Building a City Brand

The recent Eventing The Future Conference in Taupo, New Zealand received a well crafted presentation on what it takes to gain events and establish event brands in a modern metropolitan city.
Derek Fry, Director Rugby World Cup 2011 for Wellington City Council, delivered an insightful presentation based on almost 25 years of involvement in delivering events within a territorial local authority setting - a setting Fry freely admitted can be full of red tape and by its very nature and function steeped in bureaucracy.
Wellington has achieved a lot in the event space lately. It captured a place on the World Rugby Sevens circuit and delivers a popular event each year working in concert with the Wellington Rugby Union and others. It bid for and secured the World of Wearable Arts events moving them from their traditional home in Nelson. Wellington became a Volvo stop-over and continues to be one of the first of almost 80 TLAâs to quickly assess an opportunity in the event space and is often the first to be able to do something about it.
Derek outlined his rationale for Wellington City Councilâs success. Not surprisingly he highlighted a mix of factors that contribute something to this remarkable TLA success in developing event brands.
Fry stated that there must be an alignment between strategy and plans across all forms of planning and all departments in Council, it helps to get event strategy âhigh upâ on the priority list as part of either economic development plans, or social cohesion plans. This includes breaking down 'silo' mentality where Departments focus too heavily on detail and not enough on big picture. He further points out the need for what he terms âagile decision makingâ. Fry's team is close to the top of the decision making tree in Council, they attempt to keep decision making 'out of the Chamber' thereby operating with wider capability and a mandate from the politicians.
As a result, the team form and maintain close links with the private and volunteer sectors and are respected. This is essential for success he stresses, helping his professional staff move quickly in dealings with particularly the private sector who would normally have a perception that Councils' decision making would be a slow process.
Fry also highlighted that the Wellington City Council spends a lot of its time involving the community through quarterly surveys, economic impact assessments and qualitative analysis - representing a commitment to inform and get everyone 'on side'.
Another aspect of the decision making around event brand for the city is the need to make sure events delivered are both unique and relevant. The discussion here is about âfitâ where Derek indicated that the event must fit the cityâs stated brand, its articulated policies and strategic direction and must be unique and bring something new.
Review by Peter Burley
Eventing The Future Conference, The Official Conference of the New Zealand Association of Event Professional was held in Taupo on 6th and 7th August.

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