Can You Speak Fluent Event? East of Ellie's Guide to Corporate Event Planner Lingo

Think you’ve got what it takes to plan a corporate event? Let’s see if you speak the language. Because around here, we’re not just tossing around buzzwords—we’re living in a world of BEOs, breakout rooms, and vendor walk throughs. If you’ve ever found yourself pretending to know what a “ROS” is (spoiler alert: not a flower), consider this your crash course in fluent event planner.

📅 ROS (Run Of Show)

Also known as: your event’s minute-by-minute bible. This doc lays out what’s happening, when, and who’s making it happen, from AV cues to presentation walk up songs to the exact time the gelato cart rolls in. If someone asks “Where are we in the show flow?” this is what they’re talking about.

📄 BEO (Banquet Event Order)

Basically Everything Organized? Close! The unsung hero of your event’s food and beverage operation. The BEO includes menus, service timing, head counts, table setups… basically, if it involves a plate, glass, or linen napkin, it’s on this doc. The catering team won’t blink without it.

🚶🏼‍♀️‍➡️Vendor Walk Through

Before the magic, comes the meeting. A vendor walkthrough is our chance to bring everyone on-site: florals, lighting, catering, AV, and make sure we’re all aligned before load-in day. Bonus: it’s when we solve 75% of the problems before they happen.

👀 Site Visit

Different from a walkthrough, this happens earlier in the planning process. It's our chance to scout the venue, take a million measurements, assess power needs, and say things like “We could definitely get an archway in here if we remove that wall sconce.”

📦 Load in & Load Out

Load-in is when it all starts to feel real. It’s the window of time (often very early in the morning) when our trucks roll up, our crew badges in, and the space starts transforming… florals placed, cables taped, furniture fluffed. Load-out? Same energy, reverse order. We strike it all down, pack it up, and leave the venue looking like we were never there - just with a little less sleep and a few more coffee cups.

✚ Plus-Plus (++)

A sneaky little phrase that adds tax and service charge to any per-person pricing. That $80 dinner? It’s more like $100 once you factor in the plus-plus. No surprises here, just your regular reminder to budget like a realist.

🏨 Room Block

Well, we’re not quite literally blocking off hotel rooms, but to avoid hearing the dreaded “sold out” or “booked up”, room blocks definitely help.  A room block reserves a set number of rooms (usually at a discounted rate) for your event attendees. It also keeps your CFO from having a heart attack when everyone books five-star suites last minute.

🎤 Technical Rehearsal

No, it’s not just a mic check. A proper technical rehearsal includes AV cues, speaker walk-throughs, video testing, lighting checks… it’s the whole tech production. It’s how we avoid “Is this thing on?” moments and keep your execs looking like pros and your social content flowing..

🚪Breakout Rooms

Breakouts are the behind-the-scenes MVPs of a strong event program. These smaller, focused rooms run alongside your main sessions. They’re perfect for workshops, panel discussions, team brainstorms, or giving your guests content that feels a bit more hands-on and personalized.

🧾 Change Order

Think of this as the official “update request” after contracts are signed. Whether you’re swapping centerpieces, adding more signage, or adjusting setup timing, a change order keeps everyone on the same page and your vision moving forward; no crossed wires, no surprises.

🤝 Event Vendor Agreement

Every vendor, from florals to photo booths, gets an Event Vendor Agreement. It outlines responsibilities, timing, payment terms, insurance—the unsexy stuff that keeps everything running smoothly. Think of it as the “we all agree not to ghost each other” paperwork.

​​Corporate event planning is fast-paced, detail-heavy, and a little jargon-y. But once you’ve got the language down, you’ll see how all the moving pieces click into place. And lucky for you we speak fluent event, so you don’t have to. Looking for a planner who gets it? Contact us today!