Creating an office party can be a stressful task. Parties can occur for a variety of reasons, such as rewarding staff for their hard work, celebrating company milestones, or popular seasonal celebrations like Christmas. Whatever the reason for your office party, creating the best one aids in boosting employee morale and sets the tone for the work environment.
An office party is a great opportunity for networking and socializing, giving employees the chance to create friendships and mingle. But how do you create the best office party? Read this blog to find out and throw your staff an epic party they deserve!
Plan early
To be able to create the best office party, you must start planning and preparations early. This is particularly important if the party is for Christmas due to every other company having a party too. Doing this ensures you provide your staff with a great event while having time to gather the supplies you need in time for the date. Plus, if you are booking a venue, it gives you a chance to compare and confirm a place.
Within the planning stage, you need to have a specific date set so you can inform your staff and work towards that end goal.
Budget
With any party comes cost, so it is important to decide how much you want to spend. This helps you determine what the party will involve and whether it will take place outside the office or within it.
Once you have decided on your budget, it is vital to stick to it. This avoids any problems later on if you properly break down the costs of everything needed. Ensure to keep a written record of everything you spend and need to spend. To make this easier and for you to be organized, you can use a party budget template to break down your costs.
Choose a venue
Once a budget is set and you are tracking it, you can determine the venue you need for the party. This could be a small space outside of the office, a grand venue for a larger event, or it could take place within your office.
Whichever venue you need and can afford, it is vital to ensure correct facilities are set up or readily available to accommodate everyone. These include toilets for everyone, accessible access to the building, food and refreshments, and accessible entertainment spaces. You also need to consider smoking areas to accommodate staff who smoke. Make sure to check if the venue, or your office, has a suitable smoking shelter outdoors and if there isn’t one, consider putting one in place or finding an area that can be used to smoke.
Order food and drinks before
To make sure you have enough food and drink facilities in place for the day, it is imperative to order food and drink before the day. If you are choosing a venue outside of the office for the party, check their facilities for food and drink and order with them when booking the venue. If the party is occurring in the office, order a variety of food and drink choices to offer staff.
Work out how much food and drink you need and how much budget you have to spend. This ensures that you offer plenty, and it doesn’t run out. You could create a delicious buffet and let your staff chip in with bringing something, you could hire a caterer to do a tasty spread or order a local takeaway such as pizza. Whichever you choose, make sure to keep your staff in the loop and take note of any dietary requirements.
Think of activities to do
Activities make an office party fun and engaging for everyone. Think of a range of activities you could do and what your staff will enjoy. To help you, we have some activity ideas.
Games
Many employees will enjoy throwing themselves into various games, so having a mixture of games to play is a great way to create the best office party. Games allow staff to socialize with each other and have lots of fun going head-to-head with each other. Some games you could include are bingo, charades, two truths one lie, and Twister.
Murder mystery
Combine playing games and dressing up by holding a murder mystery theme for your office party. Employees can put themselves to the test as they try to work out who’s done it while having a laugh together.
Award ceremony
A great activity to reward your staff is holding an award ceremony. This allows everyone to celebrate each other’s achievements while making your employees feel special and proud of themselves.
Karaoke and talent show
A fantastic office party activity, that everyone will love, is karaoke or a talent show. This gives your staff the opportunity to bond together through laughter and fun. A talent show allows them to show off their hidden talents too and everyone always has fun with karaoke, even if they don’t join in. Make sure no one is pressured to get involved though to keep everyone happy and having a good time.
Make a playlist
An office party is never complete without some tunes that everyone loves. Create a playlist before the party with a mixture of genres and eras of music. Get your employees involved to ensure you have a bit of what everyone likes on there, so everyone can get up and dance!
Creating the best office party is all about making sure your staff has a good time and can blow off some steam. Wherever you have the party, make sure the vibe is relaxed and fun and that everyone is catered for with the facilities needed. Try out these strategies to keep your planning organized and achieve the perfect office party.
