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Events and Tourism Review Vol. 4 No. 1 (2021), 43-56, DOI: 10.18060/25307                                                                                                  

               Copyright © 2021 Angela Senter, Mark Beattie and Demi Deng 

  This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International 

License. 

 

Events and Tourism Review                                     
 
June 2021                                                                                                                                                 Volume 4 No. 1      

   

 

Large Event Security – A Case Study of Spokane Events, WA 

 

 
Angela Senter 

 

Mark Beattie 

 

Demi Deng 

 

Washington State University 

Correspondence: angie.senter@wsu.edu (A. Senter) 

 

 

 
 

 

 

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Recommended Citation 

Senter, A., Beattie, M. & Deng, D. (2021). Large Event Security – A Case Study of Spokane 

Events, WA. Events and Tourism Review, 4(1), 43-56.  
 

 

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Senter, A., Beattie, M. & Deng, D. (2021) / Events and Tourism Review, 

4(1), 1-16. 44 

Events and Tourism Review Vol. 4 No. 1 (2021), 43-56, DOI: 10.18060/25307                                                                                                  

               Copyright © 2021 Angela Senter, Mark Beattie and Demi Deng 

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. 

 

 

 
 

 

 

  Abstract 

 

Large event security has become increasingly complex over the past 20 years.  Security incidents 

have included headline tragedies such as the Las Vegas shooting in 2017 and the Boston Marathon 

bombing in 2013. Spokane, Washington, has been no exception to the need to enhance guest 

security for large-scale events, as evidenced by the Hoopfest gang-related shooting in 2010 and 

the Martin Luther King Jr. Day bombing attempt in 2011.  Balancing the interests of stakeholders 

has become challenging for event management professionals in both planning and operations 

phases. Security strategies and trainings designed for security and guest service staff are critical 

for the success of new protocols. Transparent communication to the public is crucial for the 

event's success and the guarantee of guest satisfaction.  This case study aims to document the 

leadership decisions made to enhance security for large-scale events held in Downtown Spokane 

and the Spokane Arena.  Focusing on several tipping points, the leadership decisions and 

implementation are chronicled as a case study, along with the decisions and protocols that 

continue to influence large event security in the Spokane area. This study will benefit other event 

planners and venues as they face security system upgrades, protocols, and implementation. 

 

 Keywords: Event Security, Communication, Collaboration, Pandemic Response, Risk Management 
 

 

 

Introduction 

 

Large event security has become increasingly complicated over the past 20 years. Mega-

events consistently contribute to local economic development in a positive way but also attract much 

attention concerning security-related issues involving all the stakeholders (Amorin et al., 2014; 

Boyle & Haggerty, 2009; DiSalvatore, 2019; Klauser, 2015). Security cases have included the 

headline tragedies such as the Las Vegas shooting in 2017 and the Boston Marathon bombing of 

2013. In 2021, the Spokane events team gathered as they had for several years, although the 

meetings were via videoconference. Everyone was getting more than a little weary of being cooped 

up at home, working remotely. Prior studies indicated a notable impact of external shocks, such as 

pandemic and terrorist attacks, on the event market and the flow of event operation (Miles & 

Shipway, 2020). Likewise, the public and the leadership in the city government and business district 

were getting anxious to reopen even as the pandemic continued to take its toll on citizens. The 

pressure was mounting to see a return to “normalcy,” and for Spokane this means large events that 

had become signatures for the city. The greater Spokane area attracts people from all over the region 

for Broadway musicals, concerts, sporting events, fine dining, festivals, shopping, use of the airport, 

and even healthcare facilities.  

Tourism is a large contributor to the local economy through events such as Bloomsday, Pig 

Out in the Park, and Hoopfest. The greater Spokane area has a built-out tourism infrastructure in 

terms of hotel rooms and restaurants to support. Hoteliers and restaurateurs needed to put “heads in 

beds” and turn tables quickly as reserves were running low. “It’s awful,” Worthy, a Spokane 

Hotelier, said. One Wednesday night, the Centennial by Davenport Hotels, located at 303 W. North 

River Drive, “had 16 occupied rooms of 411. The night before last, we had less than $600 in food 

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Events and Tourism Review Vol. 4 No. 1 (2021), 43-56, DOI: 10.18060/25307                                                                                                  

               Copyright © 2021 Angela Senter, Mark Beattie and Demi Deng 

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. 

