Tips For Planning A Corporate Christmas Party

It’s that time of year already when thoughts turn to the office Christmas do. After the muted celebrations last year, many colleagues will be looking forward to the chance to gather in a welcoming atmosphere and really enjoy themselves. Here are some tips to help make it a fun and memorable occasion.

Book the venue early

Corporate parties take a lot of advanced planning, and that starts with securing the venue early. Remember there will be lots of organisations out there with the same idea, so the sooner the better! While it might seem easy to simply hold the event in your office building and order in some catering, most staff will appreciate a complete change of scene.

If you are struggling to come up with a venue, ask around and find out what most people would prefer in terms of location, size, facilities, and so on. It doesn’t need to be extravagant; venues that look uninspiring in the daytime can really come to life when decorated with lights, streamers, and a few novelties such as a deluxe photo booth hire.

Pick the right date

Don’t expect your colleagues to give up their weekend evenings to attend a work event. An afternoon or weekday evening date is best, depending on whether colleagues will be asked to bring a plus-one. Ideally it should be held on the last day before the office closes for the holiday season, as people will find it difficult to settle back into work the next day.

If all else fails, consider a January event, when everyone will need something to look forward to in the long gloomy winter months, and prices for venue hire, catering, and so on will be much cheaper.

Organise some icebreakers

If you have a larger office, you don’t want everyone to stick to the team they work with every day at the event. Arrange a few games and activities that will encourage colleagues to mingle and talk to people they wouldn’t normally.

Team-building exercises will help people to bond as well as have fun. It doesn’t have to be anything elaborate; a quiz or charades game should do the trick! Themed parties are also really popular now, as a way to get everyone to shed their everyday selves and dress up, such as a roaring 20s, carnival, or movie theme.

Have some entertainment

At the very least, you will need to have some sort of playlist arranged before the event, as a party without music would be unthinkable. The partygoers will be keen to take photos to upload to their social media, so you want to make sure that everyone is happy and has something to talk about.

If you want something more memorable than a disco, consider hiring a professional entertainer, such as a magician or stand-up comedian.

Have plenty of food and drink

Make sure you organise some decent catering, or the event might be remembered for all the wrong reasons! Skimpy catering will not help to boost staff morale or help them to think well of the company, so think carefully about how much booze and food you need, and allocate a generous budget!