On Day 31 of the partial shutdown of the U.S. government--and with no end in sight--PCMA offers tips on how event planners can grapple with the headaches this situation brings:
Organizations like AMS and PAG were able to recover from the hurdles caused by the government shutdown because of the organizational structures and processes they already had in place. Even those whose events aren’t currently feeling the strain of this shutdown are advised to take these steps to ensure the proper organizational infrastructure is in place to overcome potential problems the next time the government stops functioning.
• Gather alternative contact information. Because government employees affected by the shutdown were unable to respond to emails to their government addresses, AMS had difficulties determining which speakers would and would not be able to present. The challenges continued on site, as some government workers paid their own way to the meeting, so they were present but unauthorized to present at their sessions.
“As our program chairs tried to fill all the holes in the schedule, communicating with presenters who had government email addresses was an ongoing challenge,” Gorski said. “We mostly communicated through …” PCMA
