Planning an Office Christmas Party

Many companies, agencies and organizations have some version of a holiday office Christmas party each year. For some, it is a simple affair perhaps with a potluck lunch but for major corporations, the event may be much more elaborate. There are basically two different types of office Christmas parties; one held on site during the work day or one held after hours at an offsite location.

The Simple Party

For the office party held during work time, the event is much simpler to plan. Planning an office Christmas party during the day entails very little, as the party is usually a lunch time affair perhaps with a buffet, gift exchange along with a how have we done year in review component that highlights the outgoing year's accomplishments along with a projection of what is to come in the New Year. Planning a smaller affair usually means deciding upon whether you will have everyone bring in a covered dish or having the party catered. What you chose will depend upon your available funds.

Certainly it is much cheaper to have co-workers bring in a covered dish, but someone really does need to keep tabs on what people have chosen to bring. Sometimes the company will provide the main course, such as chicken, and have the employees bring the rest. However, if there is not a designated individual in charge of keeping everything straight, you can end up with 30 deserts and only 5 side dishes or vice versa. Planning an office Christmas party means that you need several people to volunteer to take charge, setting all of the details in place along with managing the budget.

The Elaborate Party

Many companies offer their employees the opportunity to dress up and get away from the office for their holiday event. Planning an office Christmas party where everyone attends a black tie event can take a great deal of time, money and attention to detail. Many larger corporations may consider hiring an outside event planning company to take care of all of the details, from entertainment, food, d矇cor and company gifts. These events take time to put together and are usually thought about well in advance, at least six months or more before the Christmas holiday season.

Many companies do not want their employees making merry on company premises, preferring not to draw attention if an employee or two gets out of hand. Taking the party off company grounds is much smarter. Sometimes the executive secretary or the assistant to the CEO will have the party planning duties assigned to them long in advance. For these individuals it can be a very time consuming part of their job. Corporations want to offer their employees a great experience while keeping costs in line. However, there can be a lot of pressure to outdo oneself each and every year.

Whatever time of company party is chosen, the event takes dedicated people to pull it off. Planning an office Christmas party is fun but can be challenging as well.