In the fast-paced world of event management, creativity fuels the vision, but logistics bring it to life. While many businesses thrive on bold ideas and imaginative concepts, the true measure of success often lies in flawless execution. That’s where the dynamic duo of a creative leader and an operations-focused deputy becomes not just valuable, but essential.
Ensuring that this dynamic is not just realised but reaches its full potential has become a focus for Emma King under the guise of her fledgling coaching business, It Takes Two. With an event management company of her own and many years of experience within the industry, Emma is well-placed to observe, advise, and inform businesses looking to get the best out of their creative and operations partnerships.
“If you are a visionary leader but surrounded by people just like you, you’d never get anything done. Instead, you need that strong operator. They are there to protect the leader’s time and deliver on their vision – or sometimes rein it in,” says Emma.
Creative leaders are often idea-generators — they think big, dream bigger, and strive to push boundaries. But without structure, even the most brilliant ideas can fall flat.
Operational deputies bring the necessary structure to complex projects. They are the grounded, detail-oriented counterpart to the creative leader’s visionary spirit.
This creative/operations balance is especially key in exhibitions, where brand experiences must be delivered within strict time, space, and budget constraints. The creative lead might envision a high-impact visitor journey, while the operations lead ensures suppliers are briefed, materials arrive on time, and safety protocols are met. Without that balance, ideas either never lift off or collapse under their own weight.
Emma understands the dynamic so well because she considers herself as one half of a creative/operational duo. She serves as CEO of event organiser CHS, which has a live event portfolio and digital platform that brings together professionals from across the industry. However, she leaves the day-to-day running of the business to her colleague Julie Phillips. “For me, Julie comes with operation skill but her superpower is in resourcing the business. I can motivate and inspire, but that’s not what our staff need every day. They need Julie’s grounding and practical approach,” says Emma.
Emma King - Co-Founder of It Takes Two.
As part of her role as a coach, Emma works with a large number of small businesses, often helping them to strike a balance between the roles. “A lot of work is with the visionaries, who so often report that their operations personnel keep saying no to them. We try to establish an understanding that they’re there to challenge you. We then work with the operations person and help them to understand what needs implementing and what is just an idea. I often encourage them to have two notebooks – one for every day ‘to do’ lists and one for ideas. They can then ask the leader which book is the most appropriate for actions when making notes during meetings,” adds Emma.
Clearly, ideas may well be plentiful, but they’re not always actionable, and so much of Emma’s work is about helping operations directors to understand how they can best explore feasible ideas. She also places emphasis on staff buying into new concepts and ensuring they understand their role in achieving objectives.
When working with new clients, she begins with a vision alignment exercise. This is a whole day focused on the company vision and objectives, and getting to grips with how every person contributes to it. Each employee needs a sense of purpose, and this is helped by understanding their contribution to the ultimate end goal.
With clients in the UK, America, and Australia, It Takes Two is helping businesses across the globe to embrace difference and find a balanced approach that will see their firms thrive. Her message is clear: creativity builds excitement, operations build trust, but together they can create the ultimate combination for event excellence.
Top tips
- Ensure absolute clarity. Have meaningful one-to-ones – not just quick catch-ups. Structured one-to-ones make it clear what is expected of you. Communication is key.
- People often forget to train the ops person, not in ops but in leadership. They need to know how to be a good ops person, understand how they protect leaders’ time, how to interpret an idea and how to deliver to the team.
- Lean into your superpower and respect what ops do. If you’re clashing, reframe it to having healthy debate. If they disagree, that’s good as they are ensuring your idea can work. Try not to get frustrated.