We’ve made it through the Christmas festivities. Just enough time to let the turkey go down, measure the expanding waistline, and prepare for the New Year celebrations.
December is a hectic month… getting through the ‘to do’ list in the office before breaking up, last minute shopping, relative visiting, present wrapping … it can be a stressful time for most of us. And all this – along with the numerous corporate functions – can take its toll.
Don’t get me wrong, I love Christmas myself and we like a good party at Sewell Moorhouse! (So if the words Bah Humbug have entered your mind, please do your best to reject them). But I do often wonder, as companies spend thousands on their Christmas do’s, how much consideration goes into the phenomenal benefits that these events can have? Or are they just perceived as an opportunity to drink until we drop?
They offer fantastic networking opportunities, a great chance to thank and reward staff, and a good opportunity to invite clients, suppliers and business stakeholders to celebrate at the end of what’s likely to have been a hard-working year.
In their article, “Benefit from the bash” December 2005, Recruiter Magazine offer some top tips for the Christmas do. So reflect on your own office celebrations, and consider whether future corporate events might benefit from some of the following considerations:
- If you are invited to a client event, go and talk to different departments and find out more about the company. You never know – it could lead to your company branching out in the near future or simply an advantageous move for your personal PR.
- If you are attending the event of a potential client, try not to drink too much. Free-flowing champagne is very tempting, but more often than not this can lead to disaster. Be careful of what you say and to whom. Easier said than done.
- Try to organise transportation en masse if you are venturing outside your normal comfort zone. This means that networking begins from the moment you step on the bus.
- If you have devised a formalised table plan, make sure you try to mix and match personalities and think about the companies that guests work for. Or alternatively, make sure that partygoers swap tables throughout the evening (like a kind of ‘speed’ Christmas partying).
- Make sure you don’t run out of either alcoholic or soft drinks. Be considerate of the drivers and non-drinkers. Watch those who are likely to over-consume too soon!
- Consider music volume. If you expressly want to create a networking-style atmosphere, help it along by making sure the volume is kept down until later on in the evening.
- If you are in a group environment and know that people are unlikely to exchange business cards other than for social purposes, ensure that everyone throws a card in a bowl at the start of the evening, before the alcohol starts to flow.
- Remember that sometimes this may be the boss’s only opportunity to say thank you, so don’t be too harsh on your superiors. Not all of us are budding event organisers or creative wizards.
- As the organiser, ask the host venue which other companies are hosting parties on the same day to avoid embarrassing situations with the competition. Alternatively, if you are sharing a space with other organisations, you may benefit from some inter-company networking which could bring new faces and business opportunities to the table. Make sure you follow up with new contacts and nurture your relationships – but not too much, otherwise the Christmas 2006 diary will be full before you can hang up your stocking(s).
Sewell Moorhouse would like to wish all of our clients, candidates, staff and associates and very Merry Christmas and a Prosperous New Year.
