Spandan, the annual media fest of VIPS - TC, comprises 6 departments - Editorial (Designing + Social media + Documentation), Production, Ambience, Hospitality, Crowd Management, and Marketing & Sponsorship.
Recap
In my previous blog, we talked about the basics of Spandan - what it is, its purpose, and the overall idea behind it.
Spandan is the annual mega media fest organised by the undergrad Journalism and Mass Communication students of VIPS-TC, Delhi. It sharpens students’ event management abilities, along with providing them with a platform to express and showcase their talent while getting noticed on a large scale.
For the 5th-semester BA(JMC) students, Spandan is more about organisation and management than participation. And to organise means to segregate or proper work division among the students.
In this blog, I will discuss the various departments which collectively work towards creating Spandan. All the departments’ collective and uni-directional efforts make Spandan a huge success each year. Almost all other events, small or large, have similar departmental segregation, but the roles and responsibilities might differ.
Now, let’s look at the departments from Spandan’s point of view.
Editorial Department
The first department that we have is the Editorial Department. The Editorial department is responsible for documenting the entire event, content writing, generating deliverables and social media content.
The Editorial department for Spandan has 3 sub-divisions:
Designing - Designing is typically and primarily a separate department altogether. However, it can vary depending on the nature and scale of the event. For Spandan, designing was integrated into the Editorial department for better coordination and supervision. The prime responsibilities of the Design department were:
To design Spandan’s logo in alignment with the central theme
To design social media posts, carousels, stories, etc.
To work closely with the social media team and match their demands.
To design banners, posters, tickets, invites, souvenirs, etc.
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| Spandan 2022 Logo by the Editorial Department |
Social Media - In current digital times, social media has emerged as one of the most important departments. Everything about the event goes on its respective social media pages. From pre-event promotion and during-event updates to post-event promotion, everything needs proper planning. Social media management necessitates meticulous planning and execution of ideas. The Social media department is responsible for the following tasks:
Designing a social media strategy
Creating a social media calendar
Coming up with creative ideas for posts and reels
Posting regularly on different social media platforms. As for Spandan, it’s primarily Instagram.
Using relevant captions and hashtags to get discovered and increase the reach.
Keeping up with the trends and adjusting them to the needs of the event
Monitoring everything happening on the event days and keeping the audience updated.
Informing the audience of any last-minute modifications/changes in the schedule
Using the presence of mind while posting anything online
Interacting with the online audience
Checking insights regularly, among other things.
Content Writing/Documentation - The third sub-department is the Content Writing/Documentation team. The task of the content team includes:
To create the entire event’s schedule
To present the event on paper, i.e., document everything for future use
Draft event reports
Provide content to the design and social media teams.
Draft official emails, invites, and messages for the guests and media personalities.
Production Department
If you are a Mass Communication student, you must be aware of the importance of the Production department. It is not only about clicking and recording. It is much more than that. Some of the responsibilities of the Production department are:
Documenting the entire event through photos and videos
Processing and releasing big chunks of data.
Making Spandan’s teaser and the after-movie
Video editing
Shooting and editing reels for social media
Providing technical assistance and personnel
Taking care of any technical hiccups or glitches
Take care of the main stage, including screen, light, sound, etc.
Take care of the official gear
Livestreaming various events
Ambience Department
An event is remembered by its atmosphere and aesthetics, as gen Z would describe it. The venue is like a canvas, and the Ambience department is the artist. The Ambience department ensures that the event sticks to the theme. This year’s theme for Spandan was “Back to the roots”, and believe me when I tell you, the Ambience department did an outstanding job. The dominant work areas of the Ambience department are:
To examine the entire campus and get a fair idea.
To plan the visual look of the entire campus
To arrange and procure material for decorations.
To look after all the resources
To work within budgetary constraints
To make all the arrangements a day before
To take care of the decor on the day of the event
To finally tear down and retrieve all the material after the event.
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| Spandan 2022 by the Ambience Department |
Hospitality Department
Every year, Spandan hosts notable and eminent media personalities as judges, panellists, speakers, and resource persons. This causes the need for a hospitality department. This department handles a variety of tasks related to guest services and comfort. The responsibilities of an event’s hospitality department can vary depending on the specific needs and goals of the event. For Spandan, they include:
Arranging for transportation services such as shuttle services, coordinating car rentals or other forms of transportation, etc.
Overseeing meals and catering, including arranging on-site and off-site dining options and coordinating special dietary needs.
Manage the overall guest experience from arrival to departure.
In general, the goal of a hospitality department is to ensure that attendees have an enjoyable and comfortable experience throughout the event.
Crowd Management/Quick Response Team (QRT)
The Quick Response Team (QRT), better known as the Crowd Management department, is undoubtedly the most active department on D-Day. Their responsibilities include:
To have a strong core team and volunteer base
To devise a security plan
To allocate and communicate positions to the core team members and volunteers.
To thoroughly check everyone entering the campus on D-Day
To confiscate any toxic or harmful substance
To check if anyone’s intoxicated and send them back.
To cover the entire campus and take rounds.
To make sure there are no fights or brawls.
To ensure everything goes smoothly.
Marketing and Sponsorship department
Marketing and Sponsorship are two vast fields in themselves. Typically, they are separate departments but can be merged based on the nature and scale of the event, such as with Spandan. The department was categorised further into 4 sub-departments with their designated team leads. These departments were sponsorship generation, stall selling, ticketing, and souvenir advertisement. Marketing and Sponsorship are vast and can’t be summed up here. So, stay tuned for my next blog, which will exclusively deal with the Marketing and Sponsorship department of Spandan.
All the above departments act as steps of a ladder towards Spandan. None of them is less or more important than the others. All departments have designated roles, which are crucial for not only Spandan, but every event there has been and will ever be. It’s safe to say that Spandan is a result of careful departmental segregation and work allocation.
This blog is specifically for the BA(JMC) students of Vivekananda Institute of Professional Studies - Technical Campus (VIPS-TC), Delhi and may or may not apply to the larger general audience.
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