Posted by LO on 8/17/2018 to
Corporate events are vital to the unity and success of the workplace; generally occurring a few times a year, they provide a time for all employees to come together and reestablish their understanding of the work they're doing, as well as offer an opportunity (or several) to learn something new.
The trick to a successful corporate event lies in employee engagement: how can you keep a room full of dozens, sometimes hundreds, of people interested and involved for an entire day? The simple answer exists in a good event planner -- over 61% of organizers plan business events, so you need to find one that knows and understands the following event secrets that will keep your employees hooked.
Good Eats
Feed them often and feed them well. One of the most misunderstood aspects of event planning is the timing of food and its impact: many employers or planners believe that serving lunch or dinner too soon will result in a sleepy and sedated crowd and, while you will see sleepiness if you wait too long and gorge them all at once, your employees are much more likely to suffer from distraction due to hunger leading up to that point. The solution to both of these problems is to offer food during the entire event, with a smaller portioned meal somewhere in the middle to prevent food comas. Additionally, by providing high quality food and snacks rather than fatty, sugary treats that will cause their blood sugar to drop, you can feed your employees' minds as much as their bellies.
Dazzling Decorations
While you don't want to go too far and distract your employees with dramatic materials, it's definitely important to break up the monotony. You've just crammed a crowd of people into a single room and asked them to spend eight full hours there -- if your decorations are too drab and boring, they could become a major hindrance. Be sure to catch -- and more importantly, hold -- your employees' attention with some colorful table skirts and table skirt clips, or splurge on some red ceiling drapes to set the background.
Quality doesn't have to mean bright colors; if bold hues aren't your style, you can change the type of fabric. Velour drapes would make perfect entrance pieces (honestly, who doesn't love the softness of velour drapes), and satin drapery sets a simply yet classy and refined attitude for the room.
Corporate events take a lot of time, money, and effort to put together. Make sure you incorporate these secrets and your employees will be sure to remember theirs -- from the gourmet food to the velour drapes -- for years to come.