 

 

and beverage revenue. You try keeping a kitchen open with that. That’s what we are dealing with on 

a daily basis.” For the Arena and Convention Center, this meant bringing meetings and shows back 

to town.  The pressure was mounting, and the team felt the heat enough to melt the new snow 

beginning to pile up on the sidewalks (Clouse, 2020). The excellent news about treatments and 

vaccines was only creating more of a sense that the pandemic was behind us, and we could begin 

seeing our friends and family and attend events as we used to do.  

However, this positive vibe was tempered with the reality that there were still several months 

of transition ahead. A specialized team of city and private personnel was tasked with creating, 

communicating, and implementing the large-scale event security plans.  The dilemma before the 

team is to figure out how to pull off large events safely.  The task is huge, and the stakes are high, 

but the team knows they could use the past lessons in planning for future events while maintaining 

the security and easing potential attendees’ concerns, especially at large gatherings. As they 

gathered to form a strategic plan for event security that now included novel coronavirus threats, they 

began to outline the lessons learned in the past that would inform the future. They started by 

recalling significant turning points over the past decade.  

One of those turning points occurred on January 17, 2011. Hundreds of families and 

community members were beginning to gather for a Martin Luther King Jr. Day Unity parade in 

downtown Spokane, Washington.  A routine event security procedure included a sweep of the 

parade route in advance of the event. A lone, unattended backpack sitting on a street corner alerted 

event personnel, who quickly enacted their event security plan. Event organizers rerouted the parade 

as the Spokane City police department worked in conjunction with the Sheriff's Office bomb squad.  

They successfully dismantled a shrapnel bomb coated in an anticoagulant commonly found in rat 

poison.  No injuries were sustained that day, and most event attendees had no idea of a security 

breach.  The large event security procedures enacted that day saved hundreds of lives. 

Two short months later, Spokane welcomed over 10,000 guests into the city's core for the 

world's largest three-on-three basketball tournament, Hoopfest. With a recent legitimate event 

bombing attempt, the approaches and procedures that the city municipalities and event staff used for 

security policies and communications would affect human lives and determine the outcome of 

millions of dollars in tourism revenue.  

A day in the world of event management in Spokane can be complicated, to say the least, as 

dozens of large events are hosted throughout the year with separate event teams residing at 

convention centers, arenas, city parks, and tourism bureaus. Although the events teams are separate, 

the overlap that a large event causes in a city often brings them all to the table. The need for 

multilayered communication among event security teams became apparent at the 2013 Carrie 

Underwood concert. For concert management to agree to come to Spokane, they demanded metal 

detectors at guest entrances.  The arena did not have metal detectors, so the directors of the facility 

and the security team had to quickly answer these questions: who would pay for those, how do they 

train security staff to operate them, who pays for training and the extra staffing, and how best should 

they communicate the new protocols for guests?  Since each event is unique and has its own set of 

security challenges, how does such a large, diverse event security team continue to produce 

successful events on time, on budget, and in a safe pattern? Those research questions attracted us to 

conduct this study. 

 

 

 

 

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Events and Tourism Review Vol. 4 No. 1 (2021), 43-56, DOI: 10.18060/25307                                                                                                  

               Copyright © 2021 Angela Senter, Mark Beattie and Demi Deng 

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. 

 

 

Methods 

 

Qualitative-oriented research is highlighted by Neuendorf (2002) as a method to formulate 

research questions about how an event proceeds and increase understanding through examination. 

Neuendorf (2002) indicated content analysis as a concrete approach to rely on original textual 

sources and summarize all details concerning themed research, thereby demonstrating holistic views 

on event security. Regarding content analysis, all the variables occurred in natural settings without 

any manipulation and served as clues to unlock research questions with rich descriptions  (Miles et 

al., 2014; Neuendorf, 2002). 

 

Data Collection  

Purposive sampling was utilized in this study to target participants who are at the core of 

event management in the Spokane area. Six interviewees heavily involved in event management in 

the Spokane area were recruited via snowballing (Table 1). Semi-structured interviews were adopted 

to collect information to illustrate research questions, and NVivo was applied to analyze the data. To 

assure in-rater reliability, triangulation was utilized by cross-verification among interviewers, 

interviewees, and coders.  

