ESR

480+ corporate events · 5 years

Executive Summit Planning for Leadership Teams

We plan and run your executive summit so every session starts on time and every voice reaches the back row.

Senior leaders listen to a speaker in a general session room

Leadership summit planning starts with the decision

You bring your top people together because some things can't be settled over email. The plan should protect that time.

A summit costs the company its most expensive hours. If the agenda is a row of slide decks, leaders could have read them at their desks. Start with what the group must decide or agree on by the last session, then build the days backward from that.

Our job is everything around that agenda. We book the rooms, run the sound and screens, keep the schedule and plan the evening. Your facilitators and executives stay on the content. If you already have an in-house meeting planner, we work alongside them.

Senior leaders work through a decision with a facilitator in a hotel meeting room
Speakers on tripod stands cover the seated audience during a presentation

Board meeting planning, investor days and summits

  • Executive summit. A general session, breakout rooms for working groups and a shared dinner.
  • Board meetings. A small room, a reliable screen and microphones that pick up every voice around the table.
  • Investor meetings. A presentation room with clear sound for the CEO, plus a quiet space for one-on-one talks.
  • Customer conference. A larger stage, sessions for your users and an evening program for clients.

You get the format your audience needs, from a closed board session to a full customer conference.

We source the venue or work with yours. Our list of corporate event venues covers hotels, resorts and private spaces across the country.

What leaders get from the setup

Your executives arrive to rooms that already work, and the evening gives them time together away from the agenda.

  • Every word heard. We place speakers along the seating and run a sound check before anyone sits down.
  • Breakouts that are ready. Screens, microphones and seating in each room before the session starts.
  • An evening worth staying for. A racing contest with a prize, a flight simulator or a casino night. Leaders compete across departments, and the talk continues at dinner.
  • One contact. Our event lead handles the venue, the vendors and the schedule, so your chief of staff doesn't.
  • Content partners if you need them. We can bring in facilitators through our leadership development programs.

How the quote comes together

Every summit gets its own quote, and you'll have it within minutes of sending the brief.

We don't use set prices. A board meeting for twelve and a customer conference for four hundred have little in common. The quote depends on:

  • How many people attend and for how many days.
  • The venue and number of rooms.
  • Stage, screens, microphones and lighting.
  • Evening program and activities.
  • Lodging and travel coordination.
  • The city, and how far it is from one of our two bases in Los Angeles or Orlando.

See how we quote for the full list.

Work that shows how we'd run your summit

These events show the parts we'd handle at your summit: the general session sound, a contest for colleagues and a client night during a conference.

Speakers on stands cover the side seating area at a seated presentation
Seated presentation

Audio Support for an Indoor Presentation and Seated Program

A hall with high ceilings and hard walls swallows a speaker's voice. We lined the seating with speakers on stands and covered a side seating zone too. Every row heard the presenter. Read about the audio for a seated presentation program.

Photos from summits and evening programs

Here's what the rooms and the evening program can look like.

  • Two racing cockpits with the leaderboard screen between them
  • A general session with a speaker on stage and a large screen
  • A breakout room set for a working group with a screen and whiteboards
  • Leaders at a long dinner table after the summit's first day
  • Executives watch a colleague race during the evening program

Venue rules and insurance

Hotels and office towers have their own rules, and we meet them before load-in.

We send insurance documents to your venue on request. For an office building, we've met the building's insurance requirements before the event day. Send us the venue's checklist with your request and we'll handle it first.

Where summits lose time

Leaders notice every lost minute. These are the problems we plan around.

  • Sound checked when guests arrive.

    A microphone that hums during the CEO's opening sets the tone for the day. We test in the empty room.

  • One room for everything.

    Working groups need their own space. Without breakout rooms, half the agenda turns into a lecture.

  • No time off the agenda.

    Two days of sessions with no shared activity leave leaders talking only to their own teams.

  • Too many vendors.

    When venue, AV and entertainment report to different people, the summit owner becomes the coordinator.

  • A venue far from everyone.

    A location that takes a day to reach for most attendees eats into the program. We look at travel time when we source.

How executive summit planning works

Here's the order of work after you get in touch.

  1. Step 1: You send the brief

    • Dates, city, headcount and what the summit should decide.
  2. Step 2: We send a quote

    • It covers rooms, AV and the evening.
  3. Step 3: We shape the program

    • Session rooms, breakouts, meals and the evening activity.
  4. Step 4: We confirm the venue

    • Room layouts, load-in, power and insurance documents.
  5. Step 5: We set up and test

    • Every room is ready before the first session.
  6. Step 6: We run the days

    • Our technicians stay on each room. Our event lead keeps the schedule.
  7. Step 7: We pack up

    • Teardown follows the venue's timing.
Our technician checks microphones in a general session room

Who's on site

The people who plan your summit are there for every session.

  • Event lead. Owns the schedule and the venue relationship, and is your single contact.
  • AV technicians. Run sound, screens and microphones in the general session and breakouts.
  • Operators. Host the evening activities and guide every guest.
  • Planner. Handles room blocks, transport and meal times with the venue.

Summits anywhere in the U.S.

Your leaders can meet where it suits them. We bring the same team.

Two bases

Los Angeles and Orlando

West CoastEast CoastAll 50 states

We work from two bases, Los Angeles and Orlando, and travel to any state. Florida and the East Coast are a regular part of our work. Resorts such as Gaylord Palms in Kissimmee and Rosen Shingle Creek in Orlando have the ballrooms and breakout rooms a summit needs. Tell us the city, whether it's Phoenix, Dallas, Chicago or Boston.

Orlando office: 310 N Orange Ave, STE. 201, Orlando, FL 32801

Questions

What's the difference between an executive retreat and a summit?

A summit is mostly working sessions. An executive retreat adds more time away and team activities. For an off-site with more rest built in, see our corporate retreat page.

Can you find an executive retreat center or resort?

Yes. We source retreat centers, resorts and hotels and handle the room blocks and the meeting space.

Is an executive summit the same as an executive conference?

Not quite. A summit is a smaller, invited group that works toward decisions. An executive conference is larger, with more speakers and open registration. We plan both, and the room setup differs.

Can you run a customer or user conference?

Yes. A user or customer conference needs a main stage, breakout sessions and a social program. We plan and run all three.

Can partners meet each other at the event?

Yes. We add a matchmaking zone: each partner gets suggested matches with a reason to meet and accepts meetings on their phone.

How much does an executive summit cost?

Every summit gets a custom quote. It depends on headcount, days, venue, AV and the evening program. Send the brief through the form below.

Can you work with our own facilitator?

Yes. Your facilitator runs the content. We run the rooms, the sound and the schedule.

Talk to an event lead

Send us the dates, the city and the headcount. We'll check availability right away and suggest how to shape the days. Tell us the event type, date, city, expected guest count and budget. Add the number of days and the decisions the summit should reach. Or call +1 213 912 1010