

The average lead time for a management meeting is 15.4 weeks. For a sales meeting, that number increases to 16.1, and for a training meeting the average amount of time a planner will spend organizing the event is more than 20 weeks.

But when was the last time you organized a meeting that you could describe as average?

Last-minute events have become a staple in the meetings industry, with lead times that range anywhere from 90 days to a week, depending on the size of the meeting. It’s a fact not lost on the planners who report that nearly 1 in 10 management meetings and 1 in 13 sales meetings are planned in less than 21 days.* If these figures better describe your planning procedures, rest assured that you’re not alone.

“We have such a high demand for meetings that book more than 100 attendees in less than 90 days that it’s a challenge to fit them all in—even though we have 75 meeting rooms,” says Valerie Gordon, Senior Global Sales Manager for Dolce International’s Bolger Center in Washington, DC, and who was named “Sales Manager of the Year” for 2005. “I would say at least 50 percent of our bookings are within that window.” And it’s not just the corporate meetings that are experiencing the crunch.

“Many of my clients have new product rollouts, new software training, new standards they have to roll out to employees and clients quickly,” she says, adding that organizations like the American Red Cross as well as government groups have unprecedented numbers of last-minute training initiatives that regularly come through her conference center. “All sectors have to meet the challenge of a faster-paced world,” she says.

In April and May 2005, Dolce sat down with three planners to find out about their experiences with last-minute meetings and how they get the job done. Mina S. Malin, CMP, Meeting Planner, Consolidated Edison Co. of New York; Kate Hartley, Timex Sales Administration & Co-Op Ad Manager; and Andrea Raimondo, Americas Education Delivery Manager, IBM Global Business Service, participated in this report.

VNU Business Media: What would you define as a last-minute meeting in today’s meeting planning environment?

Mina Malin: It’s an unplanned meeting request, usually within a very short time frame from the planning and organization to execution.

Kate Hartley: In today’s meeting planning environment a last-minute meeting, using off-site properties, is 14 days using local properties and 30 days for all others.

Andrea Raimondo: 1 to 2 weeks. We’ve always had last-minute meetings because of the nature of our business, but in the last year we’ve seen more—up to 50 percent of our meetings are less than 4 weeks out.

VNU Business Media: What do you think has led to this accelerated pace?

Raimondo: First, is the need to get to market faster and rapidly changing business decisions. Second, is resources. We have less people to do more, so—sometimes—if it’s not urgent it gets pushed.

Hartley: Corporate calendar commitments and conflict of team availability.

Malin: I think last-minute meetings have evolved from the advances in technology. We’re a 24/7 society and much of the work in meeting management is transparent to executives.

VNU Business Media: What do you look for in a meeting facility that you know will help you turn meetings around quickly?

Hartley: Preferably a conference destination, as they provide conference services and have knowledgeable staff.

Malin: I always look for a meeting facility that meets the needs of my specific meeting. I’ll focus on the venues that I know can deliver a quick turn-around time for setting up the meeting. I have established relationships with seasoned sales managers and event managers at various venues, and this is a huge value when I must plan a last-minute meeting.

Raimondo: Venue availability is key, and immediate response times. The properties also need the ability to be flexible with their policies. For example, if they need [information] 4 weeks in advance on the rooming list, I probably haven’t even told my people the event is happening.

VNU Business Media: What types of response times do you need from a meeting facility when you are under the gun? How do response times affect your decision-making process when you are selecting a site?

Raimondo: The first venue to get back to me usually gets the business.

Hartley: I need availability and rates within 24 hours.

Malin: I need an immediate response from a meeting facility. That translates to 24 hours. I usually try to contact three venues and the one that provides the quickest turn around time does have an advantage.

VNU Business Media: Is it always better to go with a facility that you know/have been to before?

Hartley: Yes, especially with last-minute meetings, as the staff is favorable with the client so you’re not initiating a relationship.

Malin: Though it’s of value to select a venue I know—I can’t rely on that as the sole source of information. I may need to do a site visit if it has been a period of time since I had a meeting at the venue to make sure the property is up to my standards.

VNU Business Media: How important is a robust website, with online RFP, digital room formats, schematics? Does this help you speed things up or make more informed decisions faster?

Malin: A website is important for navigating information, but not a prime factor in considering the venue.

Raimondo: It is important to me. If a property doesn’t have a lot of pictures on their website, I avoid them. Tons of photos means they have something to show off. Also, we do a lot of our logistics at night—I can be all over the site building my logistics with a good website.

Hartley: Except for local/state properties, it’s extremely important.

VNU Business Media: How would you compare a dedicated conference center to a hotel, when it comes to hosting last-minute meetings?

Hartley: A conference center is [better] by far, as their staff is prepared to respond to all business demands and always has conference services available with the necessary support to assist with technology and media presentations. As a meeting planner, if my group is at a conference center, I know that the conference planner is there throughout the entire meeting.

Malin: With regard to last-minute meetings I would prefer a conference center with the CMP package. It’s much clearer what’s included, and the space is totally dedicated to a meeting environment.

Raimondo: When I meet at a conference center, I estimate that I use about a quarter of the resources that I would at a hotel. Sometimes a conference facility isn’t as glamorous as a hotel, but I’ve pushed hard to meet at conference centers and I’ve stood my ground.

VNU Business Media: Do you ever have to cut corners when you are trying to move quickly?

Malin: I won’t cut corners, but I might modify my request if I’m on a tight budget.

Dolce: What’s the first thing to go?

Hartley: Not having formal, elaborate, and heavy meals.

Raimondo: We let go of creative developments, but if the property can offer those for a few extra bucks, it’s worth it. You really don’t want to let them go—it puts the “wow” into the event.

VNU Business Media: Do you see planning times increasing or decreasing in the near future?

Hartley: I see planning times decreasing due to budget restrictions and general telecommunication/conference calling, etc.

Malin: I see planning times getting even shorter and the requests increasing—meeting management and APEX (accepted standards in the meeting industry) will become very important.

Raimondo: Budgets are so dependent on current business; quarter to quarter, it depends on how the company is doing, whether you hold the meeting or not. Everything is tentative until it’s right on top of you. But I actually do see an increase in the events business. This time last year, I could call properties at the last minute and there was space. Now, it’s getting harder and harder to get into the facilities, so there’s a real tension and it’s going to be hard to strike a balance.