 

Participants 

Table 1 – Participants’ information 
 

No.  Professional Titles 

1. Customer Experience Director for City of Spokane 

2.  Marketing and Programming Director, Downtown Spokane Partnership 

3.  Sergeant of Special Events for the Spokane Police Department 

4.  Park Ranger 

5.  Director of Entertainment for the Spokane Public Facility District 

6.  Sales and Event Manager for Riverfront Park 

7.  Event and Sales Pavilion Manager 

 

 The participants were interviewed via video conference using the following dimensions and 

sample questions: 

• Decision-making 

o What parts of the process would change if given a chance? 

• Human Resources 

o What means of employee communications were used in the implementation? 

• Operations 

o Are you able to attract a more qualified workforce? 

• Public Relations 

o How do the new procedures affect guests?   

Data Analysis 

Saldaña’s (2015) two cycles of coding methods were utilized to distill and process the 

contextual messages. The collected contextual data was initially coded into data chunks conforming 

to research questions and thenceforth facilitated to pattern coding at the second cycle phase, where 

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Events and Tourism Review Vol. 4 No. 1 (2021), 43-56, DOI: 10.18060/25307                                                                                                  

               Copyright © 2021 Angela Senter, Mark Beattie and Demi Deng 

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. 

 

 

initial codes were regrouped and reorganized based on significant themes underlying research foci. 

 

Results 

 

Almost every interviewee described the essence of event security management in terms of 

transparency and effective communication regardless of the styles (e.g., intranet communication or 

planned bi-week meeting) and formats (e.g., in-person or virtual meeting). The themes in regard to 

communications were classified into two categories. One is task force-related assignment, and the 

other is the negotiation for mutual grounds involving all the stakeholders.  Bringing together a 

consistent task force of event security experts aided the event team in being able to lean on each 

member’s area of expertise.  It also provided a platform to build mutual trust and foster loyal 

relationships. The data revealed that all the interviewees had worked together on multiple events in 

the past, which contributed to the positive impact of transparent and bottom-up communications, 

underlying the trust and support among teams. 

As the Pavilion Event and Sales Manager concluded, “we try to find the mutual ground that 

we can agree upon within that. So, if they want to do something that is against policy, we will try to 

find options what would work within our policy. It's really up to the powers to be …but those rules 

can have some fluidity to it.”  

However, power hierarchy was recognized during data analysis as a detrimental factor to 

communication since it is difficult to get all stakeholders around the planning table. For example, 

the Park Ranger shared, “I get shut down by administration slightly above me. And so, my voice or 

concerns don't reach the level they need to effect change.” 

With such a multiple-faceted stakeholder groups residing in the Spokane event teams, it is 

natural to come up with a large degree of divergence in opinions.  Additionally, there is no correct 

answer in how best to proceed with large event security when the protocols and procedures have yet 

to be written upon agreement. Again, this team discussed how they lean on their communication 

skills and relationships.  

When other voices were raised among the team, they generally embraced the different 

opinions, as when the Customer Experience Director stated that “We have open lines of dialogue, 

and I think most important for us is we want to get to the win.”  The Pavilion Event Sales Manager 

likewise explained, “We tried to find the mutual ground that we can agree upon with that. If they 

want to do something that is against policy, we will try to find options that would work within our 

policy… Everybody just kind of doing the best they can, and there is a consensus. We will get 

through it. If the hiccup happens, we will work it out.”   

The relationships that these teams have built with one another help them in moments of 

conflict to remember that everyone is trying to do the best for the client and the guests (Klauser, 

2015). Keeping the end goal in mind helps eliminate personal feelings of team conflict and drive the 

conversation forward. Most people with experience in events put a high value on collaboration. If it 

takes a village to raise a child, it takes an entire city to pull off a good event.  This situation was 

abundantly evident in this interview group’s desire to collaborate on projects.  The event 

management teams initiated extensive communication by integrating the team identity values into 

every message and its relationship with stakeholders and implementing every event operation. By 

establishing mutual ground via communication, collaboration was built up in various audiences: 

consumers, shareholders and investors, employees, suppliers, and local communities. To secure the 

success of each event, collaboration matters. In the words of the Customer Experience Director, “[I]t  

 

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Events and Tourism Review Vol. 4 No. 1 (2021), 43-56, DOI: 10.18060/25307                                                                                                  

               Copyright © 2021 Angela Senter, Mark Beattie and Demi Deng 

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. 

