Corporate Event

Corporate Event Season

2011-10-29T05:34:00.000-07:00

It's been a busy year. I've been working on events with The Team Building Company and I've found myself specialising more in Treasure Hunts, while doing the occasional Murder Mystery.

The other interesting area for me is facilitated team building. This is working with tools such as Belbin and Myers-Briggs and it would take me more into the role of facilitator rather than event manager.

However, you can't be everything. I'll have to see what the winter brings.

Off to Budapest

2011-08-02T04:47:00.000-07:00

I'm off to Budapest for a Treasure Hunt. I love the trips abroad when they come up three or four times a year. The most exotic was a spy themed event in Istanbul when I spent the day in a Turkish Bath as an undercover agent. Budapest seems just as exotic.

The best bit is the planning trip, which usually takes place over a weekend. I fly out on my own and spend a couple of days on foot exploring the city and collating the Treasure Hunt. Most city airports are approximately half an hour from the city centre and the bus typically costs around £3. It's details like this that make travel around Europe a doddle. Of course there are parts of the World that I wouldn't approach with such relaxed expectations, but Europe is fairly predictable.

So, Budapest is the next desination. The best so far this year was Sintra in Portugal. Will this surpass that experience?

The Season Has Started

2011-06-25T09:58:00.000-07:00

It's been a busy week. Monday and Tuesday was taken up with a Belbin team building event and then I had to go to Leeds for a hostage take on Thursday. On Friday I did exactly the same thing in Brighton.

I usually do a Hostage about once a month, so it was unusal do have one the day after another. We storm the room and take a person or something like a laptop hostage. The group then divides into teams and takes part in a themed treasure hunt style event finishing up with getting the person or equipment back.

It's always very fast paced and great fun.

Edinburgh Treasure Hunt

2011-05-10T04:16:00.000-07:00

I was in Edinburgh for a Treasure Hunt recently. It's a great city for this sort of event because it's so compact and there is so much that can be experienced on foot in a half day. You have the sights of Princes Street, Calton Hill which gives a stunning view of the whole city and the wonderful old city.

The photo shows the clock on top of The Balmoral Hotel which runs three minutes first. Why do you think that is?

Corporate Events in 2011

2011-04-11T02:54:00.001-07:00

The corporate event year 2011 is well underway and, as each year has its own character, we can start to assess how this one is looking. We came into 2011 with concerns that The Royal Wedding and the layout of the Bank Holidays in April would put a real dampner on the early season. There was also the ongoing financial outlook - how would that effect the year? First of all March has been very strong and April is looking good too, inspite of those unusual events. The UK's consumers are certainly suffering but corporates seem to have recovered and generally they seem willing to look at entertainment rather than just events with measurable business outcomes. Consumers tend to lag behind corporates in their reactions to financial events. For most corporates the times of trouble and cutbacks are behind then and they are looking at a more positive future. This is backed up by recent surveys which have found that corporate risk appetite is on the rise again. So, it's early days but the outlook for 2011 certainly looks positive at this stage.

Duck Herding For Spy School

2011-02-21T04:01:00.000-08:00

It happens occasionally. There's an event with a very specific theme but the client wants an activity as part of it that has nothing to do with the theme. So, how do you incorporate duck herding into a Spy School themed event?

Well, it's all down to designing a plausible story. So, there's a gaggle of radioactive geese that has been trained to enter Parliament during the next sitting to bring chaos to the Western world. We call it Radioquacktive.

What's not plausible about that?

Happy Christmas

2010-12-14T03:17:00.000-08:00

Seasons greetings from Corporate Event. It's been a fairly good year. We've seen important clients from the banking and finance world coming back, which is very welcome. It's all very well demonising certain business sectors but when you depend on them for work it's less helpful.

Next year is going to be interesting The first quarter is usually held up by government spending and it's fairly safe to assume that won't happen in 2011. Will the private sector hold up the recovery as hoped by the government? We shall see.

Seasonal Corporate Events

2010-10-06T04:12:00.000-07:00

We're moving from the Summer months to the colder seasons and events are starting to move indoors. There's a lot to be said for outdoor team building events at this time of year; the Autumn trees are fabulous and there's that great smell of leaves and bonfires. After the event you can head indoors for logs fires and hot drinks. It's all quite magical.

Team Building for Students

2010-09-08T03:37:00.000-07:00

We've just delivered an event for the year six students of an Academy school that we've done for the last six years. The aim is to get them all together at the beginning of the new year and give them a positive shared experience to set them off in the best possible way.

