ACCJ Programming Basics
Events Menu
Programs can take many different forms. Choosing the right format for your event is crucial to ensuring its success.
Event Tiers
To ensure high quality, committees should aim to plan events within one of the established tiers. These tiers serve as a framework and should generally be followed, with limited exceptions as approved by ACCJ staff.
(Event Tiers continue below)
Event Requests & Review Process
Committees should submit event requests 2-6 months in advance, in line with lead time requirements by tier. Last-minute events will be considered at lower priority.
All proposed events are reviewed by ACCJ staff for alignment with Event Tiers, the volume of events, resource allocation, and the diversity and appeal of the event topic.
Events that do not align with Event Tiers may be referred to the Committee Excellence Advisory Council (CEAC) for further review or revision.
Any major expenses or sponsorship details must be clearly outlined and confirmed in writing with ACCJ staff prior to finalizing the event.
Open and Closed Events
An “open” event is open to all ACCJ members and their accompanied guests.
Attendance at “closed” events is restricted to members of a committee or a group of members and guests approved by the committee chair. Closed events are usually held to discuss matters related to running the committee, and issues that are sector or industry-specific, advocacy-related, or otherwise sensitive.
On or Off the Record
This denotes whether or not the speaker and/or the committee chair has agreed that the contents of the event can be published or made available to the general public.
This decision should be confirmed with the speaker before the event, and whether a program is on or off the record should be announced in the event description.
Media Coverage
During the initial stages of developing a speaker program, the Committee Associate in charge may ask the sponsoring committee chair if they would like the event to be “on the record” or if they wish to keep the proceedings private (meaning “off the record”).
If the sponsoring committee chair prefers to hold the meeting off the record, members of the media who are not ACCJ members will not be admitted, and ACCJ members with press credentials will only be allowed to attend on the condition that they treat the material presented as off the record.
If the sponsoring committee chair prefers to hold the meeting on the record, there are several options. Please see a summary of the options below. For questions on these, please reach out to the Communications Department.
FULLY ON THE RECORD: The ACCJ Journal and members of the media will be invited, and the audience will be allowed to take notes and share information about the event on social media
NO MEDIA, BUT ON THE RECORD: Media will not be invited, but the audience will be allowed to take notes and share information about the event on social media.
ACCJ JOURNAL ONLY: Only The ACCJ Journal will be invited, and the speaker and committee have the option to review the content before it is published in The ACCJ Journal.
For on-the-record meetings, the speaker (or his or her PR department) should coordinate this aspect of the program with the Committee Associate before approaching the media. The Committee Affairs staff will then involve the Communications Department, which will then work with the speaker and his or her PR department in handling the media.
In general, the media will be invited to join on-the-record programs only during the speech portion of the event; they will not be served a meal and will not be charged for attending the program. If the committee invites specific members of the media to attend the meal portion of the program, the media representatives will be charged the non-member attendance fee.
If the speaker or committee has its own list of media contacts, the speaker or his or her PR department is asked to submit the list of media representatives who will be attending to the Communications Department in advance. The list should include the names of the publications/companies, the names of the attendees, and the type of media (print, television, electronic/Internet, etc.).
The ACCJ can arrange VIP seating for media representatives who are guests of the speaker. Other members of the media will be seated in a special section of the room where the event is being held.
Members of the media in attendance will be asked to mention the ACCJ’s name in any reporting on the program.
During the Q&A session, preference will be given to ACCJ members.
Video Recordings
The ACCJ does not permit distributing recordings of paid ACCJ events publicly on YouTube and social media platforms, since access to ACCJ events is an exclusive ACCJ member benefit.
Brief video excerpts of on-the-record events can be published with permission of the speaker and advance notice to the ACCJ Communications Department.
Logo Display
The ACCJ logo will be the only logo displayed on the speaker podium and projector screen, unless the program is being sponsored jointly by another organization. The logo of the speaker’s organization will not be displayed.
Virtual or Hybrid
To find out more about the ACCJ’s current hybrid event guidelines, please click here.
