Table of contents5 sections
In an event agency, documents are created faster than the team can organise them.
On one day you have to approve the cost of technical equipment, sign a contract with the venue, confirm the catering order and pay a deposit to the stand builder. At the same time the client changes the number of attendees, production orders extra materials, and more subcontractors send invoices by e-mail, messenger or directly to the Project Manager.
Every document may be correct. The problem is that it arrives by a different route, to a different person and at a different stage of the project.
We know what it is like when an invoice waits for approval because the person responsible is at the build. An order was agreed by phone but never made it into the budget. The subcontractor contract is in one person’s mailbox, and the finance department does not know whether it can make the transfer.
Under deadline pressure, the team concentrates on making sure the event happens. Organising the documentation is pushed to later.
After the event, reconstructing the project’s history begins:
- who ordered the service,
- what price was accepted,
- whether the cost fitted within the budget,
- whether the invoice was paid,
- whether the document relates to the right event,
- whether all costs made it into the settlement.
That is why document workflow in an event agency should follow one simple process. Every cost must have an owner, a status, an assignment to a project and a clear approval path.
On one day you have to approve the cost of technical equipment, sign a contract with the venue, confirm the catering order and pay a deposit to the stand builder. At the same time the client changes the number of attendees, production orders extra materials, and more subcontractors send invoices by e-mail, messenger or directly to the Project Manager.
Why do documents in event projects slip out of control so easily?
Events are created in an environment where decisions are made quickly and many activities run in parallel.
The agency works at the same time with the client, the venue, the technical crew, catering, transport, security, staff, stand builders and materials suppliers. Each of these parties may send its own documents, requirements and payment terms.
Documents arrive through many channels
Invoices and orders may appear:
- in the main finance mailbox,
- at the Project Manager’s address,
- in a message sent to the owner,
- in a messenger,
- as a photo of the document,
- in a supplier’s portal,
- on paper, handed over during the event.
If there is no single place for receiving documents, the company cannot be sure that all costs have been recorded.
It can happen that an invoice is correct but stays for several days in the mailbox of a person who is working away from the office. The supplier waits for payment, and the finance department does not even know the document exists.
It is not clear who should approve the cost
An invoice may relate to a project, but that does not mean everyone knows the terms of the order.
A finance employee usually does not know:
- whether the service was delivered,
- whether the price matches what was agreed,
- whether the cost was approved,
- whether the subcontractor’s number of hours is correct,
- whether the invoice covers additional scope,
- whether the cost should be assigned to one event or several.
Without a cost owner, the document starts circulating between people who cannot make a decision.
An order does not always make it into the project budget
Under time pressure, some services are ordered by phone or in a message. The team agrees the price and date, but the information does not go into the cost estimate straight away.
The invoice appears only after a few days or after the event is over. Then it turns out that the project has a cost that the current report did not include.
Particularly dangerous are:
- extra hours of technical equipment,
- emergency transport,
- catering extensions,
- crew overtime,
- extra hotel nights,
- materials bought at the last minute,
- set design changes,
- additional stand elements.
If a cost becomes visible only after the invoice is received, the project’s forecast margin may be overstated for a long time.
Lack of approval delays payment
Event suppliers often work under great pressure and expect prompt settlement. A payment delay can affect the relationship and the subcontractor’s willingness to take part in the next project.
Meanwhile, an invoice may be waiting because:
- it has no project assigned,
- the order number is missing,
- the Project Manager has not confirmed delivery,
- the amount differs from the cost estimate,
- it is not known who approved the additional service,
- the document went to the wrong person.
The problem does not have to be a lack of funds. Sometimes a transfer is delayed only because the company has no efficient decision-making process.
The project settlement is incomplete
If documents do not go into the system on an ongoing basis, a project may be summed up too early.
The report shows a positive margin, but still missing are:
- the invoice for technical equipment,
- the transport settlement,
- receipts for additional purchases,
- the photographer’s invoice,
- the overtime settlement,
- the cost of materials used during the build.
After all the documents are added, the result of the event can change significantly.
How to organise document workflow in an event agency?
The process should be simple enough to work even in the most intense period of preparations. The more manual exceptions there are, the greater the risk that the team will start bypassing the agreed rules.
1. Set one place for receiving documents
All invoices, contracts and order confirmations should go into one process, regardless of the channel through which they were originally sent.
This can be:
- a dedicated e-mail address,
- a supplier form,
- a project folder,
- a document handling system,
- a function for uploading a document to a specific project.
