Planning Corporate Entertainment and Team Building
- Who, why, when and where?
Who is taking part?
When planning corporate entertainment or a team building event the activities you should consider depend on many different factors.
What are the guest’s roles? What are their nationalities? What is the age range? What is the gender split? These elements will all influence the event as you wish to choose an event that will not only meet your objectives but also attract and retain the interest of your delegates or guests. Remember, the most lavish corporate entertainment can be a disaster if you fail to take the interests of your guests into consideration.
How many people are taking part?
Superficially an obvious question but for good corporate entertainment larger numbers often require an event with quick rotations so that there is more team interaction. Smaller numbers may allow for the team to work on certain in-depth team building aspects.
Knowing the number of guests is also essential so that your team building company can propose the correct event to meet your objectives and ensure that interaction is maximised and ‘dead’ time minimised.
Why? - The Event Objectives
Whether the event is for team building or for corporate entertainment, before you start any planning you must consider and establish clear objectives and this will dictate the style, type and structure of the event. If delegates have been in the same conference room for two days a table based mental task may be one step too far. However, if you are looking to get a team working towards a common goal, a competitive outdoor event may not be best suited whereas it would be a perfect way of saying “thank-you” to a team for a job well done.
Do delegates work together on a daily basis? If so concentrating on crossing boundaries may be an appropriate event choice. For delegates who only speak on the phone, activities that focus on communication and working together may best achieve your team building objectives
Whatever your objectives clearly establish them at the outset – even if they are quite simply “Let’s have fun!” You must then make sure that they are clearly understood by your event organiser or provider.
When - The Date?
Make sure that your planned team building event doesn’t clash with major sporting events, other meetings and events at your workplace and popular holiday periods. Certain times of the year will be more popular than others.
Christmas is obviously a popular time for corporate entertainment, but festive events are so often left until the last minute when availability is at a premium. Planning ahead is essential.
When - The Time?
When to hold the team building needs to be carefully considered. In a three-day meeting, holding an activity on the second day may mean that you can often use the event to emphasise some of the key factors of the conference. On a one-day meeting you may decide to hold a thirty-minute high-energy icebreaker in the middle of the day to keep enthusiasm levels high and eyes open!
Where - The Event Location?
Not all corporate entertainment can be held at all venues. Few city centre venues have grounds for large scale outdoor activities, some team building events need certain room heights; some venues have restrictions on amplified music.
When considering the venue, location, access, size, availability, facilities, grounds, costs and style - modern city centre, country house, unusual venue - all need to be taken into account. Each will have an influence on the overall success of the event.
