Create an Event Production Schedule: A Step-by-Step Guide

Imagine you’re planning a road trip: first, you decide the places you want to go. Then you spend the next few months thinking about the logistics — the routes you’ll take, the hotels you’ll book, the items you’ll need to pack. 

Planning an event is a lot like planning a road trip: you decide on your destination (in other words, your event goals) and figure out what you’ll need to get there. This process — deciding what you’ll need, and when — is what’s known as creating an event production schedule. 

It details all the tasks that need to be completed before showtime, so your event can run like clockwork. In this guide, discover our tips on creating a flawless schedule. 

Key takeaways

• An event production schedule is comprised of three key things: a list of tasks that need to be completed, the team member assigned to each item, and deadlines for each task

• There are a number of ways to create your production schedule: you might choose to incorporate visual timelines like Gantt charts, or dynamic workflow illustrations, depending on the program you use 

• To create an effective schedule, make sure to use your event objectives as your guide, and set realistic milestones and deadlines for each task — allowing time for adjustments, changes, and delays 

Understanding the event production schedule

An event production schedule is the North Star for your team. Think of it as your guide through your event planning: it will tell you exactly what needs to be done, and when. Your big-picture goal will be broken down into smaller steps — for instance, creating striking event countdown graphics for social media, or contacting illustrators to design fun, on-brand event signage — to help you reach your overarching objectives. 

Planning an event means juggling many different moving parts at various stages — from crafting catchy hashtags to selecting the right LED lighting for your space — and an event production schedule keeps all of these tasks together. 

An event production schedule supports you to stay on track in a number of key ways:

• Structured timelines help to arrange tasks in priority order so the most important elements can be completed in good time

• Tasks are listed in one place, so everyone can see what needs to be done without consulting multiple resources

• Tasks are assigned to a specific team or team member, keeping everybody focused on their responsibilities

• Deadlines and milestones are clearly specified for each task, keeping production on target 

Key components of an event production schedule

Whether you’re hosting a film festival or a live music performance, there are three key elements of any effective event production schedule.

1. A list of tasks

The key component of your production schedule is your task list. This comes from establishing a Work Breakdown Structure (WBS), which involves breaking down a bigger task — running an event — into smaller, more manageable tasks. This might include creating email marketing assets, reaching out to sponsors, or sourcing food vendors.  

2. People or teams responsible for these tasks

Next, you’ll need to assign these tasks to the appropriate team members. For instance, email marketing would be assigned to the marketing team, while sourcing food vendors might be a task best suited for your event producer. You might choose to use the chunking method — grouping tasks of different sizes based on commonalities — to assign those groups to each team.

3. Deadlines

Finally, you’ll need to set milestones and deadlines for when each task needs to be completed. You might want to specify this in a spreadsheet or in a more visual format like a Gantt chart, which displays the sequence of tasks with their respective duration. 

The role of the event manager

For all elements of an event to run like clockwork, it must have an efficient central cog: that is, a great event manager. With strong communication, organizational, and time management skills, an event manager is often the central driving force behind an effective production schedule.

When organizing the production schedule, an event manager is in charge of delegating tasks, planning and adjusting the timeline, and coordinating with various teams so that every element is meticulously planned. 

Creating your event production timeline

Once you’ve mapped out your tasks, the first step to creating your schedule is deciding on a timeline. To do this, consider these questions:

• Are there milestones that need to be hit for each task? 

• When do tasks need to be completed, and in what order? 

• Are some more time sensitive than others? 

• Are some dependent on other tasks being completed first? 

Thinking through these questions will help you to create realistic timeframes for each milestone and deadline. Make sure to keep your target audience and goals in mind as you create your timeline; these can act as navigational markers to help you make strategic decisions (for instance, in the event of time constraints, whether you might focus your energy on an event design task or an influencer partnership campaign). 

When creating your timeline, you might want to think visually; a Gantt chart is a great way to do this. It’s a tool that illustrates the start and end dates of tasks, milestones, and dependencies between tasks — allowing you to visualize task completion and sequencing, and how each fits into your overall timeline. You’ll also be able to keep tabs on your team’s progress, as well as identify where delays may interlock or overlap. 