What matters most is that an employee who receives an invoice privately knows where to pass it on.
A document should not remain only:
- in the Project Manager’s mailbox,
- in a messenger message,
- on a phone,
- in a paper folder,
- in a private folder.
2. Assign an owner to every cost
Every cost document should have a person who will confirm:
- what the expense relates to,
- whether the service was delivered,
- whether the amount matches what was agreed,
- whether the cost fits within the budget,
- which project it should be assigned to.
The owner can be the Project Manager, the event producer, the person who ordered the service or the lead of a specific area.
The finance department should not have to reconstruct the context of the purchase on its own.
3. Introduce clear document statuses
Every document should go through the same path.
Example statuses:
- Received.
- Waiting to be assigned to a project.
- Waiting for verification by the cost owner.
- Approved.
- Rejected or needs correction.
- Scheduled for payment.
- Paid.
- Closed and included in the project settlement.
This way everyone can see where a document is and what should happen next.
4. Compare the invoice with the order and the budget
Before approval it is worth checking three things:
- what was ordered,
- what amount was planned,
- what amount is on the invoice.
If the difference is significant, the document should be flagged for clarification.
It may result from:
- additional scope,
- a change in the number of attendees,
- overtime,
- additional transport,
- a price change,
- a supplier’s error,
- a cost that was not reported earlier.
Such verification makes it possible to catch an overrun before the payment is made and before the project is closed.
5. Record the planned cost before the invoice is received
The agency should not wait for a document to know that an expense exists.
When a service is ordered, it is worth recording:
- the supplier,
- the planned amount,
- the delivery date,
- the expected payment date,
- the required level of advance payment,
- the project,
- the person responsible.
After the invoice is received, the planned cost can be linked to the actual document and the variance checked.
This way the project report also shows expenses that have already been ordered but not yet invoiced.
How did we solve document workflow in Administy?
In our agency projects, too, we worked under deadline pressure and with a large number of external costs.
Invoices for subcontractor services, licences, production and other expenses arrived through different channels. Some were sent to the accounting address, some directly to the Project Manager, and some appeared only after the work was finished.
The problem was not just about storing documents. The most time went on establishing:
- which project the invoice relates to,
- who ordered the service,
- whether the amount is correct,
- whether the cost had already been included in the budget,
- whether the document had been approved,
- whether the payment had been made.
If an invoice was not quickly assigned to a project, the current report did not show the full cost. The margin could look good even though some payables had not yet been taken into account.
That is why in Administy we introduced one document verification process.
Every invoice gets:
- an assignment to a supplier,
- an assignment to a project,
- a cost category,
- an owner responsible for verification,
- an approval status,
- a payment due date,
- a payment status,
- a link to a bank transaction.
The cost owner can confirm that the service was delivered and that the document matches what was agreed.
Thanks to the statuses, we can see whether an invoice:
- has just arrived,
- is waiting to be assigned,
- needs approval,
- contains a difference from the plan,
- has been approved,
- is waiting for a transfer,
- has been paid.
A document does not disappear into a particular person’s mailbox. It stays visible in one process.
Once assigned to a project, the cost also affects:
- the current budget,
- the value of expenses incurred,
- the cost needed to finish,
- the margin,
- the cash gap,
- the final settlement of the event.
We also introduced a rule that a cost can be recorded as planned even before the invoice is received.
If we order a service worth 15,000 PLN, the project report should include it from the moment the commitment is made, not only when the supplier sends the document.
After receiving the invoice, we can compare:
- the planned cost,
- the actual cost,
- the difference,
- the reason for the variance.
This approach makes it possible to detect earlier that:
- a cost was ordered without approval,
- an invoice exceeds the agreed amount,
- a document is waiting too long for verification,
- a payment may be delayed,
- the project has costs not included in the report,
- the final margin will be lower than forecast.
The most important change is that a document stops being merely an attachment for accounting.
It becomes part of the project’s operational and financial process.
A fast document workflow must not mean a lack of control
In an event agency, speed is part of everyday life. You cannot stop preparations every time an invoice, an order or a contract change appears.
You can, however, create a process that works even under time pressure.
A good document workflow in an event agency should provide:
- one place for receiving documents,
- an owner for every cost,
- a clear status,
- an assignment to a project,
- control against the budget,
- visibility of the payment due date.
This way the company settles its payables faster, reduces chaos and knows the real cost of an event even before it is closed.
Organise the documents and costs of your event projects
Administy helps assign documents to projects and control their approval, payment due dates and impact on the profitability of the event.
