Political Events: Effective Planning and Successful Implementation
“How can political events be implemented effectively to reach people, motivate them, and strengthen democratic dialogue?”
“In order to stage messages effectively, a targeted interplay of content, presentation, and emotional appeal is essential. The target audience, format, and context are crucial. We often recommend digital participation formats to enable attendees to actively engage in the event.“
Special Considerations for Political Events in Public Spaces
A key aspect of events in public spaces is the authorization procedure. As an organizer, you should clarify early on whether a demonstration or a public event is to be registered—since the requirements and regulations differ significantly:
- A demonstration must be registered with the assembly authority. Set-up and dismantling times are usually strictly regulated, and commercial sales are generally not allowed. Food and beverages for participants must be provided free of charge. Additionally, there is close coordination with the police—both before and during the demonstration.
- A public event, on the other hand, is usually registered with the municipal regulatory office. Here, different obligations apply, but organizers also have more creative freedom, especially regarding the program, duration, and catering. However, based on the expected number of participants, the regulatory authority often requires a security concept and a comprehensive set of conditions that can significantly impact on the budget.
For successful implementation, we have developed the Political Events Checklist, which offers practical tips to make your events unique, relevant, surprising, and emotionally engaging.
Find out more about this and how artecom can support you in our Political Event Brochure.
Certified Sustainable.
»ISO 20121 – it’s a marathon that’s worth it.«
Sarah, why did artecom pursue certification according to ISO 20121?
Sustainability has fortunately become a ubiquitous topic in the event industry. Many clients and companies are willing to act more sustainably or even feel the responsibility to set an example. At artecom, we also see it as our duty to do so. We’ve been certified as a “sustainable company” for several years now, so the topic of sustainability is no longer just a “nice to have” for us—it has long been an integral part of our work in the event sector.
With ISO 20121, we are now seeking certification of our Sustainable Event Management System (NVMS) in accordance with international standards. The initial certification process includes two multi-day audits. These audits assess whether our established management system meets the standard requirements and whether it is effective in our efforts to make events comprehensively sustainable. These audits will take place in Q1/2025, and since late 2024, we have been in the midst of intense preparations. After 2025, there will be annual follow-up and recertification audits, making it a continuous, ongoing process.
artecom is ISO 9001 certified. Is that an advantage for sustainable event management?
Yes, absolutely. Since ISO standards share a very similar structure, ISO 20121 builds on ISO 9001 in many aspects. Some documents were already implemented in our company and in some cases ‘only’ needed to be supplemented with sustainability aspects. Quality and sustainability are closely linked in these standards, and we take advantage of these synergies.
Did you manage the process alone, or was a larger team at artecom involved? How do you communicate this topic within the company and to the public?
The certification is clearly a team effort. As the Sustainability Officer, I have delved the deepest into the standard and its requirements, but our interdisciplinary Green Team has always been intensively involved in this process. This team consists of our quality and sustainability management officers, as well as representatives from all company departments, and, of course, the management.
The changes in our processes are communicated internally through training sessions, meetings, and audits. Externally, we use our artecom website, where we have a dedicated sustainability section. And, of course, we actively share updates on our social media channels, covering both ISO 9001 (Quality Management System) and ISO 20121 (Sustainable Event Management System).
What does the timeline look like? When do you expect to receive certification?
A pre-audit, essentially our general rehearsal, took place at the end of January. The first official audit is scheduled for mid-February, followed by a second audit at the end of March. If we successfully pass both audits, the certification will be issued immediately.