Have you ever attended HR events that were completely uninspiring? You’re not alone.

Great HR events have the ability to energise attendees with new and exciting ways of doing things, but hitting this sweet spot is no easy feat. More often than not, the information shared stays between four walls.

At the heart of this problem is the misconception around when an event truly begins and ends. Contrary to what to many might believe, a great human resources event is about more than what happens at the venue, or within a session or training time slot — it’s about approaching the event cycle in a holistic sense, and engaging attendees before, during and after.

But how do you close that loop? Here are five tips for human resources professionals who are looking for a little help to make the most of their HR events.

1. Supplement the communication.

Before the event even begins, make sure you take human contingencies into consideration. It might come as no surprise that people are notoriously hard to manage, and this inevitably scales up when you have attendees and staff travelling interstate or overseas for your training event.

Provide everyone with briefing packs that act as a complete guide to the event. Minimise the potential for attendees to stray from the event schedule by giving them detailed information and guidance — this will remove friction points and give everyone a solid and structured path to follow. If you’re dealing with people in multiple languages, make sure native speakers compile in-depth instructions.

If you want to communicate logistical details to attendees in real-time, consider using smart technology. It’s now easier than ever to develop a mobile app specifically for the event, which can be used by attendees to look up information.

2. Prepare, prepare, prepare.

Great HR events are a marathon, not a sprint. They need to be planned down to every minute, with backup schedules in the event that something goes wrong. Ensure that you approach this preparation with military precision and brief all staff members before heading into the event.

Next, do a full rehearsal and run through of all major components of the event, such as keynotes and breakouts. You’ll soon find out whether you’ve allocated enough time or space for attendees to feel comfortable and retain the information presented to them. Getting these processes down pat is vital, and it will help you build knowledge internally, ensuring you run better HR events and training days in the future.

If you want to be across all aspects of planning, consider managing your event through a centralised online platform. This can allow you and staff members to access information relating to all aspects of the event, such as the RSVP list, speaker times during the day and the length of breaks between sessions.

3. Keep everyone updated.

Use an online messaging platform to set up a channel for your staff so they can easily communicate throughout the event. This works much better than email or a mobile messaging app because it allows real-time integrations with an event platform. This enables organisers to use real-time attendee information to manage their event cycle.

During the event, make sure you are constantly consolidating and clarifying key takeouts for your attendees. This isn’t as difficult or heavy-handed as it sounds — you can use social network groups to discuss key messages and prompt attendees to provide instant feedback or questions to speakers. This gives attendees the opportunity to involve themselves in the event, turning them from passive to active.

Once the event is over, complement the seminars by providing documentation and easy-to-digest messaging that’s easily accessible on a phone or tablet. Make sure you also give them a call to action, and clear contact information for them to follow-up if they desire.

4. Keep them engaged.

Are you throwing more similar HR events in the future that might be relevant for attendees? Make sure you keep them connected and engaged.

Allow attendees to connect online with each other directly, or through social media in large groups or conversations. This might even be an extra feature within the event app you created. This allows the communication to continue days or months after the event, reinforcing the messages discussed in keynotes. Try to also prompt smaller groups to organise meet-ups after the event in their own cities or states. You’ll be surprised how much extra networking you enable.

5. Find ways to improve for future HR events.

The last and most important step is getting extra feedback. Many surveying systems will enable attendees to communicate what they liked and what could have been done better.

The only way to really improve your event experience for attendees is to throw more HR events, get feedback and, if you’ve provided a great experience, do it all over again.

There will be a one-day HR tech convention as part of the 2016 AHRI National Convention 3-5 August in Brisbane. To check event details and register, click here.