Discover our tips on how to create your event production timeline below.

Step 1: Defining event objectives and scope

To plan an effective route, you have to know where you’re going. Determining your event destination is crucial in crafting your production schedule; it will help you pinpoint the resources you need for success. 

Objectives

What is your goal for your event? Whether you’re hoping to raise a specific amount of money for a nonprofit organization, or you’re looking to create a fun Valentine’s Day party for single millennials, mapping out your SMART goals is a great way to get super clear about why you’re putting on your event (and also helps you measure your success via KPIs post-event). 

In the realm of event production scheduling, having clear goals helps you define what you need to achieve them — from marketing materials to lighting equipment. 

Scope

The scope of an event frames its duration, location, theme, audience, and resources, highlighting the boundaries that define how the event will be conducted. A precise scope acts as a critical cornerstone in creating a detailed production schedule — this will help you make decisions about your timescales. 

For instance, a large event like a music festival will likely require more rigorous preparation than a one-day event. In your production schedule, you’ll need to allocate adequate time for talent sourcing, marketing buildup, and AV equipment hire.

Step 2: Identifying milestones and deadlines

Your production timeline will be split into two deliverables: milestones and deadlines. 

Milestones 

Milestones are key things to achieve on the way to your deadline. For instance, one task — such as a social media marketing campaign — might involve a number of milestones, such as designing assets or deciding on an optimal posting schedule. 

Deadlines

Deadlines, on the other hand, are the dates each task is due to be completed or finalized — for instance, a contract signed for venue hire, or the send date for an email campaign.

To set realistic and achievable milestones and deadlines, you might want to consider the following: 

• Assess a task’s complexity and your resources — such as team capacity, current workloads, and available resources like tools or software — before assigning a milestone or deadline date

• Set task deadlines strategically by considering potential conflicts with a team’s other major deadlines or responsibilities

• Implement a buffer period for delivery of certain tasks to allow for any last-minute roadblocks or challenges 

Step 3: Choosing the right tools

After defining your objectives and identifying your deadlines, it’s time to choose your tools to create your schedule. Choosing the right tools can help you maximize your team’s productivity, track deliverables easily, and meet deadlines efficiently. 

The right tool for your production schedule will create a central hub of knowledge for your team, where all tasks and updates can be kept in one place. To choose your tools or software, consider the following features:

• Functionality: Most remote teamworking tools clearly display task statuses, deadlines and milestones — so a task’s key details are visible at a glance. 

• Flexibility: Tools like Trello or monday.com are good options to create team boards, where tasks can be grouped together, categorized, and moved around.

• Teams: For an effective production schedule, make sure the tool you choose allows you to assign tasks to specific team members to keep everybody focused. 

Resource allocation and budgeting

When creating your event production schedule, you’ll need to keep resource allocation and budgeting in mind — and make sure to have a contingency plan in place in the event of unforeseen resourcing or financial roadblocks. 

Resource allocation

Resource allocation is essential in event production to determine the resources you need to succeed — such as personnel, equipment, products, or services. 

When creating your schedule, make sure to gain a clear overview of the resources necessary for all tasks — such as the number of team members to execute the task, or the type of equipment needed — and make sure you have these resources ahead of time so as not to delay production. This can help you to optimize your workflow effectively and prevent resource under- or overbooking.

Budgeting 

As with all elements of event production planning, budgeting is vital. When creating your production schedule, you’ll need to spend time not only allocating resources but also your finances to specific tasks, and optimize your cash flow: for instance, are there specific tasks that teams will need capital to complete — such as equipment hire, or paying a deposit for a venue booking? 

Considering your budget when creating your event production schedule will help you control your expenses and manage your cash flow throughout the process — so, you won’t find yourself out of pocket during production. 

To do this, make sure to closely monitor all of your event expenses (both variable and fixed) for each task — and balance this against the tasks that involve securing your income, such as sponsorships and funding. You might want to add these significant cash flow points into your timeline to streamline your finances throughout production. 