 

 

is really about collaboration and working through it and trying to, you know, what is the best 

outcome and sometimes the answer is just hard.” 

 

Findings and Discussion 
 

Communication and collaboration can go a long way in building a harmonious team 

relationship.  However, in the context of event security, it needs to go much deeper.  

The event team frequently discussed their trust in one another.  When lives are on the line, 

you must know that you can trust those around you to make sound judgments and that the policies 

and procedures put in place are being followed. The team gave an example of this at the Robert 

Plant rock music concert in the Opera House.  

An overzealous fan rushed the stage and nearly encountered the singer. Later, the team 

reviewed the case and discussed various places where protocols had broken down, from the floor 

security not correctly watching the front row fans to the stage security not stopping the individual 

when the audience member reached the singer. The lack of overall communication and training 

among the staff was pointed to as the main shortcoming. By integrating communication and 

collaboration, the team's relationships would be enhanced, and trust better established. Trust is the 

glue that holds event security alliances together. It is about a deep relationship that could impact a 

more comprehensive array of event participants, customer engagement, local community awareness 

and commitment, employees' sense of belonging, and even satisfaction.  As the Park Ranger 

expressed it, “You know when you see something, how important it is to share that to the 

appropriate person to get some assistance and investigating” (Park Ranger).  The Sergeant of 

Special Events recounted that in this case, because the Rangers “were doing their own research and 

they wanted to have a safe event…they were the ones that brought it forward to us.” 

Even the best-laid plans go awry at events. All respondents frequently articulated how fast 

events can change, and they all possessed a positive attitude towards change. Most importantly, all 

respondents could articulate the ability to absorb the change proactively. Such an adaptive attitude is 

developed from three causes based on respondents' feedback. Those leaders' characteristics are 

consistent with the merits of servant leaders who inspire the effectiveness of event management.  

First, prompt job description and detailed training are provided to event staff: “They’re given 

the parameters of this is the area that you are working in” (Sergeant of Special Events). 

  Second, event operation teams are always prepared for the unexpected scenario and have 

back-up plans in hand.  The Director of Entertainment explained this outlook and process in the case 

of Hoopfest: “[W]hen you need a police officer and they've worked with Homeland Security to do 

drills on various scenarios of what could happen because of the focal point of Hoopfest. So, what is 

the possibility of something catastrophic happening or is it just sort of a, a weekly and smaller event 

where the environment allows for some control.”  The Customer Experience Director added, 

“[D]epending on events, we can require them (security) to have crowd control.”  

 Third, event employees are supported with resources.  In Spokane, as the Marketing and 

Program Director recounted, “We have security ambassadors wearing bullet-proof vests...they have 

not been attacked in the past…. [W]e provide protective equipment for them, but we got a lot of 

complaints about the perception that downtown is not safe because our ambassadors were wearing 

bullet-proof vest.” 

 The findings are consistent with the key characteristics of event leadership, which include 

listening, empathy, healing, awareness, persuasion, foresight, stewardship, and awareness of 

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Events and Tourism Review Vol. 4 No. 1 (2021), 43-56, DOI: 10.18060/25307                                                                                                  

               Copyright © 2021 Angela Senter, Mark Beattie and Demi Deng 

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. 

 

 

community building (Parris & Peachey, 2013).  

  However, the application of change is challenging to some employees due to role stress and 

level of job competency. Interviewees reflected that “the staff we hire are young people that are 

fresh out of high school, a seasonal staff to help out with events and our attractions…. When you 

work in a potential terrorist target…we try not to scare them away” (Park Ranger). The nature of 

change itself is also a variable of concern.  As events change, policies and procedures need to 

change as well.  That change does not always occur at the rate that it needs to remain valid. The 

timeline from policy drafting, change, and implementation may vary from six months up to five 

years. During this period, procedures or workflows may be adjusted or stalled due to the influence 

of uncontrollable conditions such as the change of key personnel in authority or the inability to 

identify critical stakeholders correctly.  

