As is the case with many clients, the digital event space was new territory for the Riordan team, and they were seeking guidance for the entire process of producing a virtual event. A Happily producer/show caller was appointed to liaison directly with the Riordan team, creating with them the main schedule (referred to as the run of show) for the broadcast and breakout rooms.

Throughout the live broadcast and the event, the producer would be there to ensure that the run of show was kept on a tight schedule and to give overall executive leadership. In the lead up to the event, the producer and the Riordan team had weekly meetings to keep the pre-production moving forward.

The general layout of the gala was a main broadcast, and then 4 breakout room. The broadcast team consisted of the producer, a broadcast streaming engineer, a broadcast timekeeper (or simply the clock), a backstage manager, and a broadcast receptionist.

The streaming engineer on a broadcast ensures a smooth livestream with audio synch, as well as incorporating branded graphics, transitional motion graphics and any pre-recorded video. A clock cues speakers when to start and stop speaking with color-coded cards. A backstage manager scheduled speaker rehearsals and managed their movement from the virtual greenroom to the live broadcast.

Each of the breakout rooms had its own team of Happily specialists. A breakout lead managed the talent in the room, with a breakout assistant to provide support, and a streaming engineer to manage all the tech. Having a separate team for each of these panel discussions and breakout rooms relieved the pressure from the Riordan team, knowing that each corner of the virtual event was being managed by a dedicated team.

A Happily graphic designer adapted the Riordan and UCLA Anderson brands to create custom graphics, lower thirds with the name and profession of each presenter, and banners to wrap around the screen and frame each guest. This allowed a completely professional and entirely branded experience for attendees during the broadcast and within each breakout room.