Streamlining Event Management: A Case Study on Cool Running Events

Cool Running Events (CRE) is an Ireland-based event management company that specializes in the production, management, and marketing of pop-up events. The company operates nationally recognized and award-winning brands such as Ice Skating.ie, The Nightmare Realm, and Ocean Escapes. CRE is Ireland’s largest operator of seasonal ice rinks, having been in the ice rink business since 2004. The company has installed and managed major ice rinks in shopping centers, event centers, and locations across Ireland. Over the years, CRE has expanded into varied events while constructing and managing ice skating rinks around the country during the winter season.

Cool Running Events (CRE), an event management company, faced significant challenges as it expanded its operations. The company, which specializes in the production, management, and marketing of pop-up events, had grown to manage multiple events across various locations. This expansion led to an increase in the size of their team, which in turn, created a need for a reliable scheduling and timekeeping system. One of the main concerns was the scheduling of employees. Given the unpredictable nature of events, assigning shifts was a complex task. Some shifts required full-time staff, while others needed part-time or on-call employees. Managing this across several locations was becoming increasingly difficult. Additionally, tracking the hours that staff clocked in and out was challenging. The lack of a formal process for staff to submit their working hours led to inaccurate records, which in turn, resulted in higher labor costs. The process of gathering data from multiple sources in inconsistent formats for payroll was also a significant challenge.

The company turned to Bizimply, a workforce management solution, to address these challenges. With Bizimply, CRE was able to streamline scheduling and payroll processes, reducing the time spent on these tasks significantly. The solution allowed the company to approve the hours worked at each event, avoid misunderstandings or errors, and set up and copy schedules for future events. This meant that schedules could be published within minutes. Employees were given instant access to the schedule through the MyZimply app, improving transparency and making it easier for them to plan activities outside of work. The solution also allowed for easy management of seasonal staff. Bizimply enabled CRE to deactivate these employees when a location was closed for the season and reactivate them, with all their information securely stored, when the location reopened. This saved managers the time of having to input all employee information again.

• The implementation of Bizimply has brought about significant operational improvements for Cool Running Events. The company has seen instant results in terms of scheduling and payroll processing. The ability to approve hours worked at each event has eliminated misunderstandings and errors, leading to smoother operations. The transparency provided by the MyZimply app has been well-received by the staff, making it easier for them to plan their activities outside of work. The solution has also simplified the management of seasonal staff, saving managers the time and effort of having to input all employee information again when a location reopens for the season. Overall, the use of Bizimply has allowed Cool Running Events to focus more on entertaining customers and ensuring smooth event operations.

• Reduced time spent on payroll processing from hours to 20-30 minutes
• Reduced schedule creation time by 60%
• Accurate tracking of employee clock-in and clock-out times, leading to cost savings