Contract administration and commercial boundaries
Event subcontract approval process
On the day, a crew arrives wearing another company's shirts, and nobody on your side knew the supplier had subcontracted the work.
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The short answer
Approval of subcontracting works as three steps: the supplier discloses what it intends to subcontract and to whom, a named person on your side approves or declines, and the decision goes into a subcontractor register.
Whether an agreement permits subcontracting, and who is responsible if a subcontractor fails, are questions for your legal adviser. The process makes sure you know who is doing what.
What to ask the supplier up front
- Which parts of the work will be done by the supplier's own staff, and which by others?
- Who are the subcontractors, and what will each do?
- Where will they work and on which dates?
- Who at the supplier manages them, and who will be the contact on site?
- Will any of them handle delegate data or access restricted areas? If so, flag it for your privacy and venue contacts.
The approval route
| Step | Who | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| Disclosure | Supplier | Completes a disclosure with each subcontractor, scope, dates and site contact. |
| Review | Project coordinator | Checks against the scope, schedule and any criteria agreed earlier, such as the supplier checks in supplier subcontractor disclosure. |
| Decision | Named approver | Approves, approves with conditions or declines, in writing. |
| Record | Project coordinator | Enters the decision in the subcontractor register. |
| Change | Either side | Any later change in subcontractor goes back through the same steps. |
Conditions you might attach
- Named on-site contact who is reachable throughout.
- Subcontractor staff identified on arrival, as the venue requires.
- Notice before any further change of subcontractor.
- Supplier remains the contact for all instructions and invoices.
- Questions on insurance or liability are put to your adviser, not decided here. See also the insurance questions page.
Keeping the register current
- Add each approved subcontractor with scope, dates, approver and conditions.
- Review the register at each milestone and one week before the event.
- Check invoices against it. Use the invoice reconciliation worksheet to flag billing from parties you have not approved.
- If an unapproved subcontractor appears, record it and ask the supplier to submit a disclosure, then take the facts to your adviser if a clause is in question.
Worked example · Fictional example
Staging crew subcontracted without notice
Fictional organisation and figures, for illustration only.
A fictional industry body signs with an AV supplier for a one-day forum. Two weeks before, the supplier mentions casually that lighting will be done by a partner company.
The coordinator asks for a disclosure: the partner's name, scope, dates and site contact. The treasurer approves with conditions that the partner's lead be on site throughout and that invoices remain with the AV supplier. The register records both. The legal adviser is asked one question about whether the agreement addresses subcontracting, with the clause attached.
Use this yourself
Subcontractor disclosure and approval register
One row per subcontractor. Approval is recorded only by the named approver.
| Supplier | Subcontractor | Scope | Dates and place | Site contact | Handles data or restricted areas? | Approver | Decision and conditions | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yes / No | Approved / with conditions / declined | |||||||
| Yes / No | Approved / with conditions / declined |
Handle it in-house, or bring in help?
Your team can usually handle this when
- One or two suppliers and a simple scope.
- The supplier already shares crew details early.
- The venue handles site access and ID checks.
Outside planning help earns its fee when
- Several suppliers each use partners or freelancers.
- Delegate data or restricted venue areas are involved.
- Nobody is clear who may approve a subcontractor on your side.
Need subcontracting visible across suppliers?
A conference project lead can collect disclosures from each supplier, route them to your named approver, keep the register and check it against site access lists and invoices. Questions on responsibility and cover go to your legal adviser.
Questions organisers ask
Does approving a subcontractor change who is responsible?
Whether it does depends on the agreement, which is a question for your legal adviser. The register records who was approved, by whom and on what conditions.
Should every freelancer be disclosed?
Ask suppliers to disclose anyone who will deliver a part of the work you are paying for. Agree in advance whether routine freelance crew count.
When should disclosure be requested?
At quotation stage, and again whenever the supplier's plan changes. Late disclosure leaves little room to review.
Related resources
Content record: Draft. Written from the cited sources and checked by automated rules; not yet independently reviewed.