Tips to Help You Plan Successful Themed Corporate Events in Ottawa
Corporate events take some thoughtful planning to ensure they’re a success. Whether you’re planning an educational event or a work party, with the right vision and tools, your guests can have maximum enjoyment that will boost morale, encourage skill retention, and create lasting memories. Here are some important tips to plan successful themed corporate events in Ottawa.
Set Out Your Goals for the Event
Write down what you wish to accomplish with your corporate event. Your event could be work-related, a mix of work and fun, or a party to show your staff how much you appreciate them. Here are some common goals for corporate events that you should set out first to guide you through the rest of your event planning:
- Educational skills-training workshops;
- Sharing corporate information;
- Team building;
- Staff appreciation;
- Boosting workplace morale;
- Driving behaviour change; and,
- Celebration of staff (i.e. retirement parties), holidays, and other special occasions.
Once you’ve got your goals in mind, you can determine your budget, and book a suitable venue, entertainment, and catering for your event. And if you need approval from your boss, you can present a clearly outlined budget, goals, and even your ROI for the event (if applicable) to help sway them in the right direction.
Use a Theme
Themed corporate events in Ottawa are fun for everyone who attends. You can build up the anticipation for the event by getting everyone involved in the planning in the days or weeks leading up to the event. The more involved you are in planning for the theme, the more excited and involved the participants will be. This could include:
- Planning themed activities;
- Participants wearing themed outfits or costumes;
- Bringing theme-related items to the event, such as games and food; and,
- Watching theme-related videos at work to set the mood for the upcoming event.
Plan Engaging Activities
Whether the event is educational or purely for pleasure, make sure to have activities to keep everyone engaged, excited, and enjoying the event. You can avoid dull moments by getting guests to participate in activities throughout the day or evening. These activities should have participants engaging with one another to help break the ice and promote teamwork.
And if you are hosting an educational event, active participation is much more effective for learning and retaining information and skills. Try to avoid long lectures and slide-shows, and consider using experiential learning exercises to get your staff to problem-solve and use work-related skills in a team setting. The more engaged your staff is, the more successful the event will be at meeting its goals.
Event Follow-Up
If your goals for the event include teaching staff new information and skills, plan follow-up activities for after the event to help them retain the information they learned. These activities could include:
- Group discussions on the challenges and solutions experienced at the event;
- Forums to post questions and encourage discussion about the event’s information;
- Refresher courses such as online videos and webinars; and,
- Online games for a fun way to test staff knowledge and help them retain key information.
If you keep your goals in mind throughout the event planning, your themed corporate events in Ottawa will be a success for both your staff and your company goals. And remember, the more fun the event is, the more successful and memorable it will be.