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The Game Plan
by Charrisse Min Alliegro
So the new product launch is in three weeks, you're up to your eyeballs in marketing forecasts and Gantt charts, and your boss pops her head into your doorway and announces, Oh, before I forget, can you plan a celebration party for the team? I'd like to thank everybody for their hard work. Get me some ideas by Friday. And before you sputter an objection, she's gone.
Don't panic! Before you pull out the Yellow Pages and start dialing for caterers (or headhunters), keep in mind that planning a corporate event is not that much different than hosting a backyard barbecue, throwing a birthday party or even planning a wedding. In each case, the goal is to entertain a group of people who are celebrating something: the end of summer, a child s birthday, a couple s marriage, or in your case, to reward coworkers for their hard work. And in each case, a successful event hinges on the following factors:
1. Knowing your guests and clarifying your goals Who are you entertaining and for what purpose? Remember, a good host always keeps in mind the preferences of his/her guests. Depending on whether your group consists of computer programmers or investment bankers, an after-work get-together with music and gifts might be microbrews at a funky poolhall, R&B tunes on a jukebox, juicy steaks and personalized baseball caps; or it might be vintage Cabernets in an Art Deco penthouse, a torch singer draped across a gleaming Steinway grand, and personalized sterling silver golfball markers. What makes one group of guests feel relaxed and pampered may seem déclassé, pretentious or bizarre to another group. Don't let your own tastes cloud your judgment.
2. Prioritizing within the designated budget Assuming you have been given a finite budget, you will now have to decide how to divvy up that budget, and here you need to keep in mind the scale and scope of the event. Obviously, a three-day symposium for 500 visiting dignitaries and international press is on a much larger scale than a closing dinner for 8 investment bankers. And the scope of such a symposium the level of detail and number of variables involved is much larger than that of a 500-person company picnic, even though the number of attendees is the same.
While all of these events usually contain the same elements (food, invitations, audio equipment, entertainment, etc.) the importance of these elements should be weighted against the backdrop of the event's goals. Each element's relative importance then determines how much time and energy you should devote to that element. For example, the focus of an awards dinner for pharmacological researchers is probably the speeches, so think mood-enhancing background music rather than a flashy performance band. In contrast, the goal of a farewell dinner capping off a weeklong sales conference is probably to whip up enthusiasm and excitement so how about seeing if Aretha Franklin is available?
3. Deciding who will do what by when All the details can seem overwhelming. One minute you're thinking about stationary hors d oeuvres displays, the next you're wondering whether you need to provide transportation from the hotels, and then you realize you've completely forgotten about invitations. Relax - there is a definite sequence to follow:
Determine who the decision-maker is. Perhaps your boss doesn t care about any of the particulars so long as you keep within budget fine! Or it was actually the VP of Marketing whose idea it was to throw this party, and together you and your boss must come up with ideas to appease him (and accommodate his taste for country music)? Or maybe it s an inter-departmental event, in which case you need to satisfy two different camps whose goals and interests may or may not coincide. In all cases, make sure you clarify who's in charge so you don't want to waste your time pitching ideas to the wrong person, or worse yet, making decisions yourself that will later be overruled, leaving you looking foolish and inefficient.
Find out who else will be working on the project and make a note of each person's skills. Joe, the new associate, is an avid cook and oenophile? Let him interview caterers. Is Katie, the accountant, a budding Martha Stewart? She can decide what shade of blue ink looks best on the invitations. Delegation is the key, as are realistic deadlines. Step back and look at the big picture rather than allow yourself to become bogged down with too many details early on. In other words, you should concentrate on booking a site first before obsessing about how to decorate it, and reserving a photographer takes precedence over juggling seating assignments. If you've done all of the above, you ought to have a semblance of a working plan now: a clear idea of whom you're entertaining, why you're fêting them, what kind of event you'll be hosting, how much money you'll be spending, who needs to make the decisions, who's going to do the work and when they are going to do it.
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