It was noted also that there is a financial disparity among large or small events that are 

attempting to have more transparent movements on the cost. The Marketing and Programming 

Director lamented that “literally for five years now, it’s very political.”  In the words of the 

Customer Experience Director, “It was still too much gray area and then also the concerns of 

moving to face what we still need to resolve.” 

The change in events can be best mitigated by correctly identifying the threat spectrum. The 

contemporary challenge is how to balance the event as both entertaining and safe. When something 

significant goes wrong at a special event, there can be lasting economic, political, and social 

consequences. All of respondents encountered unexpected risks or incidents. To control risk, it is 

not only about recovery strategies but also avoidance strategies. To achieve this outcome, it is 

necessary to anticipate the spectrum of possible threats in real-world events and help event 

organizers to think outside of the box:  

 

[I]f there is an emergency, a riot or something breaks out to threaten the public because of 

the social distancing…I think the mindset now is not to have that density of their vendors and 

the queue lines and pathways open. We always follow the rule that we need to have a space 

for emergency vehicles to get in and out of. And I think people and really our event 

organizers are really understanding that now. (Pavilion Event and Sales Manager) 

 

The Marketing and Programming Director put is simply: “The priority is the physical safety 

of those that are attending.”  Questions were raised such as “[D]id anybody give any thought to 

active shooter? … I am not trying to sound like a nutcase here, but did we give any thought to that 

because if I were a bad guy, I can look right down onto the crowd and stage, that would be a perfect 

place for me to be an active shooter” (Park Ranger). 

Risk avoidance is only one half of the spectrum.  Risk mitigation has also to be considered. 

Uncertainty and surprise are part of all events' real-world compositions (Amorin et al., 2014). The 

respondents identified the need to be prepared and to have the resources and the mindset to address 

actual emergencies.  One respondent gave a potent example: 

  

We had an incident last year…. a major event [Hoopfest] in downtown that brings 250,000 

people … and a child was sort of stopped and almost abducted and because we had a large 

police presence at that event, they were able to stop that, otherwise I can’t imagine how the 

event would have been affected if a child had gone missing. (Marketing and Programming 

Director). 

 

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Events and Tourism Review Vol. 4 No. 1 (2021), 43-56, DOI: 10.18060/25307                                                                                                  

               Copyright © 2021 Angela Senter, Mark Beattie and Demi Deng 

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. 

 

 

However, to map out a security strategy in advance requires a cost.  Event management 

teams sometimes must negotiate a high cost evoked by the organization of security procedure versus 

stakeholders' questions.  To a degree, they struggled to find a balance between the cost of security 

and the event’s economic impact. The Customer Experience Director stated that “it is definitely just 

a trust issue when they came up with what they think is the appropriate level of staffing.” At the 

same time, “They want to have a safe event, and at the same time you have to tell them it's going to 

cost 40 grand to have people sit there in their trucks and guard an intersection. There is a little 

sticker shock with that. So, to me, my role is to make sure is it appropriate… are there alternatives?” 

(Customer Experience Director).  

Once security threats are identified and plans are put into place, the respondents discussed 

the need to have clear communication with guests.  For instance, adding metal detectors to the 

Carrie Underwood concert (2013) was new for guests to the Spokane Arena.  The marketing staff 

worked hard to put out social media posts and radio announcements telling fans about the new 

changes, to arrive early, and to be prepared for the enhanced security measures. The communication 

planned worked well, and there were no issues ushering guests through the new protocols. When 

Neil Diamond also requested metal detectors, the marketing team again reached out to social media 

and the radio stations to make announcements, but they did not consider the guest demographic 

change and identify that this was not the right platform to communicate with their guests. As a 

result, long lines formed at the security entry points, and guest satisfaction suffered.  To the 

attendees it was told they should “make sure that they showed up early, or if you are wearing a belt 

buckle...make sure you have it off by the time you get up to the metal detectors, because it was a 

long line when we had a lot of people waiting out there and we even held the event, I think, an extra 

15 minutes before it started” (Director of Entertainment). 

