Trying to figure out the tools and software to manage your event is a great way to give yourself a headache. There are a lot of options out there, and not all of them are the right fit for your needs.

Fortunately, the Event Manager Blog has just released the latest edition of its Event Management Software Guide, which offers ways to compare event-planning tools and gives guidelines for what event planners should expect.

One surprising finding in its research: More than half (53 percent) of the surveyed event planners, marketing agencies, C-level executives, and independent planners don’t use event management software at all.

“While this is a shocking statistic compared to other industries, it signals a problem with the complexity of some of the platforms out there,” the blog’s Julius Solaris writes. “They constitute more of an issue than a solution. A spreadsheet will be the preferred solution in most instances, regardless of the complexity of the event.”

The newly released 2018 edition of the guide includes an interactive segment that allows users to filter out event tools based on their specific needs—whether that’s a new app or a registration platform.

A Mind Toward Data

Focus on these 3 areas when instilling an analytical mindset across your organization. https://t.co/NrAFULSdVx #assnchat

— AssociationAnalytics (@AssocAnalytics) January 29, 2018

How can you get your employees and leaders to think about your associations’s work in terms of data? Over at Association Analytics, Debbie King offers up a three-step process for shaping an “analytical mindset” at your organization. Are you succeeding at implementing the necessary steps? Check the blog post to find out.

Other Links of Note

What’s a megatrend, and how could it reshape your organization’s decision making? National Fluid Power Association President and CEO Eric Lanke breaks it down in a blog post.

A new take on your inbox. The buzzy email tool Astro (for Android, iOS, and Mac) just got a new iteration that includes a built-in calendar. The Verge has the scoop.

Bill Gates has a new favorite book. Read up on why the bookworm billionaire considers Steven Pinker’s Enlightenment Now a new high watermark.

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