A Meeting Planner

1
A Meeting Planners Guide to Catered Events

• Chapter Four
• On- and Off-Premise Caterers

2
On-premise catering

• Also called on-site catering.
• Any function banquet, reception, or other event
  held on the physical premises of the
  establishment or facility producing and serving
  the function.

3
Off-Premise catering

• Also called off-site catering.
• Food, beverage, equipment, and servers are
  transported to a remote location, such as a
  museum, park, natural attraction, or a private
  home.
• Items are transported to a location away from the
  caterers primary production facility.

4
On-premise caterers

• Hotels, convention centers, conference centers,
  and restaurants, etc.
• Usually have the advantage of offering many
  services under one roof.
• Can usually guarantee sufficient space to house
  the entire event.
• Can usually guarantee adequate parking.

5
Hotels

• Hotels often have advantages over other types of
  caterers because they can handle several types of
  events simultaneously and in the same location.
• Most meeting or convention attendees are usually
  housed at a host hotel.

6
Hotels

• Meeting planners will deal primarily with hotel
  caterers.
• Hotels are usually very good at servicing the
  particular market niche(s) theyve identified as
  their strength.

7
Hotels

• Hotel catering departments are organized
  according to the needs of the particular
  property.
• In hotels, the primary profit center is its
  sleeping-rooms division, with the catering
  department usually being the second most
  profitable department.
• Therefore, hotel departments generally are
  organized and administered to maximize the sales
  and profits of sleeping rooms and catered events.

8
Two types of hotel structures

1. The catering department is organized so all
   catering personnel are under the supervision of
   the hotel's food and beverage director.
2. The catering department is organized so catering
   personnel are under the supervision of the hotel
   sales and marketing director, with other
   employees, including the convention service,
   banquet service and setup staff, still reporting
   to the food and beverage director.

9
FB Model

• FB director is responsible for the hotel's
  kitchens, restaurant outlets, and banquet
  operations as well as for client solicitation and
  service.
• The catering department must secure the right to
  sell function space from the sales department,
  which controls all meeting space.
• Sales managers are often reluctant to call their
  clients and ask them to release space that they
  are holding as part of a meeting they have
  booked.
• Meetings are often booked years in advance, and
  savvy meeting planners, not knowing all of their
  space needs that far in advance, will institute a
  "hold all space" clause in their contracts.
• Convention service managers usually report to the
  sales department and are primarily responsible
  for room setup, but not for food and beverage
  service.

10
Sales and Marketing Model

• Catering managers and convention service managers
  would be in the same department, both taking care
  of the food, beverage, and room setup needs.
• The convention service managers dont sell the
  event, but take over client business booked by
  sales and marketing.
• They handle planning and logistics of meals and
  receptions and develop the appropriate service
  procedures.
• Any selling would be "upselling," or trying to
  get the meeting planner to purchase a more
  expensive meal, wine, or service.
• Catering managers sell short-term food and
  beverage events to the local market, or to
  functions without sleeping rooms, such as
  weddings, local banquets, etc.
• With catering sales revenue being the
  responsibility of the marketing director, rather
  than food and beverage, sales managers are more
  likely to call clients to get rooms released for
  local banquets.

11
Advantages of FB Model

• Increased Efficiency
• Isolated Responsibility
• Job Enrichment
• Repeat Patronage
• Improved Communications

12
Disadvantages of FB Model

• Excessive Workload
• Too Many Bosses
• Lack of Specialization
• Excessive Delegation

13
Sales and Marketing Model

• The advantages and disadvantages associated with
  the organizational form where marketing is in
  control are the opposites of those associated
  with the organizational format that places food
  and beverage in control.

14

• There is no one single organizational form
  suitable for all hotels.
• The FB model is the most typical organizational
  pattern.
• Catering and convention service staffs work
  together, each handling specific activities.
• Catering typically handles all food and beverage
  requirements while convention service handles all
  nonfood arrangements, such as room setups and
  audiovisual.

15
Convention Center

• Major advantage over hotel caterers is that it
  can handle much larger groups.
• Typical convention centers also have a wide
  selection of available space to suit the needs of
  very large groups.
• Most convention centers are public facilities.
• Catering is usually handled by contract food
  service companies that act as independent
  business entities.

16
Conference Centers

• Conference centers have sleeping rooms and
  meeting rooms, but do not offer exhibit space.
• Smaller meetings that do not have trade shows or
  other types of exhibits may find this more
  appealing.
• They offer a complete meeting package (CMP),
  which includes meals.
• Breakfast, lunch, and dinner are generally
  available in a cafeteria-type setup.

17
Conference Centers

• A group can be served any time it decides to
  break.
• Keeps from having to break in the middle of a
  productive session just because it is noon.
• If more than one group is in the facility, they
  will each be assigned areas of the dining room.
• Refreshments are usually available at any time
  outside of the meeting rooms, allowing breaks at
  appropriate times.
• Conference centers can also provide banquets and
  receptions on request.

18
Restaurants

• Local restaurants are good choices with small
  groups.
• For example, Board of directors that require a
  small, private dinner.
• Breaks the monotony of eating several meals in
  large banquet facilities.
• Restaurants may be the only choice if you have to
  let attendees order off a regular menu.
• Most caterers will not consider an a la carte
  menu for a large group, as it would be nearly
  impossible to accommodate every taste and diet
  restriction .
• Well-run, full-service restaurant may be able to
  handle this challenge.

19
Off-Premise Caterers

• Can operate in just about any place you can think
  of, from parks, to museums, to yachts, to hot air
  balloons.
• Tents (also known as portable rooms) are often
  used, which allows the caterer to create almost
  any type of theme.

20
Off-Premise

• Most conventions and meetings will have at least
  one off-premise event, often the opening
  reception, closing gala, or a themed event.
• Attendees want to experience some of the flavor
  of the destination, and they often get cabin
  fever if they never leave the host hotel.

21
Off-Premise

• Events can be outsourced to a destination
  management company (DMC).
• DMCs are familiar with the location and have
  relationships established with the unique venues
  in the area.
• Almost every destination has distinctive spaces
  for parties Southfork in Dallas, the Rock and
  Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, the Getty Museum
  in Los Angeles, etc.
• In Las Vegas, the Liberace Mansion is available
  for parties.

22
Off-Premise

• Often you first select the site you want.
• Catering options may be limited.
• For instance, if you want to use the Orfila
  Winery in San Diego for an event, the owner will
  rent the facilities to you.
• Then you have to select a caterer from a list of
  caterers approved by the owner.