.png)
This article is Part 2 of a four-part series designed to help you intentionally connect events and continuing education into one cohesive strategy.
Reduce manual work but keep expectations high.
Volume is often treated as the cause of major burnout, but it is actually one of the side effects of it. Burnout is usually driven by repetitive manual work and disconnected systems that force teams to manage the same information in multiple places.
This second play is all about protecting your team by designing workflows that are easier to execute, repeat, and scale.
What this play unlocks:
- A more predictable event cycle with fewer last-minute scenarios.
- Less manual effort and rework across events, education, and reporting tasks.
- Consistent content quality without requiring manual perfection checks.
- More capacity for innovation since time can be spent on improving programs.
Simplification questions (use these every time)
- Why are we re-entering data in multiple places?
- Where do handoffs and communication break down?
- Do we have a single source of truth, or multiple versions of the same information?
- What could become self-service or automated?
These questions help you identify what’s actually causing operational strain, and where simplification will have the biggest impact.
Implementing Play 2 (in 30 Days)
Start with high-volume workflow (i.e., speaker/session data, CE/CME processing, or post-event on-demand publishing) and complete these actions:
1. Map your data pathway from start to finish: Before you can simplify, you need to see the full chain of work and identify where steps become repetitive or unclear.
Example: Map the pathway for session data:
- Speaker submits abstract, bio, and disclosures.
- Team reviews and edit content.
- Content is copied into the agenda.
- Learning objectives are reformatted for CE/CME compliance.
- Slides are uploaded (or emailed) and re-uploaded into a second system.
- Post-event slides and recordings are reviewed again for publishing.
- Content is packaged for on-demand and credits are awarded.
Then mark where: Versions multiply. Information is re-entered., approvals cause slowdowns., and manual formatting happens repeatedly.
2. Identify your “single source of truth”: If multiple teams maintain their own official version of the truth, your workflow will become fragile.
Example: Choose one system/document as the source of truth for:
- Speaker + bio credentials.
- Disclosures.
- Learning objectives.
- Session titles/abstracts.
- Slide deck version.
- Credit designation details.
Then make this rule: If it isn’t updated in the source of truth, it’s not updated
3. Standardize inputs to reduce manual cleanup: Standardization is all about removing preventable variability that creates more downstream work.
Example: You can standardize:
- Learning objective format (ex., 3 bullets max).
- Disclosure collection process.
- Speaker deadlines and reminder cadence.
- Slide template requirements (branding and footer).
- Evaluation templates (so surveys won’t need to be rebuilt every time).
4. Build self-service where possible: Repeated questions and requests can be some of the biggest drivers of operational overload. But you can reduce these instances through established rules and self-service options.
Examples:
- Speaker exception: one presenter refuses to upload slides and always emails them late. Create an escalation policy, scheduled notifications, and a document exception workflow so it doesn’t disrupt the whole team.
- Attendee self-service: Instead of answering “How do I claim credit” hundreds of times via email, create a CE/CME Help Center with step-by-step instructions and an FAQ section.
Cheat Sheet: Metrics to Track
Before the event (operational strain indicators)
- # of manual touchpoints per session/speaker.
- # of version changes (how many times content has to be edited/re-uploaded).
- # of “urgent” speaker requests in the final 2 weeks.
- # of support emails and questions received.
After the event (rework indicators)
- Time to publish on-demand content
- Time to complete CE/CME processing.
- # of credit-related support tickets.
- # of session requiring manual reformatting/review.
Team sustainability indicators
- Workflow coverage (documented vs. Undocumented)
- Single points of failure (processes only one person knows)
Common Pitfalls
Treating burnout as a volume problem.
- Real drivers of burnout are rework, duplicated effort, and disconnected systems that force teams to manually reconcile information.
- What to do instead: Focus on eliminating repetitive manual tasks (reformatting and version chasing).
Letting exceptions gradually become the workflow.
- One-off exceptions can be well-intentioned, but they often create extra configuration and communication. Once this repeats over time, they eventually become part of the real workflow.
- What to do instead: Track exceptions and decide intentionally on which items to keep, automate, or eliminate.
Relying on tribal knowledge instead of documentation.
- When processes live in people’s heads, execution becomes difficult to perform, especially during peak season with compressed timelines.
- What to do instead: Document the workflows that would cause the most disruption if the owner were out unexpectedly.
Simplifying workflows creates stability for your team and your association members. Once your processes are repeatable and your data is trustworthy, you’re ready to move onto Play 3, where we focus on finding ways for events and education to easily share information and make reporting far faster.
