Conference and Banqueting Sector Analysis and Management Report

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of conference and banqueting management within the UK hospitality sector, focusing on the Vineyard Hotel as a case study. It begins by examining the scope and scale of the conference and banqueting industry, highlighting key factors that have influenced its development, such as economic, political, and technological advancements. The report then delves into the strategic and operational issues involved in effective management, including competitive analysis, pricing strategies, licensing, and staff training. It emphasizes the importance of delivering quality performance and reviews techniques used by the company. The report also explores various food production systems and styles suitable for banquets, evaluating their advantages and disadvantages. Furthermore, it considers factors essential for organizing off-site conference banquets and analyzes key menu planning strategies. Finally, the report assesses ergonomic considerations for conference and banqueting companies, focusing on how these factors can enhance customer satisfaction and increase sales.

Conference and
Banqueting Management

Table of Contents
CONFERENCE AND BANQUETING MANAGEMENT.......................................................................................1
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................................3
TASK 1..........................................................................................................................................................3
1.1 Scope and scale of conference and banqueting sector.....................................................................3
1.2 Analyse the key factors that influenced development of the sector................................................4
TASK 2..........................................................................................................................................................5
2.1 Assess key strategic and operational issues involved in effective management...............................5
2.2 Importance of delivering quality performance and review techniques used by the company.........6
TASK 3..........................................................................................................................................................7
3.1 Suitability of range of food production system and styles ...............................................................7
3.2 Factors need to be considered when organising off site conference banquet.................................8
3.3 Analysing key menu planning for conference and banqueting events.............................................8
TASK 4..........................................................................................................................................................9
4.1 Assess ergonomic considerations for banquet and conference company........................................9
CONCLUSION.............................................................................................................................................10
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................................11

INTRODUCTION
Banqueting and conference sector are the emerging sectors of UK which are
attracting customers from world. The conference company focus on equipment and
technology whereas banqueting focus on food and beverages. The Vineyard hotel of
UK deals in conducting events for different occasions and take care of the food,
transport of guests, decoration, drinks and entertainment and provide best services. The
report will introduce the concept and scale of conference and banqueting sector and
analyse the key factors that influence development of the sector. However, later the
report will include key strategic and operational issues involved in effective
management along with importance of delivering quality performance and review
techniques used by the company and at last, assessing ergonomic considerations for
banquet and conference company which leads to increase in sales of the hotel as well
as provide satisfaction to the customers.
TASK 1
1.1 Scope and scale of conference and banqueting sector
The hospitality industry in the UK emerged in 19th century and became whole
individual industry. The core companies of hospitality industry deals in hotel, restaurant,
pub, fast food etc. It involves a lot of services like food and drink, hospitals and business
organisations that has increased globalisation and quality of services. The shift in time
and events have made it necessary the emergence of conference and banqueting
industry from hospitality industry (May, 2015). The understanding of the nature of this
sector in UK has increased strategic support for venue diversification. The market is
estimated to be worth £18.8 billion to the UK economy, including spend at different
occasions and in the wider destination by representatives and organisers (Introduction
to conference and banqueting industry, 2018)
In recent time, decent and appropriate efforts are taken to define the size and
scope of the conference and banqueting industry in the UK so that this alone can be an
individual industry. This industry deals more efficiently in tour and travels, sports events,
charity programs, graduation ceremonies and festivals. The job of manager working in

