Planning a Corporate Dinner

The success of your corporate dinner depends on a number of things, but good planning is an important first step. A corporate dinner is so much more than an evening out as the success of the night can affect your business. New relationships can be forged between you and potential clients, large accounts can be won and even important business decisions can be solidified in this more relaxed environment. When planning your corporate dinner you need to think about the personalities of those attending and what type of evening they may enjoy. You also need to plan around the type of occasion you have in mind, for example, is it going to be a formal black tie gathering or is it a casual fun evening with a main goal of getting everyone to unwind. Once you have identified these main aspects of the evening you can then begin to plan the details, such as catering, entertainment, expected attire and whether there will be any presentations, such as speeches, audio visual production or even games.

Venue

Choosing and booking your venue will be the first thing you will need to do, if you don't have a space at your office. You will need to consider how many guests will be in attendance, so choose a venue that will accommodate everyone, and make sure once you have found the right place book early. Check that the venue has catering available and the right facilities for your particular event. You may need to choose a venue with a stage for presentations or for your entertainment to set up. Make sure the bathroom facilities are adequate and that the hire of the venue is within your companies budget.

Attire

Once you have decided on whether your evening will be a formal occasion or a more casual get together you can decide on the dress standard for the evening. Black tie always makes for a good evening, particularly if you need to create a sense of occasion, and people like to dress up for a night out. You may decide to have a themed night, where people come in costume, or more casual attire may be appropriate.

Entertainment

As well as keeping within the tone of the evening, choose entertainment that you know will appeal to most people. If your guest list is more on the conservative side then hiring a rock band may not go down so well. Perhaps a jazz band may be more appropriate. There are lots of different musical groups available for hire or you could stick with a DJ. It also might not be the type of event where a band is needed and you only are required to organise background music.

Equipment

You will have to make sure there are enough tables, chairs and tableware, although hopefully catering will have this under control, but you may also need to organise a microphone, sound system, audio visual equipment and a projection screen. You can hire this type of equipment from an audio visual production company.