Business is going great. Costs are minimized, sales have never been higher, and all departments are functioning like a well-oiled machine. As a result, you have decided to reward your employees with a party.
Now office parties and corporate events don’t have the best reputation. If The Office TV show has taught the world anything, it’s that they can often be uncomfortable, awkward, and even inappropriate. That’s why a large dose of planning is required.
Ultimately, you want to create an environment where work stays at work, and employees can have fun and interact as friends. For help with achieving this deceptively tricky objective, this guide is here with several tips for planning the ultimate company event for your employees.
Start with plenty of time in reserve
There’s no rushing when it comes to planning a memorable company event. You need to set aside plenty of time – preferably two months at least – to ensure you can fit in everything you need to do.
As the following elements help demonstrate, there are many points you need to consider when throwing a bash for your employees that won’t disappoint. If you leave it too late, you can miss out on everything from reservations with your venue of choice to enlisting the best DJ in town.
Pick a purpose for the event
The opening paragraph of this guide used the example of rewarding your employees for their hard work. However, this isn’t the only purpose for deciding to go with a company event. There are various reasons why you might opt for such an occasion, including:
• A team bonding exercise
• The launch of a new product
• Helping with professional development
• Celebrating the achievements of an employee
Get an accurate headcount
This is a simple point, admittedly, but it doesn’t make it any less important. The good news is that it is easy to gain a headcount for the event. You’re not sending out invitations all over the place and waiting for responses. This is your employees, the people that are in the office each day and can reply to your event invitation immediately.
The situation does get a little more complicated if your employees are allowed to bring guests. Yet you need to get an accurate headcount for one main reason: budget.
Decide on a budget
A budget is a necessity when planning out an event. To ensure the budget is a viable one, work with the finance department to gain a realistic total. You may want to throw the most outlandish party possible, but you have to stay somewhat conservative and not blow your company’s entire budget in general!
The event goal will be a big decider in the overall cost. For instance, a casual company picnic isn’t going to cost much in comparison to going with a red carpet gala. When deciding your budget, here are a few of the main items that need to be covered:
• Venue rental
• Equipment rental
• Food and beverage
• Permits/additional insurance
• Staffing
• Vendors for activities
• Set up and cleanup
Get away from the office
Okay, simply remaining in your business office is the most convenient option – yet it’s not necessarily the right option. In fact, it is highly recommended that you get away from the office for your event. There are a few reasons why this is the case.
For a start, remaining within the office can make your employees feel like they’re still on the job – which isn’t indicative for creating an atmosphere where they can unwind and interact with their colleagues in a relaxed, work-free way. Additionally, the office might be too cramped for completing the activities you have planned with the event.
Go big with the venue
So you’re not staying in the office. That has been decided. Now you need to figure out where to take your event. The good news is you have a virtually endless selection of venues. This can range from a conference room in a hotel to a public park.
If you want to truly go all out, however, think about going extravagant with the venue. One of the best examples in that regard is to hire a corporate yacht. When initially contemplating the costs for a corporate yacht party, you might believe it’s out of your price range. However, it’s more affordable than you may think – and you may even be able to get all-inclusive food and drink thrown in with the deal.
So why would you go for a yacht party? Well, there isn’t a much better way to treat your employees than to give them a special million-dollar experience. It’s unique and the perfect option for having an unforgettable, lavish celebration.
When evaluating potential venues, these are some aspects to keep in mind:
• Venue capacity
• Reservation requirements. This could be a deposit or proof of insurance
• The distance between your office and the venue
• Parking availability
• Provided equipment and facilities
Plan the right activities
You can have a perfectly valid reason for the event. You can select the perfect venue. However, there’s one aspect that sets your event apart from being good to truly memorable: the activities you select.
Again, you’re only limited by your creativity in terms of the activities you choose. However, you’ll want to pay careful attention to how they fit in with your event’s overall goal. In an ideal world, you’ll want to go with a mixture of activities that appeal to different personality types. For example, some people will be more receptive to joining in with games than others, while others might prefer to simply relax and listen to live music.
You also want to take care in the sense you don’t want to plan too much or too little. If the event’s going to last for, say, six hours, you may want to book more than just a DJ. You could think about hiring multiple entertainers to keep your employees, well, entertained throughout the festivities. Comedians, magicians, dancers, special guest speakers – the possibilities are endless.
Book the services you require
Once you have decided on the entertainment and logistics of the event, the next step is to book them as soon as possible. You certainly don’t want to leave this aspect to the last minute; otherwise, you’ll be scrambling to find replacements – and that’s never a good sign if you want to bring in the best people for the job.
Aside from entertainment, there are essential tasks that need to be covered by extra staff members. Those you may need to hire include:
• Bartenders
• Staffers to set up the event
• Furniture and equipment delivery
• Security
• Photographer
Certain venues will provide staff members as part of the package. Also, depending on the event you’re running, there are some services which you won’t require.
Send out reminders
The event is all organized. You’ve hired the venue and booked the services you need. Now it’s all about reminding your employees about the event! For this, you can simply send out a reminder to each employee via email. When doing this, ensure you include the time for the event, venue location, and any rules.
Have fun!
When you have spent months planning an event, it can be tricky trying to simply relax and have fun. You’ll want to make sure everything goes perfectly – and this can cause unnecessary stress for you.
It’s important to remember that not everything is likely to hit the mark with your event, and that’s fine. Just remember to enjoy yourself and be proud of the event you have put on!
For Family health insurance plans : https://www.careinsurance.com/health-insurance/family-health-insurance
