The days of the office party with free-flowing booze and surf and turf dinners at the country club with a band and gifts have gone by the wayside due to the recession and fear of lawsuits. Companies are paring down the festivities, not wanting to look like they are guilty of excessive spending at the expense of shareholders or the public. Budgets have shrunk or disappeared altogether. Yet, holiday parties are one of the greatest motivators for employee satisfaction. Assistants are often responsible for planning the annual holiday party. This year it may take a little hocus-pocus and a lot of creative finances to pull it off. Here are some things to consider when planning the holiday party for 2010:
1. Get a firm budget. How much can you spend for this shindig? You may want to have a blowout at a pricey downtown hotel, but there may not be the money for it. Negotiate your best deal with venues available. Hotels or restaurants want to fill their calendar for the holidays, and if you are flexible with your dates, you may get a deal.
2. Keep the lid on it. It is better to keep the details a well-kept secret rather than build up hopes and then disappoint later. If you would like to be able to give gifts to all the children of employees and then find out later that you had to cut the gift budget or lose the party, it's better that the employees didn’t know that was ever an option.
3. Consider changing the focus of the party. I once had a General Manager that wanted the holiday party to be more family oriented. The employees were used to a big bash at the property, sit-down dinner and gifts for all. The problem was, employees drank too much, some made fools of themselves during the party and most were not fit to drive when it was over. Changing the party to a family focus and holding it in the afternoon saved the company money on drinks and made it safer for all when the party was over.
4. Give the employees the option of planning their own “adult” party. When our company party was a family affair, employees who wanted a more adult-oriented party planned one at a local restaurant, hired an employee with a band to play for the evening and had some fun awards to hand out at the end of the evening. Everyone had a great time and the company didn’t have to assume liability.
5. Create some excitement. Kids love to keep busy. Consider some crafts stations where they can make ornaments, color, or do other holiday crafts. A visit from Santa is always a big hit. One year we played Bingo with the adults and gave away prizes purchases from Wal-Mart with our modest party budget. A great time was held by all.
6. If you have a small office, a pot luck and “Mystery Santa” exchange (though a little hokey) is always fun. The pot luck allows the cooks in the office to show off their culinary skills, and the gift exchange becomes more about interacting and having fun than the value of the gifts.
Mary Nestor-Harper, SPHR, is a freelance writer, blogger, and consultant. Based in Savannah, GA, her work has appeared in "Training" magazine, "Training & Development" magazine, "Supervision," "Pulse" and "The Savannah Morning News." You can read her blogs at www.skirt.com/savannahchick, www.workingsmartworks.blogspot.com/ and on the web at www.mjnhconsulting.com.
1. Get a firm budget. How much can you spend for this shindig? You may want to have a blowout at a pricey downtown hotel, but there may not be the money for it. Negotiate your best deal with venues available. Hotels or restaurants want to fill their calendar for the holidays, and if you are flexible with your dates, you may get a deal.
2. Keep the lid on it. It is better to keep the details a well-kept secret rather than build up hopes and then disappoint later. If you would like to be able to give gifts to all the children of employees and then find out later that you had to cut the gift budget or lose the party, it's better that the employees didn’t know that was ever an option.
3. Consider changing the focus of the party. I once had a General Manager that wanted the holiday party to be more family oriented. The employees were used to a big bash at the property, sit-down dinner and gifts for all. The problem was, employees drank too much, some made fools of themselves during the party and most were not fit to drive when it was over. Changing the party to a family focus and holding it in the afternoon saved the company money on drinks and made it safer for all when the party was over.
4. Give the employees the option of planning their own “adult” party. When our company party was a family affair, employees who wanted a more adult-oriented party planned one at a local restaurant, hired an employee with a band to play for the evening and had some fun awards to hand out at the end of the evening. Everyone had a great time and the company didn’t have to assume liability.
5. Create some excitement. Kids love to keep busy. Consider some crafts stations where they can make ornaments, color, or do other holiday crafts. A visit from Santa is always a big hit. One year we played Bingo with the adults and gave away prizes purchases from Wal-Mart with our modest party budget. A great time was held by all.
6. If you have a small office, a pot luck and “Mystery Santa” exchange (though a little hokey) is always fun. The pot luck allows the cooks in the office to show off their culinary skills, and the gift exchange becomes more about interacting and having fun than the value of the gifts.
Mary Nestor-Harper, SPHR, is a freelance writer, blogger, and consultant. Based in Savannah, GA, her work has appeared in "Training" magazine, "Training & Development" magazine, "Supervision," "Pulse" and "The Savannah Morning News." You can read her blogs at www.skirt.com/savannahchick, www.workingsmartworks.blogspot.com/ and on the web at www.mjnhconsulting.com.
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