Certified Meeting Professional (CMP) Practice Exam

What should be regularly reviewed to ensure budget adherence throughout the event planning process?

1. Marketing collateral

2. Master account

3. Vendor contracts

4. Staff schedules

The correct answer is: Master account

Regularly reviewing the master account is crucial for ensuring budget adherence throughout the event planning process. The master account serves as the overarching financial document that tracks all income and expenses related to the event. By maintaining an updated master account, event planners can monitor expenditures against the allocated budget, identify any discrepancies, and make necessary adjustments in real-time. This proactive approach allows for better financial management and can help to prevent overspending or cost overruns, which can significantly impact the overall success and profitability of the event. While marketing collateral, vendor contracts, and staff schedules are important aspects of event planning, they do not directly relate to the tracking and management of the overall budget. Marketing collateral focuses on promotion, vendor contracts outline the terms of service with suppliers, and staff schedules organize personnel duties. Although these elements can have budget implications, the master account is specifically designed for the continuous assessment of financial performance, making it the primary tool for ensuring budget compliance.