Choosing a career has always been a tough call for most of us, especially in the current scenario where there are multiple choices and multiple institutions to choose from.

Unlike the previous generation, which had limited options that ranged from medical, engineering and civil services at the top to the arts, commerce and sciences at the bottom of the pyramid. However, a lot has evolved in the last 4 decades with diverse vocational streams emerging as possible career options which have become evolved business opportunities for those engaged in them.

The communication business too was a traditional one with print, radio and television ruling the roost for a good part of the 19th century until 1980’s when a new wave of consumerism, need for evolved marketing techniques and remaining “top of mind” led to the birth of the so called “Below the Line Advertising” with sales promotions, door to door marketing, product launches, sales meetings, direct mail, etc. emerging as effective response driven consumer connect programmes to gain effective sales.

Social Celebrations too saw a dramatic change with families and parents wanting to get rid of the “organizing headache” of doing something different for their kids at their birthdays and thus led to birth of the “party planner” who would do everything from balloons to clowns to interesting games and giveaways to keep the kids happy for a “fee”. And thus, Event Management and Experiential Marketing was born….

India over the last 4 decades has become a booming market for events, activations and experiential with E & Y stating in its report of 2016-17 that the event and experiential industry would grow at 16 % YoY and reach a figure of 10,000 Crore++ in 2020-21. The sunrise industry would see exponential growth in Intellectual Properties (IPR), Rural Events, Sports Events, Political Events and Social Celebrations (weddings, anniversaries and private celebrations) besides other event scenarios.

However, the report also goes to say that 83 % of the event specialists who participated in the survey felt that the growth of the industry is highly hampered by the lack of trained “industry ready” professionals. Need for educated professionals was a major deterrent to growth.

Also, the industry has evolved into a multidisciplinary and multi-specialty business with lots of industries seeking “domain expertise” driven agencies to service their live communication and event management needs. This has led to a lot of agencies choosing to specialize in servicing and creating events for automotive, IT, Retail, Lifestyle, Luxury, etc. Another emergent sector is the travel and incentive market (worth USD 11 billion by 2026* Source – www.researchandmarkets.com.) and the vastly untapped exhibition and trade fair industry.

Today events offer multiple career options to people with role plays extending in creative thinking and content creation, business management, operations, technical, event production, administration, set, stage and collateral design, merchandising, etc. Each of these roles requires specialist training and understanding to enable gainful employment.

Also given that the events and experiential also integrate with leisure and recreation. A lot of new career avenues like curated travel experience management (glamping, wildlife safaris, wellness camps, curated staycations, etc.), alternate sports (running, hiking, swimming, yoga, etc), Lifestyle Experiences (Hot Air Ballooning Festivals, Arctic Cruises with Gala Entertainment, etc).

Entertainment, Music and Performing Arts too have evolved with the advent of events, with Concerts, Theatre Festivals, Film Awards and Gala Nights, Fashion Shows and Large Format Televised Events being curated by multiple event companies across India. Filmfare Awards, The Prithvi Theater Festival, The Jaipur Lit Festival, The IIFA Awards, The Bollywood Music Project, SPOKEN FEST, etc being some of the most noteworthy events that have taken place in the last year.

So while Business, Corporate and Public Events have gained public cynosure, social events like weddings and personal celebrations is a huge market that goes largely unreported except for those of celebrities or public figures. Industry figures peg the unorganized business to be worth 18000 Cr++ and a large part of this is the wedding business.

Today a number of wedding planners and consultants work with venues, decorators, caterers and help couples turn their dreams into reality. A large number of weddings are also being hosted at exotic destinations with more expenses spent on curation and content with a more intimate gathering. Infact, it's touted as the most recession proof industry in the lifestyle and recreation market, where people spend almost 30-40 % of their life savings to create that dream celebration for their loved ones.

So where does this lead your event career to…..

Event Education is a multi-layered approach to learning the nuances of business management, human resource planning, crisis management, risk management, soft skill upgradation and life skills learning. This forms the core learning and enablement that will allow you to pursue any form of event and experiential learning.

The second stage of learning is knowing generic roles in an event agency, processes of business generation, methods of business acquisition, preparation and design of proposals and pitches, market research and concept testing, concept and content design, pre-production operations and design, budgeting and financial planning, safety and security planning, ticketing, travel and logistics, artist and entertainment planning, contracting and legal, technical planning, licensing and permits, ticketing and crowd management, merchandising and collaterals….. the list is exhaustive… However, the above are some of the fundamental subjects that form the operative base to do any and every kind of event or experiential programme and must be a critical part of your learning.

The third stage of learning could be specialization, At Whistling Woods International School of Event Management we offer students of the Post Graduate Programme the option to specialize in Social Celebrations and Lifestyle Events or Business Events, MICE and Exhibitions as an elective, this is offered on completion of the above two stage of learning and is combined with learning of best practices for executing events of any form in a global scenario, Our students also learn how to host digital and hybrid events, which have essentially been added to the curriculum given the nature of the business and current requirements of the industry. The 11-month programme covers a gamut of learning over General Business Management, Roles and Functions across Multi- Disciplines of Events. Types of Events, IP, Sports, Experiential, Activation and MICE. The last module being specialisation followed by a compulsory 2 month internship in an event/ experiential company.

The business of event management and experiential marketing is the most dynamic and evolved business, newer technologies, new engagement techniques, new disruptive methods of audience engagement, demand for creative content that is fresh has promulgated constant updating of the academic curriculum and methods of teaching, hence to deliver the latest best practices and most updated content, the entire programme at WWI School of Events is taught completely by industry practitioners. This includes business strategists, owners of event companies, technicians, planners, talent managers, HR experts, etc.

So what’s in store for an event management career aspirant…

There are generic career roles in business management, content creation and creative, operations and production, technical and show production, Administration and Finance.

Other defined roles could be video producer, content and script writer, music producer, show director, artist manager, talent manager, stage manager, lighting designer, sound engineer, video graphics designer, Set Designer, Venue Construct Manager, Utilities and Services Manager, Permissions and Licenses Manager, Venue Manager, Resort Manager, Virtual Reality Content Producer, Sports Manager, Art Curator, Meeting Planner, Exhibition Curator, Sponsorship Marketer and these are just a few.

So while in the current situation the world stands still and tries to find answers to the new norms of living, we must not forget that man is a social animal, entertainment, recreation, education and engagement is an integral part of the living experience and as long as mankind exists the need for engagement, experiences, events will never die…. They will evolve, they will thrive, and they will find new disruptive ways to immerse its audiences… This transition is a time to reflect and understand how one can fit it, how one can enable it, how one can educate him/herself to get ready for the show… When the lights come on…

The future awaits….

The writer co- founded India’s first Event Management school, EMDI in 2002. He further joined hands with Roshan Abbas to create EMDI Encompass Institute of Radio Management and followed it up with India’s first sports management school, IISM with cricketer Nilesh Kulkarni. After pursuing a bachelor's degree in management from IIPS Indore and a masters in management from IES Mgt College-Mumbai, he started carving a niche for himself in the events industry with his education institute, publications and event IPs. Today, he has successfully diversified business opportunities for flourishing start-ups and created bankable live event IPs across genres.