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How to Throw a Great Summer Office Party

summer office party

Company parties are a great way for everyone who works together to get to know one another in a social context. They can be a welcome reward for all the hard work the employees have put in. In addition to boosting morale and building camaraderie, a summer office party gives employees the opportunity to relax and unwind and have fun with their co-workers, and management too.

If your boss has put you in charge of organising this year’s shindig, you want to make sure it’s a memorable event. If you’ve never organised something like this before, don’t worry because, in this article Dakota Murphey, event-planning specialist gives you a few tips to help you.

1. Budget

First establish from your boss how much money you can spend on the event, then ask how big the party should be and whether partners and families can attend. If at all possible, obtain financial clearance so that you don’t have to run every single item past your boss. It will speed things up and stop him from interfering!

2. Form a committee

Depending on the size and nature of the event, you may need help with the organisation. Speak to a few colleagues and form an event organising committee. Not only will they suggest party ideas, but they can also take some of the load off your shoulders.

3. Planning the entertainment

Book a DJ, live band or other entertainment for the party, then think about a theme. Here are a few ideas:

Arabian Nights

Why not go for an Arabian Nights party? Contact a local company that offer tents for corporate events and decorate your Arabian tent with Persian rugs and intricately designed lanterns. While you’re at it, you could also provide delicious Middle Eastern inspired food – Moroccan, Lebanese, Turkish – and have music and belly dancers to entertain everyone.

Carnival

Why not go carnival style? On a hot summer’s evening, a Brazilian barbecue could be a sizzler. Serve arriving guests a Caipirinha Cocktail, and if you hire a steel band and a few samba dancers, everyone can gyrate their hips to some catchy Latin rhythms.

Formal

You might consider a more formal celebration in a smart city venue. With a cool band playing classic 60s, 70s and 80s tunes, bartenders mixing fancy cocktails, classy plates of food served on tables covered with ivory table cloths and summer flower centrepieces, you have the makings of a great party.

Hollywood

You might be inclined to choose an Old Hollywood-themed office party. Music could feature Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra and Barbara Streisand and other greats of the period. At the entrance, why not have a red carpet rolled out for the arrival of guests and maybe choose someone to take pictures, which could later be posted on the office Facebook page.

For a chic and sophisticated atmosphere, decorate the venue in classical Hollywood red and black and request the guests wear Hollywood-inspired outfits and props, like feather boas, hats, and long cigarette holders. Waiters dressed in white tuxedos could wander around the room serving cocktails and chilled bubbly.

A picnic in the park

If there’s a park near the office, you might like to host a picnic in the park for an afternoon. This means children can be included. Food caterers could provide delicious picnic baskets for everyone and you could even organise some fun games.

Ice Cream Party

If you’re going to an outdoor party, why not make it an ice cream party. Summer is synonymous with blazing heat and lashings of sun tan lotion, so dedicating the party to the most glorious summer dessert ever could make for a great summer office party.

You’ll need the standard vanilla and chocolate ice cream, but you might also want to consider some fruity additions like strawberries, blueberries and raspberries, and add these to the mix.

Forget about using regular bowls, instead, hire some fancy ice cream cups, those with bright colours and patterns and let everyone eat using little wooden spoons. And because everyone loves ice cream in a cone, make sure you have lots of different types and sizes. You could even consider hiring a few Mr Whippy type ice cream vans.

4. Social Media

Social media can be a fantastic way to achieve event success, but can also sometimes be a problem so you might have to consider limiting its use when attending your party – what you don’t want are embarrassing pictures of Senior Managers dancing and drinking and acting a bit silly uploaded onto the Internet.

You could have a blanket company policy to obtain approval before any photos are posted on any individual or company profiles, or just ask people to be respectful in how they use images on social media.

Keep your office juices flow by planning a great summer party – get started with Gevme.

This article was written by Dakota Murphey, independent content writer within the events industry.

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