A quarterly newletter by the Boston Chapter of the Association of Legal Administrators
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The month of December will be fast approaching
and, with that, comes the realization that you need to begin thinking about
your firm's holiday party.
It's difficult enough thinking about the fact
that the summer is coming to an end, but with the thought of taking on that
responsibility, you can already feel your blood pressure rising! Here
are a few tips that will, hopefully, lighten the burden.
Most importantly, consider the audience and the
geographical distribution of your employees. The choice of venue is
often based on the number of guests and the location with regard to travel
distance for the attendees. If the event is on a week night after
work, you might want to consider something "in house"
should space permit or a venue that is in close
proximity to the firm. If it is a weekend event, location may less of
an issue, but budget may be the driving force in a selection. Weekend
events in function places such as hotel ballrooms are more costly due to
both the time of year and the weekend food and beverage costs. On the
other hand, if budget permits, a hotel ballroom ( for instance) offers a lot
of amenities which may balance out the costs in the end.
When planning a party, one should address the
following items as a check list:
Invitations
Venue
Music
Caterer
Decor...theme?
Flowers and/or centerpieces
Rentals of tables, chairs, dance floor ( if
needed) Table linens Photography/ Videography ( if desired)
In addition, should budget permit, there are
other items that provide flavor and fun, but these are not necessary to the
success of an event. This category would include things like:
A "WOW" factor ( highlight entertainment for
example) Transportation from a central location both to and from the party
Cake / Candy ( perhaps with your logo!) Creative placecards/ Table numbers (
if needed) Lighting ( a fabulous addition!) Favors ( for the end of the
evening)
Now, this would be a good opportunity ( sorry, I
have to!!!) to tell you that you could also hire a professional
planner/consultant with whom you could work to help lighten this load.
For some firms, having a planner take over the event feels almost as good as
winning a multi- million dollar case! Perhaps there are those people
who enjoy the hands- on planning process, but who are in need some resources
and/or direction. That option is available as well. In any case,
the above outline should help you get organized and give you a list of
categories to address. Have fun planning!
Enjoy the remainder of the summer,
Janie Haas
Janie Haas has been in the event planning
business for over thirty years.
Formerly of Newton, Janie had been a part of
the well known party planning company, Hoppe Popple, Inc.. Five years
ago, Janie moved to