When large-scale events are held outside of a controlled environment like an arena, 

community communication can play a vital role. One of our participants pointed out the limitation 

of communication on community awareness: “I would really like to find a way to be able to 

communicate more effectively when there is an event ongoing in someone’s neighborhood or area 

that they need to be aware of…but every year we find somebody new to Spokane and did not know 

what they could be exposed to” (Customer Experience Director). This concern was also emphasized 

by a homeowner on the Bloomsday race route: “Somebody’s upset that they could not leave the 

house for a 15-minute period and could not figure out why a group of runners came by” (Customer 

Experience Director). 

 Understanding community impact and finding creative ways to lessen this impact starts with 

an excellent external communication plan. A robust external communication plan also helps guests 

and the local community feel safe attending events. Most interviewees stated that visitors in this 

community were quite supportive and comfortable with any security changes. They appreciated the 

support to the small business development in this community via event management (“it's been 

really awesome to see the city coming alive and you see the prosperous small businesses…. 

[H]opefully, they can come back and see the small businesses grow…. I haven't felt this connected 

to a city and its progression and its momentum moving forward really ever before” (Riverfront Park 

Sales and Event Manager). This causes a strong network between the community and event 

stakeholders. The positive outcome of visitors’ feedback is the key signal. The Customer Experience 

Director emphasized visitors knowing that Spokane is “a great community that really loves events” 

and that they are “Pleased with our improvements in the process and what they would like us to 

work on” and that “we all can still have our events in a safe manner.”  The Sergeant of Special  

 

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Events and Tourism Review Vol. 4 No. 1 (2021), 43-56, DOI: 10.18060/25307                                                                                                  

               Copyright © 2021 Angela Senter, Mark Beattie and Demi Deng 

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Events likewise mentioned the goal of impressions being “Very positive, they like events when they 

get down here, safe and secure” (Sergeant of Special Events). 

The continuation of this level of success greatly depends on the team’s ability to learn from 

past events, which is not always guaranteed. “[W]e had an event coming up, it was very simple. this 

is some of the communication stuff, just because I have been doing it. And it is like, Okay, 

everybody should know this. Well, no, it wasn't that simple” (Sergeant of Special Events).  

For some events, like a local fair or an annual special event, institutional memory is a 

sufficient organizational resource and operational database for reflection and advancement. 

Thorough decision-making stems from three critical components, and institutional memory is one of 

the core aspects (El Sawy et al., 1986). Those who host unique or infrequent events can also learn 

transferable skills from past events. The need for a written post-event assessment was paramount as 

staffing and stakeholder changes create a need for contingency. Completing this stage properly helps 

leaders begin to identify potential threats and strategies for countering the threats and also draw a 

salient role of the importance of security control and management among all the parties involved ( 

Fussey & Klauser, 2015). 

 

 

Conclusion 

 

So as our team once again gathered around the table (nowadays on Zoom), they reflected on 

their past successes and the many learning opportunities they have had over the years. Not only was 

guest physical safety on the top of their mind, but now protecting the event guest from a public 

health crisis was foremost.  The last thing any of our team wanted was to end up in the evening 

news as the cause of a “super-spreader” event.  They know they had the relationships, training, and 

communication to create safe and fun events for Spokane once again.  They decided to roll up their 

sleeves and get to work.  The first action was to outline all the possible topics to address.   

 

• What decision-making strategies make the most sense now? 

• How will policies affect employees, guests, and the public? 

• Who will train employees and event volunteers? 

• How will new equipment be paid for and operated under which budgets? 

• Communication will be the key to success.  What strategies will be most effective? 

 

The team reached out to an event management class at a local university for assistance to 

gain the broadest perspective. The team was excited and looked forward to the students’ final 

presentation. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Events and Tourism Review Vol. 4 No. 1 (2021), 43-56, DOI: 10.18060/25307                                                                                                  

               Copyright © 2021 Angela Senter, Mark Beattie and Demi Deng 

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. 

