[OSGeo-Conf] Questions for FOSS4G 2017 bidders

[Dave McIlhagga]

Hi Steven,

Thank you for the detailed questions, our responses are provided in-line below.

Thanks,
Dave




> On Oct 29, 2015, at 3:36 PM, Steven Feldman <shfeldman at gmail.com> wrote:
> 
> Ottawa
> The financial element of your proposal (delegate rates, sponsorship, qualifications to estimates) is very similar to that provided by Philadelphia. Can you confirm whether these estimates have been prepared by the LOC or by your PCO?

OTTAWA-LoC: The estimates were prepared by our team relying heavily on the experience of our PCO. We engaged LocationTech as our PCO specifically because we don’t have the current experience of running a large open source event, so we feel their estimates are going to be far more reliable than anything we could come up with on our own. Presumably the Philadelphia group has a similar perspective, and as a consequence the financial elements would look quite similar. Of course local costs are unique for things like the convention centre, hotel, etc..


> Your sponsorship estimates are ambitious, what proportion is committed or highly likely (i.e you have had informal discussions with the sponsor budget holder)?

OTTAWA-LoC: Our sponsorship targets are ones that we worked with our PCO to determine and are consistent with their more regional experiences with FOSS4G NA 2015 and 2016. Given this, the direct access the PCO provides to LocationTech members who are key prospective sponsors, the PCO and LoC member’s strong industry connections to open source friendly organizations, and our commitment  to putting on an event with a strong business-friendly program, our sponsorship estimates should be reliable.


> Do you require a guarantee from OSGeo? If so please provide details.

OTTAWA-LoC: No OSGeo guarantee is required. The PCO will provide seed financing, and cover any loss.


> What mix of delegate types (corporates, non-corporates, students etc) is your income based upon?

OTTAWA-LoC: Per the PCO’s estimates from recent north american experience - 64% pay full access, 8% student, 4% non-corporate, 10% sessions only, 15% workshop only.


> Can you confirm that your plan is to return $75k to OSGeo if you achieve 750 delegates

OTTAWA-LoC: This is our baseline estimate.


> What is your break even level?

OTTAWA-LoC: Break even is approximately 566 people. If necessary, adjustments could be made to reduce discretionary expenses with a revised budget to reduce this number. We feel it is highly unlikely we’d need to do so.


> Can you provide an estimate of the loss per delegate below your break-even level

OTTAWA-LoC: The source of loss (low sponsorship vs. low attendance) would impact this number, and ultimately would be tied to actual number of attendees so it is not really possible to provide a figure for this. Regardless, from an OSGeo perspective, this risk is a non-factor given the PCO is committed to taking responsibility for any losses.


> Please detail the PCO fee structure

OTTAWA-LoC: In addition to guaranteeing the event will not incur a loss to OSGeo, the PCO has agreed to fix their fee at $90,000 - providing us with some welcome certainty in an effort of this scale. Like any project of this nature, at this point there is a degree of uncertainty on the effort that will be required to complete each of the activities required to make this a successful event.  The following are a very rough approximation of where anticipated effort might land. We benefit heavily from re-use of systems and procedures our PCO uses for other conferences such as FOSS4G NA and EclipseCon.

Conference logistics, coordination, misc $55K
Business development and work with sponsors $25K
IT systems, graphics design, registration system, session management system, etc. $10K



Let us know if there is any further clarification we can provide.

Thanks,

Dave



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