If an event management system or component within an event management system fails, events generated by systems and applications monitored by the event management system may not be processed or analyzed. As a result, the performance and health of the systems and applications may be unknown. To reduce the impact of a failure, an event management system can include at least two event managers: a primary event manager and one or more standby event managers. The standby event managers are configured to handle event processing tasks upon a failure of the primary event manager. To be prepared for a failure of the primary event manager, the standby event manager receives state data and copies of events. After determining that the primary event manager has failed, the standby event manager can begin processing events.