Office Christmas party plan
Did someone mention the C word? When we wrote this there were precisely 88 days till Christmas. Scary eh! Seems like only yesterday we were cleaning away the tinsel and popping the decoration box back in the cupboard.
But no sooner than you can say jingle bells, this year’s festive season will be upon us, and (if it’s your job this year) you’ll be starting to thinking about that Christmas party. So here is our list of must do steps to ensure the office bash goes off without a hitch.
1. Set a date
May seem like a no brainer, but Christmas is a busy period and diaries fill up very quickly, even months in advance. Get in early and put the date in the corporate diary so everyone can keep it free.
2. Find out the budget
Companies vary in how much they are willing to contribute, from those that agree to pay for food only, to others that are prepared to cover the whole bill. Establish before anything else what you have to spend as this will help with plans going forward and manage expectations.
3. Decide upon the type of party you are arranging
Company Christmas parties come in all shapes and sizes and can largely be based on size. These days there are many ‘off the shelf’ packages where establishments sort everything for you from food to entertainment, where you join other likeminded businesses. Then there’s the meal followed by the pub crawl, or you may decide upon an activity or event. Finally, you have the totally bespoke party where everything is organised from scratch. Once this has been decided, you can move on to plans.
4. Find a venue
Hopefully the first few steps have narrowed this down for you, meaning you can focus on viable venues and find out what is and isn’t available. Try to keep it as local as you can to avoid too much travel before, during and after (within reason as everyone may not live nearby). Finding somewhere with access to public transport and hotels may also be a consideration if your workforce commutes distances.
5. Feed them and they will come
Food is important (and not just to us). Everyone likes nice food at Christmas and full tummies can also help if people want to get into the Christmas spirit[s]! Food can be themed along with the party if that’s the route you’ve gone down, and many places do offer alternatives to turkey. We suggest you make sure you find food that works for you, your theme and the venue you have chosen. A badly done turkey dinner is worse than no turkey at all, so if you’re looking for traditional, perhaps don’t pick a sushi restaurant offering it as an extra.
6. Sort the drinks
If you’re not heading out on a bar crawl, then make sure you’ve thought about drinks for the occasion. Consider welcome drinks, something to go with the food, plenty of choice for the non-drinkers and what and how much will be available during the event. If you’re doing something on site, then there are mobile bars available for hire as well as caterers that can sort this side of your party for you along with the food.
7. Organise the entertainment
There is so much available for parties these days. From magicians to caricaturists, virtual reality companies to games hire – there are no shortage of options. But even the good old disco needs to be booked and sorted. Find out what you can do at the venue you have. Go for recommendations and make sure there is plenty of time to set up. Good entertainment can help keep the party flowing and prevent awkward office party moments.
8. Make sure everyone can get home
Staff safety is important. Although you can’t babysit everyone, you can provide plenty of taxi numbers and details of public transport on the night. It may be you are able to provide a mini bus or your own drop off and pick up services. If budgets allow, consider pre-booking cabs. Whichever way you go, the more options on hand will mean there is less likelihood of anyone bunking down unnoticed in a cloakroom somewhere.
Whatever you decide to do though, planning is the key, and the more help you can get means the more time you have to concentrate on the areas you need to cover. Delegation is a big part of your job as organiser, so do this where you can.
Here at Parties to Go we have organised and catered many corporate events and can work with you to achieve whatever it is you want. From our mobile bar to our many trusted suppliers to our fantastic staff, we can provide everything you need for the perfect Christmas party. If you’d like to know more, look at menu options or just get an idea of what you can do, take a look at our Christmas page or give Carole a call on 0208 947 5337 and start planning now. Believe us, those 88 days will fly by quicker than Santa and Rudolph on Christmas Eve.
