Whether you love or hate company picnics, this might be the year that your boss recruits you as planner and organizer for the big event. While you might not be experienced with this type of task, you can accomplish it by taking everything step-by-step. Planning ahead is absolutely crucial. Use the following tips on how to plan a company picnic.
How to Plan a Company Picnic: Form the Guest List
Before you can decide on the appropriate venue, you will have to come up with a rough idea of how many people will be coming. Obviously, all of the employees who work for your company will be invited, but what about families? Will there be a limit on the number of guests each employee can bring, and should they RSVP? Years ago, it was sufficient to multiply the number of employees by four in order to get an approximate number of guests, but in this day and age of blended families, it might be better to get a head count in advance.
How to Plan a Company Picnic: Find the Venue
The next task on your list is to come up with three or four possible venues. Some people prefer to book an indoor or indoor/outdoor establishment in case of poor weather, but that is entirely up to you. Find out what dates are available for each venue, the cost, the guest limit (if any) and whether or not the venue is equipped to serve food. If not, you can hire a caterer to take care of lunch.
How to Plan a Company Picnic: Set a Date
This might be the hardest part of planning a company picnic because it is difficult to coordinate everything that needs to happen. First, many experts advise you to plan the company picnic for a weekday so that weekends aren’t compromised for tired workers. Second, you shouldn’t plan it during a holiday vacation because many employees will be out of town. The fall and the spring are often the best times to hold company picnics because the weather is more favorable, but again you will have to work within many different schedules, so it pays to be as flexible as possible.
How to Plan a Company Picnic: More is Better
When ordering food, door prizes and other items, it is better to order more than you think you will need. First, you should count on at least a few people showing up who originally said they wouldn’t make it. Second, remember that the expenses of company picnics are fully tax deductible. Find out well in advance what your budget is, and plan accordingly.
How to Plan a Company Picnic: Set Up Committees
Just because you are the chosen one as far as picnic-planning doesn’t mean that you can’t form committees to spread out the workload. Send a memo to all employees asking for volunteers for committee duty, and divide groups based on task, such as food, decorations, parking and entertainment. This will allow you to supervise rather than focusing on the little details that can lead to chaos.
How to Plan a Company Picnic: Update the Website
One of the best ways to keep attendees informed about the upcoming company picnic is to set up an area of the website that lists changes, committee members, driving directions and other instructions for employees to follow. This way, your telephone won’t be bombarded with thousands of questions repeated over and over, and you won’t have to send out numerous paper updates. The invitations should be sent at least a month or two before the event, so list the website URL on it for future reference.
Reference:
- www.picnicspecialists.com, Picnic and Barbecue Crafts by Emma S.
