UK Bribery Act is now in force

The UK Bribery Act came into force today (1 July 2011). According to The International Law Office, it affects any company who offer or give bribes, companies who request or take bribes, and even companies who do not have sufficient measures to ensure bribes do not occur.

It affects UK companies (doing business in the UK or overseas), as well as foreign companies if they have an office in the UK or do business in the UK. And it doesn't just affect monetary bribes. For example, if a company takes a bureaucrat out for drinks. It may depend on the purpose.

The Economic Times points out that Indian businesses who also do business in the UK will also be affected. The Act will include all MNCs with offices in the UK, Indian companies listed on UK exchanges, and independent directors sitting on boards of such companies. The penalty for infringing the act could lead to fines or up to 10 years imprisonment (BBC News)

It is not all bad for the MICE industry (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, Exhibitions). An article by Shoosmiths points out that companies getting to know clients by taking them out to Wimbledon, for example, is not intended to be considered bribery.

What action should you take? Our recommendation is that firstly you read an article such as the one from Shoosmiths. Also, an article by The Telegraph gives you a 10 point plan. There is guidance for Indian companies trading in the UK on the VC Circl;e web site. The full text of the act is available on legislation.gov.uk

Note that this was not written by legal professionals. Legal advice should always be taken.

No mere event - but a memory!

Team Building, Conferences, Exhibitions and Product Launches all bring people together. However, even to the most fervent worker the idea of going to a work related event can seem too much like work. But it needn’t be, professional events and corporate events can be impressive in their magnitude and presentation.

Isuzu Commercial Vehicle & GM Medium Duty Dealer Meetings 2007 Las Vegas, Nevada. Our very own Joel from Crephoria Events USA worked on this event, this event cut no corners on presentation. You can read more about the details from this event under case studies.

I have heard both Richard and Arvind proclaim that ‘from the point of view of a company an event is successful if the brand is promoted effectively’ and ‘it is a successful event if the delegate finds it memorable’.

Looking at the pictures from Isuzu event I can tell that it would be a very hard event to forget.

So another Crephorian tip: bring people together and make it memorable

Boring Truth About Event Organising

There seems to be no one method that will be the key to successful event management.

But there are a range of top tips and do’s & don’ts that I am dutifully learning here at Crephoria Events.
Richard, the man behind the scenes of many an event has a seemingly endless resource of knowledge and experience on event planning.

So his top tip for today is ‘learn to love the boring stuff’. ‘The more boring stuff you cover before the event the smoother the outcome.&squo; There can be any number of surprises that will jump up at an event. So the last thing you need is for a mishap that could have easily been prevented had you learned to relish the boring yet controllable initial event planning.

So whatever aspect of the planning you find the most tedious whether it is the budgeting, the constant checking with vendors/suppliers, venue finding or health safety learn to love it

I am now a Crephorian!

Welcome to the Crephoria Blog! I am Abigail, one of the newest members of the UK team.

We thought it would be fun if I started the blog off so that we could explore this close-knit company together through a fresh pair of eyes.

So without further ado allow me to introduce…. Crephoria Events! We are an Awesome group of people specialising in organising events of all shapes and sizes, corporate or public, from meetings to international conferences. We have offices in the UK, India and the US.

Though I have only been here for two days I have already learnt so much from Arvind and Richard.

I will be using the wealth of their collective knowledge to give practical advice for organising events and to answer any questions.