Fewer clicks make it quick

General Article
March 6, 2003

New event-management system will allow fast scheduling of conference rooms, audiovisual equipment and catering

By BRAD BROBERG

Booking a conference room - and every thing that goes in it - can be a cumbersome task filled with multiple e-mails, phone calls and faxes.

There is, however, a less fragmented way. And it's coming to an Internet site near you.

The conference-support staff at Fred Hutchinson is installing Event Management System (EMS) software that will streamline the scheduling process by putting it all online. Users will be able to request a room, obtain equipment and arrange catering in far fewer steps than they do now.

One-stop shopping

"We're trying to make it one-stop shopping," said Rem Remington, audiovisual specialist.

EMS software is being installed in phases. Users will be able to schedule rooms via EMS at the Yale Building beginning Monday, March 31. If all goes well, scheduling for the remainder of the Day Campus conference rooms will be converted to EMS by Thursday, April 17.

There is one exception. Small conference rooms at the Yale Building will continue to be scheduled via existing Outlook software. In addition, it hasn't been decided whether the Public Health Sciences Division will convert to EMS before leaving Met East and West or wait until next year, when it moves into its new home under construction on the Day Campus.

Featured within the conference-support section of the center's Internet site, EMS will drastically reduce the time required to plan a meeting or event by eliminating the need to hop around to find needed information and make arrangements.

For example, to find the right meeting space, users of the conference-support site now must click on each room individually to learn whether it meets their needs. With EMS, they can enter their parameters - size, date needed, technical capabilities - and the software will search for rooms that meet those parameters. From there, it will be a simple matter to request the desired room.

Easy to find

Likewise, information about catering and audiovisual services will be just as easy to find, and it will be just as easy to order whatever refreshments or equipment is needed - all without jumping to other corners of the center Internet site or using a phone or fax.

Eventually, security and parking also will be tied into the system.

"We're really excited," said Jan Oliver, manager of food services. "It's going to let everybody have access to all of our capabilities and menus because many people aren't aware that we have full-service catering."

Both Oliver and Remington stressed that people can still contact them directly with special requests or questions. However, they both think EMS will be well received by anyone trying to plan a meeting or event.

"Up until now, it's been pretty cumbersome," Oliver said.

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