The landscape of exhibitions and events management has shifted in recent years, with disruptions becoming more frequent, unpredictable, and potentially damaging to both attendee safety and event success. Paul Turner, General Manager of Venue Administration at the San Diego Convention Center, shared critical insights on managing these emerging threats at a recent MATSO Meets, revealing how the industry must adapt to an increasingly complex security environment.
Let’s examine the key challenges facing today’s industry professionals and explore the strategic approaches needed to navigate political protests, staffing shortages, crowd scares, and the evolving threat landscape while building resilient response systems that protect both attendees and event success.
The Rising Tide of Event Disruptions
Today’s exhibition professionals face an unprecedented array of challenges that extend far beyond traditional security concerns. Political protests have surged dramatically, often appearing at events regardless of their connection to the demonstration’s cause. These disruptions can transform a carefully planned event into a chaotic situation, drawing attention away from intended activities and creating safety concerns that ripple through entire venues.
Labor disputes have emerged as another significant factor, creating tensions that extend beyond the immediate workplace into surrounding communities. When hotel workers or transportation staff engage in strikes, the effects cascade directly to event attendees, complicating logistics and potentially compromising the overall experience. These disputes can affect everything from accommodation availability to transportation access, forcing event organizers to develop contingency plans for scenarios previously considered peripheral concerns.
Perhaps most concerning is the rise of crowd scares fueled by social media and misinformation. A single loud noise or minor disturbance can trigger panic that spreads instantaneously through connected crowds, leading to rapid evacuations that may be entirely unnecessary but nonetheless dangerous. The speed at which misinformation travels through social platforms means that perceived threats can become real emergencies in moments, regardless of their actual validity.
Compounding Challenges: The Staffing Crisis
Current staffing shortages have created a perfect storm for event security vulnerabilities. Security and cleaning sectors, already experiencing high turnover rates, now face critical personnel gaps that directly impact event safety and quality. When experienced security professionals are unavailable, venues must rely on less trained staff who may lack the expertise to recognize threats early or respond effectively to emerging situations.
This staffing crisis extends beyond mere numbers to fundamental capability gaps. Slower response times to potential threats become inevitable when teams are understaffed or undertrained. The quality of service suffers, affecting not only immediate security concerns but also attendee satisfaction and the overall success of events. Exhibition organizers must now factor these limitations into their planning, often requiring additional oversight and backup systems to compensate for reduced personnel capacity.
Strategic Risk Assessment: Beyond Traditional Threats
Effective event security now requires comprehensive risk assessments that consider factors previously overlooked in traditional planning. Location characteristics have become critical, with seemingly minor details like train crossings, public parking arrangements and nearby sports events now requiring careful evaluation. These venue-specific risks can create hazardous conditions for attendees, particularly when combined with high-stress situations or crowd dynamics.
The assessment process must examine concurrent events, controversial program elements, participant profiles and transportation logistics as interconnected factors that influence overall risk levels. A sports event occurring nearby might seem unrelated to a business conference, but the combined crowd dynamics and infrastructure strain can create unexpected challenges that require proactive management.
Prevention Through Proactive Management
Success in event security depends heavily on prevention rather than reaction. Access controls and credential verification have become fundamental requirements, not optional enhancements. Comprehensive crowd monitoring systems enable early detection of potential disruptions, allowing intervention before situations escalate into emergencies.
The coordination between venue and event security teams requires unprecedented clarity in roles and responsibilities. Regular training and rehearsals ensure both teams understand their specific duties and can work seamlessly together during high-pressure situations. This coordination extends to communication systems, where clear protocols and direct contact channels between teams can mean the difference between controlled management and chaotic response.
Service provider accountability has emerged as a critical component of prevention strategies. Organizations must audit their providers for staff training protocols, deployment plans, and service standards, ensuring that expectations are clearly documented and regularly reviewed. Proactive communication with providers helps identify potential gaps before they become problems during events.
Building Resilient Response Systems
Emergency response plans must be accessible, actionable, and regularly updated with input from all stakeholders. Staff require practical tools including resource cards, reliable communication systems, and clear protocols that can be executed under pressure. The coordination between event public address systems and building alarm systems requires careful planning to prevent unnecessary disruptions that could trigger crowd scares.
The path forward requires continuous improvement and industry-wide sharing of best practices. As threats evolve and new challenges emerge, the event industry must maintain collaborative approaches to security, emphasizing shared goals of creating safe environments for all participants while fostering cultures of proactive risk management rather than reactive problem-solving.