the company as one who plan wedding, parties, dinners and dances and training
activities and also perform business functions that involves launching new product or
training employees etc.
The UK has a wider scope of diversification and advancement of industrialization.
It has increased standards of corporate life and conferences has gained huge popularity
in short span of time. The annual turnover has increased employment opportunities
throughout the nation. The scope of conference will support large number of sectors
such as hotels, restaurants etc.
The conference and banqueting industry is an emerging industry which is still
trying to find its way but is continuously growing with major financial impacts. UK is one
of the most important destination for meeting in the world and scope of these
conferences can increase rapidly.
The size of conference can be small, medium and large ranged according to the
days it will be conducted and number of participants involved. The small conference
continues for one day and participants are below 500 whereas middle ranged
conference are held for 3-4 days and consists of 600 – 700 participants and large
ranged consists of 3000- 4000 people and held or more than 5 days.
1.2 Analyse the key factors that influenced development of the sector
Factors that influence the growth and development of sector include internal and
external factors in which internal factors include catering and food services,
entrainment, innovative decision support system, accommodation services, conference
room etc. Administrative procedures are important internal aspect the influence the
sector as when booking any type of conference and banquet, it needs to be mentioned
on the document called function sheet which will include price details of services and
requirements of the event which will make the work efficient.
The other important factor is the contract between two or more people that
outlines all the aspect of the event that need to be followed by both the parties
(Woolgar, 2018). The other factor can be food production styles and services available
for banquets which need to be chosen on nature and ambience of event. These

systems are used by companies offering large amount of food which reduce cost of food
and labour cost and practice safe food.
The external factors that influence development of sector is political, economical
and technological factors.
Economic factors – Economy's growth reflects individuals and business of that
country and when they achieve success it is celebrated (Åström, 2016). These
celebrations are achieved thorough events. The growth of UK economy has contributed
towards the growth of new industry.
Political factors – It refers to power that drives the economy. Most policies
shape management and make rules and regulations that are need to be followed by
particular sector. The policies based on immigration have strengthened the
development of banqueting and conference sector in UK.
Technological factors – The growth in technological sector has impacted
conference and banqueting industry. Most corporates and individuals want their
conferences and banquets to match high level in which they operate. It is important that
mangers of conference and banqueting companies remain active and search for
technology that can match the standard of customers.
TASK 2
2.1 Assess key strategic and operational issues involved in effective management
The competitive nature of Vineyard Hotels makes it important to know the
competitors in terms of pricing strategy they use and the value they add to their
programmes. When planning conference and banquet, there need to be flexibility and
hence adequate consideration need to be given to the culture of expected guests which
will enable the company to design and decorate the venue according to the culture of
the customers which will improve value of delivery to the customers.
Pricing and packaging makes it important to know the competitors in terms of
their pricing and the value they add to programmes and events (INDUSTRY, 2015).
Thus, some employees will be used to execute the due diligence in order to find out

unhidden information we require about our competitor to increase the competition and
attract customers. The Vineyard hotels in this way can have a competitive advantage
over other firms.
Most of the competitor offer discounts to most corporate businesses that
organise there meeting in UK. Therefore, to place the discounts on different events is
necessary. This will increase the base of customers for the Vineyard hotels (Woolgar,
2018).
The other issue faced by the Vineyard hotels is that licensing is usually given by
UK government on business that are carrying out their operations in UK. Therefore, it is
important to obtain relevant licenses for the events that are need to be carried out by
conference and banquet company.
The standard of people who will serve the food and drinks in the company need
to be handle well. The core part of any hotel operating in conference and banqueting
sector are food and drinks and for that Vineyard hotel's need to train its staff and
develop proper training programmes so that it can improve the performance of the
business and hotel can have trained professionals.
2.2 Importance of delivering quality performance and review techniques used by the
company
The performance and quality review of events helps the company assess their
working and ongoing activities and future events of the company (Kirby, 2017). The
Vineyard Hotel is hosting an occasion where more than 100 guests are arriving and
there is need to adopt following performance and quality review methods to strengthen
the performance in the future. The performance and quality review techniques used by
conference and banqueting department in the Vineyard Hotel are as follows :
Client and guest evaluation procedure – By using this method the Vineyard
company set smart objectives which will identify that the event was successful or not.
Then the department break down the objectives in measurable part for which the hotel
divide the event and assign them to record throughout the day for overall success of the
event. For example serving time of coffee, from pouring champagne each of the event

