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A poem about organising events

A Conference

I organised a conference once,
  an easy task it would seem.
I thought that I was in control -
or was it just a dream?

A Call for Papers was announced
  and posters they were sent
advertising all about this timely
  and prestigious short event.

Streaming of abstracts
  was next on the list;
a sample of the full paper,
  to give us the gist.

Plenary speakers were then invited;
  a date in their diary to be highlighted.

Booking forms came flooding in;
  an en-suite room they had to win.

With so many options
  from which to select,
it's hardly surprising
  many failed to detect
and circle 'Parking' for their car,
  which was to carry them from afar.

The conference team met up
  every so often
to iron out problems,
rough edges to soften.

As money came in
  receipts were sent out
with a confirming letter
  so no-one would shout.

Room logistics were
  kind of a nightmare:
shall we put them in here,
  or would they be better in there?

Deadlines were set to give us a chance
to give the database one final glance
before the Catering Department were told
how many delegates to behold.

And then came the programme.
  Well, what can I say?
Just how many times did we
  change it each day?

"That's not my stream!"
  we heard them scream.
"I can't come on that day,"
  others would say.

PowerPoint facilities were few,
  it has to be said.
So speakers were advised instead
  to bring an overhead.

Abstracts went into a booklet,
  some full papers onto a website;
other speakers came with only 20 copies
  so that their luggage was light.

Registration day arrived
  and people travelled far.
They went through all the protocol
  and ended in the bar ...
No - coffee was the star!

Conference packs were handed out
  containing lots of info
including publishers' leaflets
  and notes on how things would flow.

Lunch was served:
  a buffet, cold and hot.
Vegetarians, vegans and special diets
  had food in a separate pot.

The plenary session began:
  a welcome given to all.
Amendments were announced
  and publishers set out their stall.

We deserved a bit of food and wine to
celebrate, I think, wouldn't you say?
So a Gala dinner crowned proceedings and happened on the Wednesday.

I organised a conference once,
  or was it just a dream?
No, it all finally came together
  due to the efforts of the
conference team!

Site created 11 February 2007 and updated on 25 January 2010 by Scarborough web developer John Allsopp