A Little Extra Holiday Help for Your Company Party

Like all event planning projects, planning holiday parties and projects around the office should focus on the attendees. Organizing annual office holiday soirées should be fun, memorable and bring everyone together for the special gift of bonding and making everlasting team-building memories to share into the New Year. The best way to plan an office party? Form a committee of planners and a point of contact person within that committee for your vendors. Rather than relying on your corporate event planner to take on all of the fun alone, get everyone in the spirit of celebration.

Having a planning group strategize on ways to make the holiday gathering fun for your company will ensure a good time for everyone.

The Early Bird Plans the Best Party

We’ve said it before… start your planning early. We recommend October if you plan on a December event or November for a January one. This gives your planning team ample time to visit venues, meet with your caterer, plan a menu everyone will love, and select other vendors should you need them. It takes time to scout event locations, prepare a budget and make decisions. Even more so if your planning team cannot reach a decision. You’ll want to start early to get a great date and a great venue!

Spice Up Your Menu

Plan a menu that will please the palate of most of your guests, and take advantage of this time to offer a menu that you won’t have at the typical catered business meeting. It’s a special time of year to celebrate all of the successes your company has had throughout the year and a great time to get your company excited about what is to come. Start with a memorable meal! Our 2015 holiday menu has some wonderful options that we do not offer throughout the regular year.

Incorporate a Charitable Cause

The holiday season is not the only time of year organizations give back, but it is a wonderful time to be able to get together with your peers and choose an extra cause to support. Work together to find local charitable organizations in need of volunteers, food drives you can donate to, or families who have a wish list this season you can lend a hand to. Giving back is a great way to involve everyone from your organization, and be reminded of what’s really important this time of year.

Lights, Lights and More Lights!

Usually business luncheons are a white or black standard linen with white or black standard napkins. Take advantage of the season to add some flair to your event space. Choose a colored linen and simply elegant centerpieces to brighten up the event space with cheer. Many event spaces will even have their own holiday décor out for the season that helps add a special touch. Montage, Kahn’s Catering’s Northside event venue, has Christmas trees and other holiday décor throughout our lobby and building during the holiday season.

Do Something Fun!

Incorporate fun activities into your evening such as a white elephant gift exchange or by using a venue with great holiday fun for everyone. For example, Eitlejorg offers Jinglerails throughout the holiday season. Also, our other exclusive museum venues have special programs that can be added to your event as well.

Enjoy the Moment

Besides the time you spend leading up to the holidays as a team, be sure to create a fun moment together offsite. This can be a holiday party at an event venue with a DJ and food, or a well thought out cocktail party with your co-workers and their spouses. There are so many ways to spend time together during the holiday season, but be sure to stop and enjoy the moments you have together.

Always keep in mind everyone in the office when planning holiday activities, and know there are so many fun ideas to choose from to make this season enjoyable for everyone. Take photos to look back on, and for your social media sites! You will want to capture those great memories you make as a team!