PM Network - February 2016

ge Crowd Control

Whether a political rally, concert or marathon, outdoor public spectacles can draw tens of thousands or even millions of people. Some events, such as a visit by the pope, are planned months in advance and require highly orchestrated security operations. Pope Francis’ visit to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA last September, for example, required the largest security operation in U.S. history.

But other public events are planned and executed in less than a week— posing extra challenges to project managers tasked with ensuring all goes smoothly and safely. As vice president of Giants Enterprises, a subsidiary of the San Francisco Giants baseball team, Sara Hunt manages the planning and execution of public, non-baseball events staged by the team.

When the Giants won the World Series championship in 2014, she didn’t stop to celebrate for long. After all, about 48 hours after the ;nal pitch,

1 million fans would be lining the streets of San Francisco, California, USA for a victory parade in honor of the winning team.

Because such events only happen after victory, “you don’t want to start planning too early,” says Ms. Hunt, San Francisco. “But you also want to give yourself enough time to create a seamless event with a safe environment for all participants.” ;ere’s a lot to consider during the project’s planning phase. Along with establishing which streets throngs of dedicated fans should line, there’s the risk of bombs, stampedes and power outages, and the question of where television news crews and local VIPs should be located.

There’s a danger in taking a myopic view and planning for one form of disaster, says Ms.

Hunt, when in reality communication is critically important no matter what the situation is. “Regardless of whether it’s an earthquake or a stampede, you need to engage the right emergency resources to react quickly and thoroughly,” Ms. Hunt says.

She credits the parade’s success to clear communications and strong relationships among di;erent stakeholders: public relations personnel, city o;cials, Giants team representatives, event producers, police and ;re o;cials, and the department of public works.

;at level of coordination was on display when, in November, Pope Francis visited Kenya, Uganda and the Central African Republic. ;e latter visit marked the ;rst time a current ponti; has visited a country in a state of active armed con;ict.