The Check-In Desk Is the Easiest Place to Fix Your Staffing Shortage

In this article, we'll cover:

• Why the event staffing shortage hits check-in hardest
• How self-service kiosks shrink the headcount you need on site
• Why pre-printing badges quietly costs you hours of labor
• How to make the case to your operations lead

The Check-In Desk Is the Easiest Place to Fix Your Staffing Shortage

Here's the uncomfortable truth heading into your next event: the people you need at the registration desk may not exist to hire. According to the Event Industry Council's 2025 Staffing Outlook, 89% of event professionals say staffing shortages have directly impacted their ability to deliver events. That's not a niche problem. That's nearly everyone. And it isn't just about warm bodies. More than 60% of planners report struggling to find qualified staff. So you're not only short on people, you're short on the reliable, trained people who can run a check-in line without creating a bottleneck. When that gap shows up, attendees feel it first: inexperienced or missing front-of-house staff is one of the top drivers of a poor arrival experience. So what do you do when the labor market simply won't cooperate? You stop trying to fill every role, and start removing the ones you can't fill.  

1. Understand Where Your Labor Actually Goes

Walk through a typical event morning and count the heads. The single biggest concentration of staff usually sits in one spot: the registration and check-in desk. Greeters, line managers, badge printers, the person fixing the misspelled name, the runner grabbing more lanyards. Check-in is a labor sinkhole, and it all happens in a compressed, high-stress window. That concentration is exactly why it's the smartest place to automate. You're not shaving a person here and there across the venue. You're targeting the one moment that demands the most hands at once, which is also the moment you're least likely to fully staff. If you've already been fighting this battle, our guide to reducing check-in lines without adding more staff covers the workflow side in more depth.  

2. Let Attendees Check Themselves In

Self-service kiosks flip the math entirely. Instead of one staffer processing one attendee at a time, you set up a bank of kiosks and let people check themselves in: search their name, confirm their details, and move on. One staffer can now oversee a whole row of check-in kiosks instead of manually working a single line. The result: a check-in operation that used to need six people can often run smoothly with two. You're not asking your existing team to work harder or hire faster. You're redesigning the process so it needs fewer people by default.

⚡ Practical Advice: Place kiosks in a wide, open area with clear signage and a single floating staffer to help anyone who gets stuck. The goal is flow, not a help desk. One confident "just tap your name here" from a roaming greeter keeps the whole bank moving.

 

3. Print Badges the Moment They're Needed

Pre-printing badges is a staffing trap disguised as preparation. Someone has to print hundreds of them, alphabetize them, staff the pickup tables, and then handle the inevitable no-shows, walk-ins, and typos by hand. It's hours of labor before the doors even open. On-demand badge printing erases all of it. The attendee checks in at a kiosk and their badge prints instantly, on the spot, with the correct name and title every time. No alphabetized tables, no pre-print marathon, no staffer stationed to hunt through a box of leftovers. Walk-ins are handled the same way as everyone else, which means you don't need a separate problem desk staffed to deal with exceptions. Top event technology providers, like Expo Pass, connect event registration software directly to check-in and badge printing, so the same self-service flow that checks someone in also prints their badge in seconds.

💡 Pro tip: The roles you automate away don't have to disappear. Redeploy that labor to the high-touch moments that genuinely need a human: VIP greeting, sponsor activations, or troubleshooting. Automation lets your scarce, qualified staff go where they add the most value.

 

4. Reframe the Pitch for the Operations Lead

If you're the one making the case internally, know your audience. The experience lead cares about the attendee journey. But the operations lead is the one drowning in the staffing plan: the open shifts, the no-call-no-shows, the overtime budget. For that person, self-service check-in isn't an experience upgrade. It's a staffing solution. It's the answer to "how do we run this event when we're three people short on the floor plan?" Same product, different motivation. You're not selling a better front desk, you're selling fewer roles to fill in the first place. When you frame it that way, the budget conversation changes too. Kiosk and badge printing costs sit against a very real, very current line item: the temp agency invoice, the overtime hours, and the cost of an under-staffed morning that nobody wants to repeat.

Fun fact: The registration desk is often the only part of an event where you can cut required headcount by more than half without an attendee ever noticing a downgrade. If anything, self-service lines move faster.

 

Final Takeaway

The staffing shortage isn't going to resolve itself in time for your next event. 89% of the industry is telling you that plainly. The organizers who stay calm aren't the ones who found a secret pool of labor. They're the ones who stopped needing it at the check-in desk. Self-service kiosks and on-demand badge printing don't just speed up your lines, they quietly eliminate the exact roles you can't hire for. When you can't add people, subtract the need for them, and start with the most labor-hungry moment of your event.  

Frequently Asked Questions

How many staff can self-service check-in actually save?

It varies by event size, but a check-in operation that traditionally needs five or six staff can often run with one or two overseeing a bank of kiosks. The savings scale with your attendee count: the bigger the event, the more labor you reclaim.

Won't older or less tech-savvy attendees struggle with kiosks?

Rarely, if the setup is simple. A clear "search your name and tap" flow plus one floating greeter handles almost every case. Most attendees prefer skipping a line to waiting for a staffer, regardless of age.

Do I still need staff at check-in at all?

Yes, but far fewer, and in a different role. Instead of manually processing each person, your remaining staff float, troubleshoot, and handle exceptions. You're shifting from a labor-heavy assembly line to light supervision.

What about walk-ins and last-minute registrations?

On-demand badge printing handles them the same as pre-registered attendees. A walk-in registers or is added on the spot, checks in at a kiosk, and their badge prints instantly. No separate staffed desk required.

Is this only worth it for large events?

No. Even smaller events benefit, because the staffing shortage hits everyone. If you're struggling to fully staff a 200-person event, cutting your check-in labor need in half is just as meaningful as it is at a 5,000-person conference.