Identification of the problem
My wife told me, “Volunteering in our son’s Boy Scout Troop was supposed to be rewarding.” It feels more like a job than a volunteer position. Our son, who was ten years old, joined the Boy Scouts of America to meet new people and enjoy the outdoors. Our local troop had over 150 scouts and 100 assistant scoutmasters (ASMs). As a member of the army, each ASM played a role in the military. My first responsibility as an ASM was to coordinate transportation to and away from the monthly campouts. This was a huge task that required dozens of planning hours. Each month, we had over 200 participants. It’s no wonder that the other positions were filled first. I was suffering from my volunteer role!
The time and effort required to organize our troop’s camping trips was insane. Although I spent many years at Microsoft working as a Word and Excel software developer, the planning of these troop events posed a new logistical challenge.
To get started, I used tools that I was familiar with: spreadsheets and emails. I also made phone calls. I would start each month with a list of potential attendees. Then, I’d review the itinerary and use an email template for the RSVP questions. Finally, the responses were consolidated into the original Excel spreadsheet, and then roles and activities were assigned. It’s easy to send an email with 200 recipients in the BCC field, but sorting through all the responses can take hours. SurveyMonkey, an online survey tool I used, allowed me to make immediate improvements. I was able to collect RSVPs and ask follow-up questions using SurveyMonkey.
Although a survey tool improved and automated the planning process, it was still necessary to extract data from one system and integrate it into another. I spent hours moving data between these tools. You can imagine my excitement to hand over the ASM role to another ASM after two years and move on to a new position. However, I knew that there must be a better way to streamline event planning for our troop. I learned from this experience how inefficient planning events can be without the proper tools.
This dilemma was not unique to me. My friends are frequently asked to do similar volunteer work with their children’s schools, youth groups, sports teams, and other community organizations. There is little preparation needed if the task at hand is simple, like hauling sports gear or acting as a judge in a volleyball match. If parents are required to do logistics-related tasks like organizing carpools or arranging events, then the amount of effort is increased. The initial enthusiasm of the volunteer can quickly fade, especially after they have spent dozens of hours planning an activity. I can relate to this!
It’s good to know that technology can help solve this issue. Unfortunately, many non-profit organizations lack the funds to purchase specialized software. To make up for the lack of budget, volunteers must rely on themselves. While savvy volunteers might scour markets for clever solutions, they often end up using the same tools they are familiar with. It is the right time to introduce an affordable solution for event planning that will streamline the process, both for organizations with a tight budget and for individual event planners. This was clearly a complex issue, and addressing it fully would require managing its complexity.
Build the Solution
Years later, I found the solution when I realized that event planning is essentially the same. Campouts are similar to other types of events. Combining these essential planning steps–creating invitation lists, collecting attendance responses, and assigning event responsibilities–into a single system allows the data to move efficiently through each step of the workflow. The users no longer need to depend on combining multiple tools and transferring data between systems. Eventide was created from this idea.
Entrepreneurs know that it is a long journey to get from an idea to launching a product. I knew that I would be facing many challenges over a number of years. I was able to draw on my experience from Microsoft.
In a similar way to how movies are made, I began by creating a storyboard for a common scenario. After I solved the transportation issue, I extended my design to include planning elements for an even wider range of events. I came up with a solution by breaking events down into parts that each had a different arrangement of people and locations. To make this solution immediately useful, technology had to take on the burden of sending out personalized email invitations, tracking responses automatically, assigning roles, and generating reports.
Next, we hired a team of developers to create the “MVP.” We made sure that the entire planning process was incorporated into the design. During the design phase, it was important to maintain the human touch in event planning. Organizers must send personalized emails and allow RSVPs with personal comments and notes. They should also consider the preferences of attendees when assigning roles and responsibilities. It was also important to take into account ease of use and to incorporate reactive software to support a variety of screen sizes. There were many challenges to overcome, but we managed to create the first version of Eventide with much thought and effort.
We realized that a solution for event planning would be incomplete if it did not take into account the needs of event attendees. The solution we chose would have to be beneficial for the whole organization and not just the organizers. I used to email directions and the itinerary to campers and then tape the volunteer and carpool assignments to the van’s side. Eventide allows each participant to download the mobile app that provides access to event details, attendees, and navigation links. Plus, we save money on tape.
Delivering the vision
When we finished the beta version ( www.eventene.com), I desired that our son’s group be the first to test the product. They were still using tools and workflows I set up almost ten years ago. This large troop switched to Eventene in six months and relies on the software to plan all troop events and monthly campouts. It was very satisfying to solve a problem that I had been struggling with for so long. However, Eventide was useful for events other than Scouting. Eventide was also used for a parent/student skiing trip at a high school in the area, a monthly dining excursion around Los Angeles, and a weekly tennis league.
We have over 100 successful events under our belt. Eventide is a solution that works, and customers love it. When I see Eventene in action, it’s great to see how excited other event planners are. In the future, I hope that event planners will no longer have to deal with this frustrating experience because it will be so easy. Eventene’s goal is to achieve this, and we believe that we have made a big step in the right direction.