Such monitoring should include an assessment of possible danger and violence as a result of excessive drinking. Concert goers should then be encouraged to supplement their drinking with non-alcoholic substances or food. Criminal activity or medical emergencies during the concert should then also be handled with the necessary discretion, taking care to cause as little disruption as possible for the rest of the concert goers. Criminal activity and illegal substances can be controlled by means of entrance monitoring. Security personnel should carefully monitor incoming concert goers to ensure that they are not carrying illegal or harmful substances. If such items are found, they are to be confiscated before allowing offenders to attend the concert. In order to ensure continuing security, such offenders should be closely scrutinized by security personnel. In terms of other safety issues, electronic equipment and scaffolding should be monitored throughout the concert in order to ensure their safety for the crowd and performing artists. Security personnel should also be stationed at the perimeters of the park to ensure that the public not attending the concert remain reasonably safe, comfortable and informed regarding the events at the concert.

After the Event: Reputation is the most significant risk factor associated with post-event management. After the concert, the council should therefore focus on actions to return the premises to their prior condition, as well as the return of rental equipment, and other post-event activities. The first task will be to clean the park of all litter resulting from the concert. It should be ensured that all facilities be left in the condition they were in prior to the concert. Rental equipment should be returned together with any outstanding rental fees. It should also be ensured that such equipment be returned in their prior condition. These two aspects of post-event actions will ensure that the corporation's reputation as an entity caring not only for public opinion, but also for its environment and its corporate obligations, remains intact.

Finally, the public should once again be taken into account. Public opinion monitoring can once again occur by means of opinion polls, questionnaires, interviews or even meetings. During these, the public should be allowed to express their opinion regarding the concert and its consequences. Such polls, interviews and meetings should cover several topics, including the risk factor to the public. The public should be allowed to express their opinion regarding issues such as the noise level, the safety level and the perceived comfort level during the concert. The results can then be used in order to assess the Council's success in mitigating risk factors, and also to lead their future actions for similar events. The risk assessment professionals hired prior to the event can be used once again in order to assess the outcome of the events during the concert.

The risk assessment conducted prior to the event should then be compared to the events during the concert in order to determine to which degree the initial risk mitigation factors were successful. This information is then used along with the public opinion to guide future actions, or to help the corporation mitigate any reputation damage that may have resulted from unforeseen events. The important factor here is that the past is used as a lesson for future events of a similar kind. Mitigation actions could also include press releases and pamphlets to the public, describing the event, its success factor, and the amount of funds raised for charitable or public improvement. This action can ensure public favor for events of a similar kind, or indeed for any future initiatives launched by the Council.

Conclusions and Recommendations

In assessing and mitigating risks for an event that will include thousand of attendees, it is important to conduct risk investigations as thoroughly as possible, especially prior to the event. It is vital that such an assessment include both known and unknown risk factors. Unforeseen contingencies should for example also be planned for.

Prior to the event, the risk assessment should cover a comprehensive spectrum in terms of the types of corporate risks involved. These include financial, reputation and safety risks, as well as known and unforeseen risks. The three main types of risks integrate with each other, with overlapping influencing factors. It is therefore recommended that the initial risk assessment take account of all contingencies, including financial risks, public opinion, and possible security risks associated with the concert.

While all the above factors play a role during the concert...

As seen above, it is therefore recommended that as many security and medical personnel as reasonable and possible be appointed for keeping the peace during the event. Human nature dictates that some concert goers will, either willfully or unintentionally, cause trouble. This trouble may take a variety of forms, including excessive alcohol use, stronger substances such as drugs, or illegal actions such as drug peddling and smuggling. Other potentially harmful factors include the unforeseen such as people needing emergency medical attention, such as during possible childbirth, fainting, heart attacks or other conditions that are potentially dangerous or life threatening. In such events, it is recommended that a sufficient number of emergency personnel and vehicles be available during the concert. Such risks can also be mitigated by monitoring concert goers via questioning as they enter the premises.
In terms of security, it is also recommended that concert goers be controlled when entering the premises, searching them for illegal substances or dangerous items such as weapons. These should be confiscated for the duration of the concert in order to ensure the safety and enjoyment of all involved. In terms of reputation, it is recommended that the public be monitored by security personnel at the perimeter of the park, in order to both reassure them and assess their attitude for the duration of the event.

The most important factor after the concert is monitoring the effectiveness of risk measures during the concert and the accuracy of risk assessment prior to the event. These are to be compared in order to determine the level and success of risk mitigation during the concert. Another important factor after the event is the assessment of public opinion, and the assessment of corporate reputation after the event. The public should be assured that events such as the concert are aimed at the public and social good. It should also be ensured that the public is aware of the corporation's good will at all times. Factors such as timing, the proximity of private housing, and the level of public opinion should be taken into account at all times.

After the concert, the corporate reputation can therefore be ensured by returning all hired equipment and park facilities to their prior condition. It is therefore recommended that all actions be aimed at securing the comfort and well-being of the public among which the concert is planned, as well as all involved with the concert itself. In short, the corporation should ensure that the concert is as pleasant as possible for all parties involved.

In conclusion, risk assessment and management becomes increasingly important with an increasing number of people involved. Great numbers of people means great numbers of unknown risks, especially in terms of medical emergencies, crime and overindulgence. In mitigating human and unforeseen risk factors, these and other possible human factors should form the focus of the risk assessment and mitigation program. On the same level, it should be taken into account that human beings are both unpredictable and flawed. It is therefore highly likely that, in a gathering of the size associated with pop concerts, unforeseen risks will occur. It is therefore of great importance to have a plan in place that thoroughly accounts for such eventualities.

Where great numbers of people are involved, it should also be kept in mind that the risk of injury or death is high. Such events run the greatest danger of causing harm to the corporate reputation. Every effort should therefore be made to ensure the safety and security of all human beings involved. For this reason, it is recommended that an experienced risk assessment company be hired for the task of assessing and mitigating the risks involved. In this, it is also recommended that thorough research be conducted into the reputation and success of each possible risk assessment company considered for the job. In this case, it is also advisable to not necessarily hire the cheapest service, as this may indicate that the company does not yet have the level of experience required for the specific job.

Finally, each stage of the risk assessment and management program for the concert should receive due attention in order to ensure that no contingency is left unaccounted for. Furthermore, in hiring security and medical personnel, the corporation should ensure that they are affiliated with professional, reputable companies.

When thorough and in-depth risk management practices are incorporated, the organizer ensures not only its current reputation in the public view, but also…