Planning a Great Office Party

If you are provided a budget for your office party, first choose how much to plan for food and drinks. Food and beverage costs should take precedence over all other costs. Next, use what is left over for entertainment. The menu usually needs to be pre-ordered, so if you have budget constraints, spend more on food because people can always purchase drinks if they run out of drink tickets, but it is difficult to get more food. If you are not provided a budget, start your planning by looking back at previous parties you may have attended. Christmas bashes from earlier years will provide a guideline for how much to budget for food, drinks, location rental, gifts (such as a handy travel cup holder), and entertainment.

Schedule your event in line with your food funds. For events that start before 8 pm, you will be required to provide a dinner serving of food. A dinner serving menu, whether a sit-down dinner or heavy canapés and food stations, will cost around $50 per person. If the event starts later than 8 pm, you can provide a snack at the beginning in case people are still hungry. Presenting a late-night bite after 11 pm will make it easier to absorb the alcohol.  Plan $20 per head or more for the snack alternative.

Be precise regarding your bar alternatives. There are many more options other than host bar, cash bar, and drink tickets.  Consider other alternatives like a host bar restricted to specific beverage options, a host bar restricted to a particular cost value, and a host bar restricted to a specific period. If you restrict your host bar from shooters, it lessens the bar price to a large extent. Also, it keeps the party from getting out of hand with unruly actions. A great way to reduce party spills is to have a few cup holders on hand for those who have trouble holding onto their drinks.

Choose a comprehensive service setting in order to help slash expenses. An extensive service location provides a one stop shop for food, drinks, and service staff. This reduces costs considerably by including service staff as part of the food and beverage package. Choose a location that includes built-in decor and A/V. This further helps in reducing costs. Why not choose a place that already has perfect decor and hi-fi audio devices like lounges and restaurants? You don’t need to spend your time and money to decorate these spaces.