Every year you dread planning it. Every year you swear you’re going to pawn it off on someone else next year. However, if done right, planning your holiday event can be as easy and as fun as the party itself.

A Few Tips.

Following some simple guidelines will make many of those headaches disappear!

• Rather than taking on everything yourself, have people to delegate different tasks to (venue, meal, entertainment, decorations). Don’t bring everything back to the Committee. Knowing who you can trust to handle specific tasks is the better part of management; they also might enjoy having a hand in their future celebrations. Remember: a camel is a horse that was designed by a committee!
• Plan head Way ahead. Don’t wait until the week before to get things going. The more warning you have, the more you can beat the rush on things like the caterer, the banquet hall and the entertainment.
• Have a Stage Manager. When the Christmas party comes, you’re going to want to enjoy it at least a little bit. Get a Stage Manager or Event Runner so that you are free to mingle and socialize with the rest of the crowd. Quite often the Room Manager of the venue can find one for you.
• Create a checklist and calendar Set due dates for accomplishing specific party-related tasks. It not only helps you to keep everyone accountable, but it also makes sure that the event planning goes smoothly. It won’t be perfect. Know that little snags are bound to come up in the course of planning a company holiday party.

Don’t sweat the small stuff. When problems arise, get on top of them. When problems aren’t fixable, let it go and run damage control. There’s only so much you can do.

Important Steps

Christmas party planning varies from one situation to another. However, general guidelines are as follows:

1. Set a date, NOW. This is the decision around which all others will revolve.
2. Determine the budget. Everything you decide from here on out will be determined by your budget. Keep in mind the experience. Not everyone dances anymore or likes the same music so a DJ may not be the right choice. A live entertainer who can customize their performance for everyone might likely a better alternative.
3. A very well prepared sit-down meal may be more enjoyable than an all-you-can-eat buffet.
4. Find a venue. This will be one of the biggest parts of your budget, so get it out of the way first.
5. Select a caterer and bartender. People will want to eat and probably also drink. This will be, along with the venue, your biggest expense.
6. Schedule entertainment. Again, do it now. Whether it’s a magician, a band or a DJ, people are going to want something like an anchor for the event and there are fewer professional ewntertainers  out there than there are caters. Consider, also, entertainment before the dinner begins. Strolling performers and caricature artists are a great ice breaker during the hospitality hour.
7. Send out invitations. You don’t necessarily have to get formal invitations printed up, though it is a nice touch. a broadcast email will suffice
8. Find your stage manager/event runner.
9. Make final preparations a week out, such as confirming reservations.

And the final step: HAVE FUN!