need to have a fix time which will make the event successful. After that the hotel needs
to set the benchmark against its competitors so that I can improve next time. The last
step is to take feedbacks from clients and customers which will help the company in
improve their services in case if some customers gets unsatisfied.
Close loop method – In this method formal process based on business
intelligence set business goals and monitor the progress of the hotel along with
assessing their impact. It helps the hotel to exploit data to create precisely targeted
market opportunities for their corporate partners. It helps the hotel in investigating
volume of traffic at their site.
Survey and feedback method – In this method the hotel after conducting event
ask its clients and customers for feedback through survey in which they include all the
aspects of services which will include review about food and drinks, shows, decoration,
dress code, management etc. which will help the hotel in improving its weak area.
TASK 3
3.1 Suitability of range of food production system and styles
The food production of the company includes planning of the menu that is need
to be served in the conference or banquet. It includes purchasing and receiving of raw
materials, cleaning vegetables, preparing and storing them (Chion, 2019). There are
different types of customers that go to different types of places and where the method of
preparation of food is very different according to their needs.
There are different types of food production system and styles. The traditional
system style in which the food portion is well arranged in a plate by professionals and
are served by waiters. The food is produced with fresh vegetables, fruits, spices with
many other type of ingredients which create efficiency and customers are served with
proper and fresh food which is not harmful for their health. The other way is cook freeze
which begin with preparing large portion quantities of food and then start freezing them
to very low temperature. This could be further reheated and can serve to the customers.
This method saves the time and cost of the banquet and conference company. Though

this method saves time and cost yet it is harmful for the customers as the food gets
reheated again causes diseases to the customers.
The other system is sous-vied in which products are produced and get blanched
with specific temperature to serve the customer. All the food item produced with this
system are portioned in the plastic bag and get vacuum packed. The different bags
containing food are labelled, chilled and refrigerated for use of later cooking for the
guests. This is again harmful as use of plastic is harmful, for the environment as well as
individuals eating food from that.
The other system used is centralized distribution which is used by the company
that need of site production like school, hospital, restaurants etc. there is specific dish
for every meal when it is produced. The food is prepared and then methods like cook
freeze is used to put the food away in central production unit. The last system that is
used is cook chill in which meals after getting prepared are portioned in the kitchen and
after being blast chilled it is ready to reheated and served.
3.2 Factors need to be considered when organising off site conference banquet
The factors that are need to be considered while organising of site conference
banquet are :
Budget – The main factor is budget if the company which has to be taken into
consideration. The areas which needs focus of budget is the venue, catering and drink
and at last entertainment (Conference and Banqueting management, 2018). The
budget needs to be decided and also needs to include expenses that will incur on
decoration, guest transport, event management insurance, hospitality staff etc. the
budget need to be distributed according to the need of each section
Purpose of Banquet and conference – The purpose of the banquet needs to
be very clear to the company else it can create dissatisfaction among their customers.
The reason need to be very clear that why the event is being organised and it can
include retirement, birthday party, corporate success, annual work party, charity
fundraising etc. and the decoration and food and even dress code need to be according
to the purpose of the event.

