Corporate parties might seem intimidating, but with careful planning and good organisation, they aren’t as difficult to organise as you might think.
When planning a corporate party, try not to do it on your own; put together an event team to help before and during the event, and start planning as soon as possible as confirming venues, guests, etc. takes time.
Key questions
Parties can say a lot about a company so think about the type of party you want to host. Things to consider are:
• When: day, evening
• Where: a hotel, restaurant, or a corporate events venue such as the Ermanno Palace
• Guests: staff, clients, +1s
• Budget: including business expenses
• Cost (is the event free or ticketed?)
• Themes, entertainment or speakers
Knowing when, where and what type of party you are hosting will also allow you to create a checklist of just what you need to do, highlighting what is urgent, essential or ‘nice to have’.
Venue
When selecting a venue, think about:
• Location – how easy is it to get to or will you need to arrange transport
• Capacity
• Facilities – a sound system if you are having music, for example
• Food – will you need outside catering, serve a sit-down meal or have a buffet
Your venue choice may impact the amount of work you have to do. Some companies, such as https://edgeglobalevents.com/f1-hospitality/monaco/7th-floor-ermanno-palace/ will do most of the work for you; others may require you to do more of the heavy lifting. Wherever you choose, work with the venue to develop a running order for the night to ensure everything goes smoothly.
Invitations
Once you selected a venue and confirmed the date, send out invitations, remembering to include an RSVP date and a request for other information you need, e.g. guest names or dietary requirements.
Added extras
Sometimes, it’s the little things that make a party extra-special. You might want to think about whether you want to offer drinks on arrival, have a photographer to record the event or book taxis for people at the end of the night.
On the day
Make sure you arrive early to do one last check on the venue. Take names/numbers for your vendors in case something goes wrong and have members of your events team on hand to help deal with last-minute issues.