Assigning tasks to team members

For an efficient production process, each task in your schedule should be assigned to a specific team member. This promotes accountability and helps to keep the production process on track. 

Whether you’re assigning asset design to freelance graphic designers or press release pitching to your PR team, effective task delegation should involve giving each team member clear instructions, feedback, as well as support with prioritizing and managing their workloads. Make sure to specify the nature of the task, any deliverables, check-in points or milestones, and a clear deadline. 

Managing vendors and contractors

In your event production schedule, you’ll likely have several tasks that require collaborating with vendors and contractors — such as meetings with food truck vendors, or finalizing merch designs with a supplier. 

To make sure the process runs smoothly, assign the tasks of vendor and contractor management to your team — checking in with them at multiple touchpoints and milestones, keeping them updated with the event schedule and run of show, as well as their specific responsibilities. 

Having a specific contact in your team can build a positive relationship and collaboration throughout the production process. 

Effective communication and collaboration

Whether you’re checking in with your team at monthly milestones or joining forces with external partners to deliver a task on time, communication is key to success. Throughout production, you’ll likely need to manage communication between team members, stakeholders, vendors, and contractors to keep everyone feeling energized, empowered, and motivated. Discover our tips on how to do this below.

Keeping everyone informed

Transparency is the secret to great teamwork. To do this, consider the following:

• Share the event production schedule: This is the most important — make sure everyone has easy access to the schedule itself, whether on a shared platform like Trello or Google Sheets. 

• Hold regular meetings: Gather the team together for regular meetings (weekly, for instance, or fortnightly) to keep everyone updated on the progress and status of tasks, as well as any relevant event updates. Not only does this make everyone feels included, but  is a great way to build — and maintain — team momentum until the day of the event. 

Establishing clear lines of communication

Just like transparency, good communication is equally important. You may want to do the following:

• Create a chain of communication: If a team member is having a problem completing their assigned task, who should they turn to for support? Establishing clear lines of communication can help speed up problem-solving and ensure your team feels supported. 

• Establish communication channels: Whether you’re sharing the success of your marketing campaign via weekly emails, or setting up meetings via WhatsApp polls, make sure you have clear channels of communication that teams can expect to check regularly.

• Delegate clearly: From assigning specific tasks to setting deadlines, make sure that you’re communicating your expectations of your team clearly. Outline each team member’s role and responsibilities, as well as expectations around status updates. 

Monitoring and adjusting the production schedule

Just like planning a road trip, sometimes things change — no matter how extensively you plan ahead. Whether you need to adapt your venue marketing messaging or you’re experiencing delays with equipment supplies, incorporating contingency time into the production schedule is vital for managing unexpected logistical challenges. 

Make sure you’re regularly reviewing your schedule and your tasks to address bottlenecks and unrealistic deadlines and ensure your schedule is adjusted to reflect current needs and circumstances. This continual revision helps you to stay flexible — the secret to all event success. 

Tracking progress and addressing issues

The best way to keep your event production schedule well-optimized is to regularly review your team’s progress. To do this, you’ll need to assess a number of factors relevant to your tasks, including: 

• Status: Is the task completed, in progress, or not started?

• Roadblocks: Are there any difficulties in completing the task — and what is needed (for instance, more time, resources, or budget) to complete it? 

• Budget: Does this task have enough budget to be completed, or is more financing necessary? If so, where can this come from?

• Resources: Does this task have the right resources for it to be completed — such as personnel, software, or equipment? If not, where can these resources be found? 

• Dependencies: Does this task need to be completed before another can start? Is it delaying other tasks in the process? Identifying dependencies between tasks is crucial to monitor task progress and avoid bottlenecks in the event production schedule — so make sure to identify these ahead of time where possible. 

• Deadlines: Have you set realistic milestones and deadlines for your team, or do they need to be adjusted? Make sure to check in on these key dates at regular intervals — for instance, a month before, two weeks before, and a week before — to ensure any difficulties in delivery are identified as soon as possible. 