 

 

Case synopsis 

Event security is becoming a key topic in event planning.  Cybersecurity of registrations, 

intruders, food safety, violent actors, and now viruses create a rapidly changing landscape.  Students 

and professionals in event planning benefit from the expertise of professionals like the ones featured 

in this case study.  Gaining an understanding for the complexity in intersections of multiple kinds of 

expertise required to approach event security holistically is the main focal point of this case.  The 

long-standing commitment to large-scale events in Spokane, WA, has brought together the 

collection of city officials, public safety, and event management on a standing committee that works 

together for public events throughout the city.  Collaboration and communication are the hallmarks 

of their success.  It is these leadership skills that can be applied in other settings where public events 

take place to ensure guest safety. 

Spokane, WA, (pop. 500,000) is a mid-sized event market that has capitalized on large-scale 

events, particularly sport related events such as Hoopfest and Bloomsday.  The Spokane Veterans’ 

Memorial Arena is a multi-purpose home to the local hockey team along with concerts trade shows 

and graduations. Avista stadium hosts a single-A baseball team. The Spokane Convention Center 

and a large adjacent auditorium (First Interstate Center) have multiple venue spaces. Numerous 

hotels, restaurants, and shopping outlets surround Riverfront Park in the downtown core. 

Target audience 

This case would be useful for hospitality, tourism, and business administration students with 

moderate to extensive knowledge of event management, tourism, destination management 

organizations, risk management, and large event security issues. It is recommended for use as an 

introductory exploratory case. It is suggested for use in tourism, event management, or event risk 

management courses. Considering the moderate level of difficulty of the case, it would be 

appropriate for students in the middle to ending semester of a certificate or undergraduate program. 

Learning objectives 

The primary objectives of this case are as follows: 

 A. Construct a correlation between relationship and collaboration within an event security team. 

1) Sub-objective: Identify roadblocks that impede communication  

2) Sub-objective: List and categorize stakeholders and their associative roles and 

responsibilities 

 B. Recommend communication strategies that foster trust among stakeholders.  

1) Sub-objective: Explain how power distance affects task force development  

2) Sub-objective: Identify ways to create mutual ground among stakeholders 

C. Evaluate a threat spectrum.  

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Senter, A., Beattie, M. & Deng, D. (2021) / Events and Tourism Review, 

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Events and Tourism Review Vol. 4 No. 1 (2021), 43-56, DOI: 10.18060/25307                                                                                                  

               Copyright © 2021 Angela Senter, Mark Beattie and Demi Deng 

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. 

 

 

1)  Sub-objective: Compare and contrast risk avoidance verses risk mitigation 

2) Sub-objective: Identify and allocate costs associated with risk avoidance and mitigation 

D. Illustrate the importance of safety training system. 

1) Sub-objective: Discuss the impact of the application of change 

 

2)  Sub-objective: Identify community perspective on policies and training 

E. Create and defend a sample event security communication and relationship building plan for a 

hypothetical public health crisis. 

Teaching plan and objectives 

The suggested strategy for a 60-minute discussion is formulated for an undergraduate or 

certificate program, mid-level course. The table below presents an overview of the proposed 

classroom activities, the corresponding objectives, and the recommended time allocations. The steps 

are then explained.  

Step Classroom Activity Objectives Time 

1. Defining the 

problem 

Read case study and highlight important 

themes 

A, A1 5 min 

2. Setting the Stage Plenary discussion identifying stakeholder 

roles, responsibilities, and power distances  

A2, B, B1, 

B2 

5 min 

3. Assessing the risk Plenary discussion to conduct a risk 

assessment listing accepted or mitigated risk 

hierarchies 

C, C1, C2, 5 min 

4. Developing the 

strategy 

Small group communication strategy planning D, D1, D2, 

B 

20 min 

5. Defending the 

conclusion 

Group sharing of communication strategies to 

plenary body 

E 20 min 

6. Closing the case Plenary summary of key communication and 

relationship strategies necessary for success 

B, D, E 5 min 

Step 1: Defining the Problem:  The teacher may elect to allow silent reading or reading aloud by 

section, instructor, or committee.  The teacher then records on the board the key findings and 

significant themes identified by the students.  Leading questions the instructor may ask to help the 

students ferry the key themes might include the following: 

o What did the interviewees list as communication strategies that worked well for 

them? 

o What did the interviewees list as roadblocks in building their team relationships? 

o How did they factor in community safety perceptions? 

