Think you could organise 91 different official, international delegations, eight hotels, over 1,000 last-minute reservations and flights from all over the world? For some, this would be just another month in the office. Helen Raine profiles three women who have taken event logistics to an elite level. Find out how they pull it off and handle the pressure thanks to the special organisational skills women employ to make things work.

RUTH CAMILLERI is 44 and lives in Fgura. She has worked internationally, including the US, planned the Valletta Summit, and was Head of Event Logistics for the 2017 EU Presidency.

“On my first day, I walked into a bare office with just a desk and a chair. I started by going through the 100+ page contract, reviewing all the services that had to be delivered to the Presidency Unit,” she says.

“I had to build a ‘company’ within a company, commencing with an operational plan and budget projection, and come up with a credible organisational chart that could cater for the volume of work that was forecasted – over 180 programmes in six months. I drew up a list of priorities, with recruitment at the top. We hit 65 team members on the eve of the on-site operation kick-off.”

CRISTINA GALEA is 38 and from Sliema. She is the Head of Marketing and Project Management at Colours of Malta, a corporate events company. She is responsible for bringing in new business, developing marketing campaigns and organising final events.

Her greatest work challenge to date occurred when the 2017 General Elections were announced. “We had been working on a project for 3,000 people for over 18 months. It was signed and sealed, all the details were confirmed … and then the elections were announced over the same dates.

“In under a month, we had to change our gala dinner, catering and entertainment set-up to a completely different venue. All our excursion dates had to be changed and we had to transfer guests by sea instead of land to avoid traffic on celebration dates – a total reallocation of logistics.

“A good relationship with suppliers is key to fixing those situations; we got all the support we needed and managed to pull off an amazing series of events.”

LAUREEN AGIUS is 35 and from Zebbug. She has been married for one year, and being a wedding planner, organised the wedding herself. Laureen started out working with a British tour operator and is now with Tunin Entertainment, an events company that has coordinated more than 5,000 celebrations since 2000.

“Weddings were always my passion, so when the opportunity arose to do wedding planning, I jumped on it. I have organised weddings for just two people, right up to weddings with 1,500 guests. Each has its own different challenges and expectations. You also have to give the client a clear picture of what you can provide and make them feel comfortable; they are trusting you with one of the biggest days of their life,” she says.

Event planning is a female-dominated industry and recent research suggests that’s no coincidence. Women have some special skills when it comes to getting these kinds of meticulous jobs done. They are good at networking and relationship building, but there’s also evidence to suggest that they have the edge over men when it comes to multi-tasking, working under pressure and leading with emotional and social intelligence.

In a paper published by the journal BMC Psychology, researchers conducted two experiments. In one, 50 male and 50 female students had to switch between computer tasks. The women were statistically faster and more organised than the men. In the second experiment, both sexes were given several tasks simultaneously and only eight minutes to do them in.

One of these included planning how to find a lost key in a large field. Women approached the task more logically despite the time pressure, searching in a series of parallel lines, which covered the entire area, whereas most men used more random approaches that were less effective. The test groups also had to take a phone call, read a map and solve maths problems – 70 per cent of women outperformed men.

The test groups also had to take a phone call, read a map and solve maths problems – 70 per cent of women outperformed men.
Researcher Dr Keith Laws of the University of Hertfordshire says the women were more organised under pressure partly because they spent more time thinking about an activity before jumping in.

Research by the Hay Group in the US also found that women scored more highly than men on nearly all emotional and social intelligence [ESI] competencies, except emotional self-control, where there was no difference between genders. The researchers used data from 55,000 professionals across 90 countries and all levels of management, collected between 2011 and 2015. Scoring highly on ESI is linked to good leadership, from remaining calm and inspiring team consensus to being an empathetic coach and nurturing the next generation of professionals.

The researchers used data from 55,000 professionals across 90 countries and all levels of management, collected between 2011 and 2015. Scoring highly on ESI is linked to good leadership, from remaining calm and inspiring team consensus to being an empathetic coach and nurturing the next generation of professionals.

