Gala dinner day checks for Larkspire Events, a fictional event company
Event checklist slide with a time stamp on every check
An event checklist slide lists the checks that must be finished on the day before guests arrive, each tied to a time so the crew knows what should be done by when. This one covers a 240 guest gala dinner run by Larkspire Events, a fictional event company, from the 1:00 pm venue check to the 6:15 pm crew briefing.
What is on the slide
- Title
- Gala Day Checklist, Larkspire Events gala dinner for 240 guests.
- Venue and AV
- Venue, 1:00 pm: tables for 240, stage built, exits clear, venue manager signs the floor plan. AV, 3:00 pm: sound check with host and band, slides loaded, fresh microphone batteries.
- Catering and check in
- Catering, 4:30 pm: head chef confirms 240 covers including 31 dietary meals. Check In, 5:45 pm: desk open with badges and an alphabetical guest list.
- Run sheet
- Run Sheet, 6:15 pm: final run sheet briefed to all crew. Doors at 6:30, first course at 7:15.
When this is the right slide
Pick this slide for the crew briefing on event day, when five setup areas must each be signed off by a set time before doors open and everyone needs the same afternoon timetable.
What to swap it for
Checklist: 5 Horizontal Cards. Use the five horizontal cards when the checks need a longer paragraph each and the time can sit inside the heading rather than on a marker label.
What this slide shows
The title reads Gala Day Checklist. Five tall coloured cards stand in a row like map markers, each with a white icon medallion at the top, two sentences in the middle and a label at the base. Venue, 1:00 pm: tables set for 240, stage built, exits clear, and the venue manager signs the floor plan. AV, 3:00 pm: sound check with the host and band, slides loaded, both microphones on fresh batteries. Catering, 4:30 pm: the head chef confirms 240 covers, including 31 dietary meals marked on the seating plan. Check In, 5:45 pm: registration desk open with name badges and the guest list printed in alphabetical order. Run Sheet, 6:15 pm: final run sheet briefed to all crew, doors at 6:30 and first course served at 7:15. The icons are a building, a microphone, crossed cutlery, a clipboard and a checklist. The cards are equal in size, so no area looks more important than another, and the times rising from left to right give the slide its order.
When this is the right slide
Use an event checklist slide at the morning crew briefing on the day of a gala, conference, launch party or wedding, when several suppliers must finish their setup in order before guests arrive. It works because each check has a time and a person, which is what the event lead needs to run the afternoon. It is the wrong slide for the show itself, which belongs on a minute by minute run sheet or a timeline; the event run sheet timeline example shows that view. It is also the wrong slide for planning weeks ahead, when tasks have due dates rather than times on one day. The slide also helps suppliers who join only for the afternoon, such as the band or the florist, because it shows where their part sits among everyone else's. A caterer who sees the 4:30 pm confirmation knows the room must be set by then, and an AV crew can plan around a venue check at 1:00 pm. Shared timing reduces the arguments over access that slow most event setups.
How to adapt it
First, add a buffer line to the title, such as All checks done 30 minutes before doors, when the crew is new to the venue. Second, replace the times with relative times, such as Doors minus 5 hours, for a template the company reuses for every event. Third, make a wet weather version where the venue card covers the indoor fallback and the AV card adds a second sound check after the move. Keep the guest count the same on every card, and when it changes after a late booking, update all three places it appears before the slide is shown. Print a copy for each area lead so they can tick their own card even when the screen is out of sight.
What makes this slide work
Times sit on the label of each card
Venue, 1:00 pm. AV, 3:00 pm. Catering, 4:30 pm. Check In, 5:45 pm. Run Sheet, 6:15 pm. The label at the base of each marker pairs the area with its deadline, so the crew reads the afternoon left to right like a clock.
The numbers agree
Tables set for 240, the head chef confirms 240 covers including 31 dietary meals, and the guest list is printed for check in. The matching 240 lets the event lead check at a glance that venue, kitchen and registration are working from the same count.
Each card ends in a sign off or handover
The venue manager signs the floor plan, the head chef confirms, and the run sheet is briefed to all crew before doors at 6:30. Every check closes with a clear action, so nothing is done in the sense of probably fine.
Questions people ask
Why put a time on every event day check?
Because on the day, done by when matters more than done. A sound check finished at 6:20 pm with doors at 6:30 is a near miss. Giving each check a time builds a buffer into the afternoon and tells the event lead which check to chase if a time passes without a sign off.
Who should sign off each check on the event slide?
The person with authority over that area, not the person who did the work. Here the venue manager signs the floor plan and the head chef confirms covers. Naming who signs stops checks being ticked by whoever is nearest and gives the event lead one person to ask.
How is an event checklist different from a run sheet?
A checklist covers what must be ready before guests arrive; a run sheet covers what happens minute by minute once they do. This slide ends with the run sheet briefing at 6:15 pm, handing over to the run sheet. Keep them as separate slides so the crew sees setup and show as two jobs.
How many checks belong on the day of event slide?
Five to seven high level areas, each standing for a group of smaller tasks the area lead owns. This layout holds exactly five. Detail such as every microphone channel belongs on the AV lead's own list. The slide is for the whole crew, who need to know the order and the times.
Should an event checklist slide include numbers?
Yes, where a number is the check. 240 tables set, 240 covers confirmed, 31 dietary meals marked: those numbers must match each other and the guest list. Writing them on the slide means anyone can spot a mismatch, such as the kitchen preparing for 230, before it reaches a guest.
How do I brief an event crew with a checklist slide?
Show it at the morning briefing, read the five times aloud, and name the person who signs off each one. Then leave it on a screen or printed by the back door all afternoon. At each time, the event lead calls for the sign off, so the slide becomes the timetable for the afternoon.
Build your own in about a minute
The button below opens the generator with this use case already described. Change the wording to match your own, generate, then edit anything you like.
Make one like thisOther slide examples
First week checklist slide grouped by day for a new starter
A first week checklist slide tells a new starter what happens on each day of their first week, so they arrive knowing what to expect and what to bring. This one is for new care workers at Haverleigh Care, a fictional home care provider, grouped into Monday, Tuesday, the middle of the week and Friday.
Mind map slide that turns a planning day into five themes
A mind map slide gathers the ideas from a brainstorm or planning session into a few themes, so a group can see everything it discussed and who will take each idea forward. This one captures the planning day of Marrowbank Landcare, a fictional volunteer group, as five themed cards, each tagged with its lead.
Team principles slide with five sentences people can repeat
A team principles slide states how a team works in a few short sentences that people can remember and use to settle everyday decisions. This one sets out five working principles for Quarrow Data, a fictional data consultancy, each a single plain sentence that starts with a verb.
Want the steps in the builder? Read Style text and add callouts, stats and lists, then Present your slides with speaker notes and a pen. For everything this generator can do, see the slide maker.
Written and checked by the OneCraft team. Last checked .