Adapting to changes and challenges

No matter how successfully you plan your production schedule, there are bound to be last-minute challenges that involve reallocating resources, or switching course. To adapt to these changes successfully, make sure to:

• Add contingency time: This is the most important factor in managing unexpected roadblocks. When building your event production schedule, add extra time to account for delays or challenges. This ensures that, should the unexpected happen, your event won’t be thrown off course. 

• Prioritize: If there are conflicts, then prioritizing is the key to resolution. You might choose to use the Eisenhower Matrix — prioritizing tasks by urgency and importance in four quadrants — to do this. 

Make sure to prioritize the tasks that will have the biggest impact on your event if they are not carried out: these might be tasks that are time-sensitive (such as delivering a brief to a designer or signing a contract), or those that are likely to impact your attendees the most (such as venue decor, or talent bookings). The rest can be scheduled for later.

Real-life examples of successful event production

One way to build your event production schedule is to look at what others are doing. This can offer valuable insight into the production process for events like yours — whether that’s social media buildup in the run-up to the event or spending more time on logistical planning.

In Todo Craft Fair

When In Todo co-founders Kristen Gonzalez, Shobha Philips, Adele Tetangco, and Aliya Wanek began their craft fair, they already had lots of experience getting vendors on board with new projects. A large part of their production planning was focused instead on operations, the logistics of running a fair with eighty vendors, and on their marketing efforts. 

Production Schedule Tip: Make sure that your production schedule makes adequate time for things that are new to you — those things are likely to take additional time and effort.

Koreatown Run Club

Koreatown Run Club sells a range of merch — including tees, hats, and some accessories. Founder Duy Nguyen spent a lot of time looking at the numbers, figuring out how much merch would cost to produce, and whether his audience would buy it. “Sometimes the coolest things you make don’t sell well,” he said. “You don’t want to have to sit on 100 shirts that don’t sell.”

Production Schedule Tip: When it comes to merch, make sure to factor time into your production schedule for researching suppliers, costs, and speaking to your audience. 

New York Adventure Club

Founder of New York Adventure Club Corey Schneider applies a “Same Day, Same Task” philosophy to his to-do list. This means breaking his schedule down by assigning specific tasks to certain days of the week. “This piece of paper helps ensure that I stay on top of my priorities,” he says. “Plus, it’s really gratifying to cross tasks off the list.”

Production Schedule Tip: If you’re feeling overwhelmed with the tasks on your schedule, it may be a sign they’re too complex to tackle — try breaking them down into smaller tasks, or assigning them to certain days of the week to get focused. 

Your event goal is your destination — and your event production schedule is the route that helps you get there. Divided into a number of tasks with specific milestones and deadlines — all organized in time order, by priority, and according to both budget and resources — an effective schedule helps you break down your event planning into manageable chunks. From here, your team will have concrete tasks to complete, boosting team productivity and energy in the countdown to your event. 

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you create a production schedule for an event?

To create a production schedule for an event, you will need to include a list of all the tasks that need to be completed before the event takes place and then organize those tasks in order of priority. 

Next, you’ll need to assign each task to a specific team or team member, and set clear milestones and deadlines for each one. And make sure to revisit the schedule frequently to check in on the status of tasks, adjust deadlines, and address any roadblocks. 

What is the purpose of an event production schedule?

An event production schedule is designed to keep all event tasks in one key place, so that each element of your event planning comes together like clockwork. It also serves to keep your team concentrated on their own responsibilities throughout the production process — and maintains team momentum and energy before the event. 

What is the role of effective communication and collaboration in event planning?

In event planning and production, effective communication and collaboration is essential. Not only does this help when it comes to organizing various components of an event — from marketing to sponsorship sourcing — but also serves to foster a positive and collaborative environment, boosting your chances of delivering a successful event. 

How can I adapt to changes and challenges in the event production process?

To adapt to changes and challenges in the event production process, it’s essential to build in contingency time to your schedule to account for any unexpected challenges. In the event of conflicting tasks, you may also want to adopt a strategy of prioritization, focusing on tasks that will make the biggest impact on attendees or the delivery of the event.