Dr Richard Boyatzis of Case Western Reserve University said of the study: “Historically in the workplace, there has been a tendency for women to self-evaluate themselves as less competent, while men tend to overrate themselves in their competencies. Research shows, however, that the reality is often the opposite.”

Eventful women
Cristina Galea agrees that women have the skills to succeed in the fast-paced events management industry. “Females are pros at multi-tasking and this helps when it comes to time management and coping with various issues simultaneously.

“Attention to detail, improvising and being diplomatic are also major female attributes that we use daily in our trade.”

And Ruth agrees too. “Yes, it is a female-dominated industry, not only in Malta, but everywhere I have worked. Women are detail oriented, quick thinking and have creative solutions.”

For Laureen, it depends on the individual, but she says that wedding planning benefits from a woman’s touch. “Since, most commonly, it’s the bride that has higher expectations than the groom for her dream wedding, they might feel that a woman understands them more.”

Bounce backs
Part of the job requires keeping your wits about you in the face of disaster. Laureen describes her own personal planning nightmare. “We had a wedding where it was raining cats and dogs, they had power cuts too as one of the circuits was blowing off, and to top it all, one of the guests had to be rushed to hospital with an emergency.

“Hiccups always happen, but tackling them discretely is what makes the difference. In this case, we diverted the attention of the guests by inviting them near the cake so that the patient could go out the main door discretely without causing panic.”

Ruth’s professional black hole came during an important awards dinner for a pharmaceutical company. “This event was taking place in two sections of a ballroom, separated by an airwall. The other half was being used by a local school for a fund-raising event. As soon as my awards presentation commenced, the school rock band decided to play.

“My client was fuming and I knew I had to take immediate and drastic action. The banqueting captain unplugged the electricity feeding the guitars. I’ll never forget that drummer’s one-liner: ‘You cannot unplug me though!’ We had to compromise – the solution was that music could go on only when the other group had their music playing as well.”

Work work baby
Event management is not a nine-to-five job and the women struggle to balance work and life. “It is worth the input and long hours, but I’m always rushed, trying to keep up with family, home, work, friends and me time,” Cristina says.
She applies her professional skills in a domestic setting. “If I can organise events for others, I can use the same skills to organise my life. I cannot say I miss out on anything!”

Ruth agrees that it’s “very tough” when a project is in full operation. “My best friend Vanessa made it a point that no matter how busy I was, we went out once a week. She was my sounding board, gave me feedback and got me to unwind.
“In the past, I worked very long hours, but then you realise that you are no longer productive. Now, whenever there is an opportunity to take a break, I take it.”

During her latest project, Ruth couldn’t plan any personal travel off the island. “It was a big deal for me, as I suffer from island fever. But now it is payback time… Some trips are already lined up.”

Laureen says her business is seasonal – and summers are crazy! “My husband is very understanding and appreciates that this comes with the job. We meet wedding couples late after their work, so sometimes, I am late in the office too. But we believe in quality time, and when we are together, we try to spend time the best we can.”

Future planners
Despite the challenges, these women are in it for the long haul. For Ruth: “This industry is tough yet rewarding; when you have an ecstatic client, all your sacrifices are rewarded. Your work is creating memories for others, and if you stand back, you realise you’ve made a difference in people’s lives. So yes, all that work is worthwhile!”

“It’s a great industry to be in, especially as tourism is big on our island,” Cristina adds. “Event management is a very detailed job; it can be stressful, but it has a high satisfaction rate. It’s glamorous and you meet people from all walks of life. I highly recommend it to anyone who is inclined to hospitality, events and creativity.”

“Event management is a very detailed job; it can be stressful, but it has a high satisfaction rate. It’s glamorous and you meet people from all walks of life. I highly recommend it to anyone who is inclined to hospitality, events and creativity.”

This feature first appeared in the September issue of Pink magazine.