We need to have the talk. Our kids are doing shooting drills like we used to do tornado and fire drills. This is something that needs to be in your event plan just like weather, wind, fire and crowd crush plans and we can not ignore it.

We have had plans altered before- I remember being in a hotel lobby before a load in of a 100,000 person festival watching the events of the Boston Marathon Bombing. No one knew if it was a localized attack or not at the time, and we had some sobering and serious security discussions into the night to ensure we were ready to keep our attendees safe that weekend.

Many of our events have high-profile speakers and when it is Presidential level, we have secret service, working K9 units, and metal detectors. While that type of security is usually only deployed for the top-tier protectees, it really does secure a venue. The question remains what to consider in the mid-tier events and how much safety and security to plan for at your own event.

First, it is important to remember that our team at Decibel is not a security, legal or law enforcement team. These are just recommendations we have learned along the way, so the number one recommendation we have is to partner with a trusted security partner. These teams are usually staffed by ex-law enforcement and are invaluable in the planning phase. Having this trusted partner helps with conversations and a plan of action from the start.

From here we start our security plannings with a team approach including the client, Venue staff, security vendor, production team, PR team, as well as any local resources (Police, Fire, EMS, Department of Transportation and any Federal Agencies that may be required based on your location and speaker mix). We evaluate the threat assessment in regards to the content of the event, the public profile of the speakers AS WELL AS the potential attendees. This is not only for political speakers- many high profile speakers, influencers, athletes, etc have stalkers and crazies that follow them around. We also look at the type of event and setup- is this free and open to the public, is there registration, is this ticketed, and what are the costs of ticketing? There is additional scrutiny if there is alcohol sales or expected drug use among attendees.

From here we work to formalize a plan of action. Will there be a bag check, metal detectors, when will alcohol be served, etc. We evaluate security staffing, ingress and egress as well as attendee access at all points. We look to see what the coverage is across the event- from the official security vendor, their staff, contract local guards, off duty and on duty hired police. Our team typically staffs at least one member in the security command to be able to view all the venue security cams and have direct communication to our production team.

Most important of all of these elements is an open line of communication between all the parties. It is imperative that everyone works together in a coordinated and collaborative fashion and prioritizes the safety of the team, the attendees, and the stage participants to ensure a safe event.