Season planning playbook
A 12-week timeline from the first committee meeting to the final report.
For whole committee About 25 minutes
How to use this playbook#
A festival season has a predictable rhythm. This playbook lays it out week by week so nothing is left to the last weekend. Adjust the timings to your festival's size; a small Diwali Mela can compress the first two phases.
12–9 weeks before: decide#
Owner: Admins
- Confirm dates and venue; create the season in Mandali as a draft
- Agree committee roles and invite everyone with the right role
- Agree a budget by category (food, decoration, venue, priest, cultural program)
- Set community type, time zone and currency in Settings
8–6 weeks before: set up#
Owner: Managers
- Add every festival day with times, venue and address
- Agree the meal plan and capacity with the caterer; create meal slots
- Agree ticket types and prices; create them with quantities and sales dates
- Activate the season
6–2 weeks before: sell#
Owner: Managers and Treasurers
- Announce RSVPs and ticket sales to the community
- Review meal numbers weekly and adjust capacity with the caterer
- Treasurer reviews the audit log weekly for price changes
- Brief volunteers using the Volunteer quick start
Order food from real numbers
Give the caterer your final numbers per meal and dietary option a few days before each day, not a single guess for the whole festival.
Festival week: run#
Owner: Everyone
- Pause meals or tickets that sell out
- Volunteers know the schedule and who to escalate to
- Cash and Zelle taken at the door are recorded in the ledger the same day
1–4 weeks after: close#
Owner: Treasurers and Admins
- All payments, refunds and expenses recorded
- Treasurer closes the season
- Committee reviews what to change for next year while it's fresh
- Start the handover with the Committee handover checklist