Theme – The theme of the event need to be creative and innovative which can
attract the people attending it and can increase the sales and reputation of the
company, the theme of the banquet needs to be according to the event which can be
Halloween, medieval banquet etc. If them of the party is not appropriate then people
may lose their attention and if theme is appropriate it creates more formal environment
that is suitable for work events.
Location – The other important factor is the location which needs to be
accessible for the people who are attending it and need to be easy to find and travel.
The company can chose a venue that depicts sense of glamour and can relate to the
theme.
Dress code and entertainment – The dress code of the event need to be clear
and creative so that it can enhance overall atmosphere and experience of the event. On
the other hand, the entertainment of the event needs to be smooth which can include
live music, comedy, magic acts etc.
3.3 Analysing key menu planning for conference and banqueting events
The key menu planning for conference and banqueting events can be done by
considering and analysing following factors :
Know the guest and preferences - Before planning the event, the event
planner need to consider the type of guest that will be attending the event. Once the
organiser have the list of the guest, then plan the menu that offers variety of foods and
beverages depending upon certain factors like age group, diet conscious etc.
Variety in food – The guest need to be entertained and make the programme
the best so that all the guest can remember it throughout. The planner need to offer
choices in the menu to ensure that all guests get pleased with the meal.
Seasonal and fresh items – Consider the season in which the event is being
hosted so that while planning the menu, the food that get selected can be local and
seasonal fresh products which can add ethnicity to the dish (Berners, 2018).To add
various sources in the dish can make the menu attractive.

Available time to cook - The event need to be planned according to the time
that will be needed in preparing the menu. Suppose if the week of the company has no
events, it can prepare salads on their own, however, if the company has list of events
happening one after another it can grab a bagged salad and serve to the people.
Financial resources – Before planning the menu, the financial resources need
to be considered as how much money the company has to spend on the menu. When
financial resources enough, it leads to smooth operations.
The limitation of the menu planning can be that the hotel does not have enough
budget at that particular time or vegetables and fruits are not freshly available, the staff
is not adequate and trained and also the arrangements are not done properly etc. can
be the limitation for planning the menu at the event in the hotel.
TASK 4
4.1 Assess ergonomic considerations for banquet and conference company
The ergonomic considerations that are need to assesses in the Vineyard Hotel
are :
Sitting plans and layout designs – When the guest arrives the sitting needs to
be arranged properly. The seats need to be placed accurately with the number of
person arriving for the conference or banqueting event (Rahimi, 2017). The outline of
the seating arrangement need to be known by the customers and clients. If guest will
not know where to sit or number of seats that are available will be less, it will create
dissatisfaction among the guests. The accommodation to the guests need to be
provided on time to avoid any inconvenience to the guests.
Style – The style of treating guest by the manager is very important, the guest
need to be treated very nicely and their issues and problems need to be resolved at that
very moment and need to be provided with most efficient services. The other thing
which matters is the style of decoration in the event, it need to be aligned with the
theme so that it can make the environment calm and soothing.

Comfort – The manager need to take care of the comfort of the guests, the
guest need not feel troubled with anything. From food to entertainment to drinks,
everything needs to be served on time and with extra ordinary services.
Types of event – The decoration, dress code, theme need to be based on the
type of event that has been organised. If it is a business conference then the theme
needs to be formal and sophisticated whereas if event is based on some children's
birthday party the event need to have magic shows and games to entertain the kids.
The decoration need to be according to the event so that it can heighten the event even
more.
Computer aided design packages – The company needs to take CAD software
to design the venue and to find out the cost of manufacturing products with their time
and cost (Popovic, 2018). This enables the company in making efficient budget and
carrying of efficient operations.
Quality of environment – A good atmosphere lead to customer satisfaction and
positive word of mouth. Maintaining positive atmosphere in the event is very important
as it creates positive attitude towards the company and influence people to recommend
the company to other people as well.
Technology – In case of business conferences of any other event, the sound,
projection of video and special sound effects need to be clear and of high quality which
can make the guests enjoy the event. The lightning and sound technology need to be
efficient which can give the best audio visual experience to the guest and it can also
include VR experience which will give real life experience to the guests.
CONCLUSION
The report concluded that how banqueting and conference industry get affected
by various political, economical and technological factors which included government
policies, technological advancements etc. it depicted the importance of quality
management in the firm which contained reviewing budget, food, employees etc. of the
firm which lead to overall success of the company. However, the report focused on
different system of production in which traditional method can be considered as best as

it uses fresh fruits and vegetables. At last it concluded various ergonomic factors that
drives the banquet and conference company and are important for the hotel to achieve
success.