Hints for Hosting the Best Company Picnic

Whether you have 25 employees or hundreds across multiple locations, one of the best ways to get everyone together for some fun is with a company picnic. Food, drinks, sun, and fun will serve as the backdrop for some non-work time spent with colleagues. Here, we share some ways to make your company picnic the best ever.

Plan Ahead
There’s nothing worse than scheduling something and having too few people show up or too little time to get everything together. Check the calendar and get the notice out at least two weeks in advance but preferably closer to a month. Make sure you consider everyone’s activities as best you can. For instance, some employees may not be available on Saturday, either for religious observation or family activities; others may be busy Sunday morning for religious events. Depending on your employees and where you’re located, you might do well to look for a Sunday afternoon time, but don’t put it next to a day off since some employees may go out of town for the long weekend.

Invite Everyone
The best way to increase your attendance at a company picnic is to include families and friends. If you choose to make the event for employees only, you may want to close the office early on a Friday and have it then. When you cut into family time, don’t expect that employees will be eager to attend without their loved ones. How about a compromise: Have a regular lunch or happy hour focused on employees only, and keep the company picnic for families and friends.

Plan Fun for All Ages
Let’s assume that you are planning your company picnic for a weekend date and allowing your team members to bring their significant others and children along for the fun. In that case, you’ll want to make sure you have activities for everyone to enjoy. Try a kids’ area with bounce houses, water slides, and simple games (e.g., bocce, hula hoops) for some unstructured playtime. If you’re feeling really ambitious, you can plan out games, such as the old standbys: three-legged race, potato sack race, tug o’ war, and egg and spoon race. This kind of family and coworker bonding can be a lot of fun for everyone as they get to know new people and forge stronger relationships outside of the boundaries of the cubicles.

Minimize Drinking
On a hot day, many people enjoy a nice cool beer, but with a family-oriented company picnic, a couple of things are at play. One, it’s a company-sanctioned event, which means that the company is responsible should someone get drunk and choose to drive. Two, family is present, and just as most parents wouldn’t take children to the bar, you don’t want to make your company picnic a bar-style event. Also consider the horror stories we’ve all heard of booze-influenced coworkers getting a little too risqué (or sick) at company events. If you opt to serve alcohol, make sure all of your permits are in order and consider limiting intake to two drink tickets per person.

Bring in the Professionals
Just as with any big event, it’s sometimes prudent to hire professionals to plan and manage the activities for you. The party planners at White Knight Party Rentals have a few tricks up our sleeves to help your company picnic go off without a hitch. Contact us at 602-277-2789 to get started!

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