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Senter, A., Beattie, M. & Deng, D. (2021) / Events and Tourism Review, 

4(1), 1-16. 54 

Events and Tourism Review Vol. 4 No. 1 (2021), 43-56, DOI: 10.18060/25307                                                                                                  

               Copyright © 2021 Angela Senter, Mark Beattie and Demi Deng 

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. 

 

 

o How did trust factor into their relationships? 

Here the instructor may either allow a robust group to summarize themes as a plenary group 

or may need to ask the class more leading questions if they have not discovered the full scope of the 

issue. 

Step 2: Setting the Stage:  Given the example of how Spokane should move forward into its next 

large-scale event, the teacher should record the students' aggregate perceptions of all stakeholder 

groups' identity.  Columns can be used to list the stakeholder, their roles, their responsibilities, and  

their degree of influence over the event security strategy.  For groups that need more concrete 

parameters to work under a sample, the event could be given.  For example, students could be asked 

to identify all stakeholders associated with the Bloomsday event.  Guiding questions could be: 

o Who in the community does this event effect? 

o Who would attend this event? 

o Who is covering most of the costs and collecting the revenues? 

o What are the secondary service providers required to run this event? 

o Who would be most impacted by a catastrophic crisis? 

Step 3. Assessing the Risk.  In a plenary setting, the teacher should record on the board the 

students' aggregate conclusions of the risks associated with Spokane during large scale events.  

Columns can be used to identify the risk, its likelihood to occur, its severity or impact of occurrence, 

and if the class's consensus is to ignore, mitigate, or accept the risk.  For groups that required a 

concrete example in Step 2 carry the example into the risk assessment discussion. For the 

Bloomsday example some leading questions for the class might include: 

o What are the risks to guests’ health and safety?  

o What are the risks to the community’s health and safety? 

o What are the risks to the client’s financial health? 

o What are the risks to the client’s brand affinity? 

o What are the risks for employees of the event? 

o What are the risks to secondary service providers? 

Step 4: Developing the Strategy.  Break students into equal groups of 5-8 students per group.  

Assign one student in each group as the recorder with all groups' members providing ideas and 

content equally. Have students also identify one group member as the presenter to summarize the 

group's conclusion for the class.  The teacher should identify to the groups that they are to 

brainstorm communication and relationship building strategies to help Spokane continue to move 

forward most efficiently in their event security policy creation and implementation.  

Foster a classroom culture of inclusion and acceptance during this period.  Give time 

warnings as the clock progresses to help students to stay on task and to reach their conclusions in 

time. 

Step 5: Defending the Conclusion.  The teacher should bring the class back into a plenary setting, 

and the designated spokesperson from each group should explain their group’s findings in a 2–5- 

 

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Events and Tourism Review Vol. 4 No. 1 (2021), 43-56, DOI: 10.18060/25307                                                                                                  

               Copyright © 2021 Angela Senter, Mark Beattie and Demi Deng 

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. 

 

 

minute quick pitch.  Key points from each group could be captured on the board to see if aggregate  

themes emerge. 

Step 6: Closing the Case.  The instructor should help the class draw parallels between the 

information provided in the case and the communication recommendations pitched from each group.  

The list of key points made during the presentation should show clear themes.  Ideas presented that 

deviated from the themes should be explored for validity and inclusion as “out of the box” thinking 

should be encouraged.  Encourage the class to come up with a 3 or 4 sentence recommendation for 

the City of Spokane in how best to proceed with creating effective large event security policies in 

the future. 

Supporting Material 

Downtown Spokane Partnership https://downtownspokane.org/  

Spokane Arena https://www.spokanearena.com/ 

Spokane Convention Center https://www.spokanecenter.com 

Spokane Parks and Recreation https://my.spokanecity.org/parksrec/ 

Spokane Regional Health District https://srhd.org/ 

Bloomsday https://www.bloomsdayrun.org/ 

Hoopfest https://www.spokanehoopfest.net/ 

Pig out in the Park https://pigoutinthepark.com/  

Visit Spokane https://www.visitspokane.com 

 

 

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Events and Tourism Review Vol. 4 No. 1 (2021), 43-56, DOI: 10.18060/25307                                                                                                  

               Copyright © 2021 Angela Senter, Mark Beattie and Demi Deng 

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. 

 

 

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