July 26, 2022

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Your speaker just called to say she has an emergency and can’t make it to her keynote tomorrow. Now you have a big hole in your agenda.

Emergencies happen. The best planners are programmed to prepare for and manage the unexpected – and do it with a smile. After all, that’s what makes you so good at your job. It’s in your DNA.

If you don’t have a contingency plan in place and a calm demeanor, things will unravel quickly – yourself included.

You put contingency plans in place for hiccups like inclement weather, so have a similar strategy in place for speaker cancellations:

? Before the event, work with your speaker bureau partner to determine if other speakers in the vicinity could fill in on a moment’s notice.

? Everyone needs a mental break. Give your audience time to refresh between sessions and work with your bureau partner to find a local wellness expert who can share tips – or even lead a meditation session – during that time.

? Create an impromptu roundtable session involving the audience. Encourage small group discussions on 2-3 industry topics and select an executive from the company to emcee.

The payoff:

✔️ Your attendees still take away something valuable– a new perspective, wellness practices, valuable peer networking and insight, etc.

✔️ You remain cool under pressure and look like a hero.

Have you had a keynote speaker cancel unexpectedly?

Tags: communication, entrepreneur, event, event management, event planning, event speaker, event strategies, innovation, inspirational, leadership, motivational, speaker management, strategy