I'm always impressed by these youngsters. They get involved in the activities and are engaging and engaged. They enjoy the day and you can see them and their relationships grow over the course of the event.

Perhaps it's because they're in a good school where they have to put effort in if they want it to work out. Perhaps it's because it's the sort of school and the type of teachers who will hold a team building at the beginning of the year - it's a pretty enlightened idea.

Whatever it is it's a pity that, after six years, this year is likely to be the last one. They won't be getting the funding for it next year. I understand that we don't have the money any more and I'm not surprised. There will be lots of situations like this where it's a shame and there's not much that can be done about it.

Professional corporate event presentation

2010-06-11T06:03:00.000-07:00

Progressive Resources has made a huge investment in its corporate events and one of the most visible outcomes is what seems to be hundreds of flight cases.

Every piece of equipment now has a home, with shapes cut into the foam inserts so that everything fits into its own space.

It does look really good and very professional. Flight cases are tactile, people like using them. Things have certainly moved on from the days of string, tape and oil barrels.

The state of the event business

2010-04-12T04:29:00.001-07:00

The event business is definately showing signs of improvement. Last year it was Pharmaceutical clients and The Government that kept us all going. This year Government business has started to contract, although there is still a fair amount of it around. It's surprising that there's anything, but I suppose it takes time for cuts to come through.

The really good news has been the return of the banks and financials. This was always the main source of business and it literally froze in 2009. Not only were there not the budgets but organisations in that sector were very concerned not to be seen to be doing anything that would lead to accusations of frivolity. That unfair accusation deserves a blog of its own, but it was the way that people felt. Now times are improving and their business is starting to come back. Great news!

Doing business with hotels

2010-03-08T05:29:00.000-08:00

I can see that this is going to become one of my pet subjects. Why do hotels make it so difficult to do business with them?

Take my interaction with Crowne Plaza hotels today. I used Google to find a contact telephone number and I think we can probably assume that most people would do the same thing. So, we're talking about the main communication avanue between them and new business. I'm given an 0871 number and told that it will cost me 10p per minute. I haven't studied call charges for a while so I don't know if this is better or worse than normal rates, but I have the feeling something cynical is going on.

I telephoned them with one simple question: 'what is your day delegate rate?' After a fairly long message (at 10p per minute) going on about a customer satisfaction service that I'm not interested in I spoke to someone who told me I'd have to speak to the hotel and who gave me another 0871 number. I get this a lot, the sheer frustration of dealing with central reservations.

I then called the new number and was put through to an extension number that didn't answer. I was returned to the switchboard who put me through to someone else. Don't forget I'm feeling edgy because I know this is all costing me 10p per minute.

Finally I'm speaking to a person but they're reluctant to give me the rate I need to finish my proposal until they've taken my address, telephone number and email address. Even then I have to go through a whole discussion about how and why rates might change.

So, the event part of my proposal took me five minutes and the one piece of information from the hotel took me about 10 minutes to get and a whole load of frustration and stress.

I don't know how much these venues spend on marketing, exhibitions and whatever but why on earth do they make clients jump through hoops to get a fairly basic bit of key information?

Embedding company values

2010-03-01T04:10:00.000-08:00

Film making is a very effective way of embedding company values. Many employees are unfamiliar with the company values that are published in annual reports and on the corporate website. The words and concepts seem remote and unfamiliar.

Using a film making team building event to make people more familiar with their corporate values is effective and makes a fun experience out of an important business objective.

On a recent event teams were given two out of their company's four stated values and they had to create a film from which the other teams could guess which values they were representing. They couldn't say the word or write it down, it had to be clear from the film.

There were four teams in total and all eight values were covered. The result was interesting and fun and working with the company values for a day helped everyone in the group to become familiar with not just the words but the behaviour behind them. The result was much more powerful and authentic that learning by rote.

Why don't hotels answer their phones?

2010-01-28T05:28:00.000-08:00

It's very strange. Hotels are multi-million pound businesses and, if what you read in the press is true, the market is pretty tough at the moment. And yet here I am with a bluechip client wanting to book 40 rooms for an event in March and the first two venues I have called haven't answered their phones.

Are receptionists much more expensive than one would think?

Is the fun coming back into corporate events?

2010-01-26T09:36:00.001-08:00

In 2009 we noticed that events with business linked outcomes were more popular than the more frivolous activities. Corporate executives were in a sombre mood, but the thing we heard more than anything was 'it's not what we do, it's what we are seen to do.'

It would be easy to by cynical about that, but the reality is that you would have to be pretty thick skinned not to feel that way. Already in 2010 we're hearing more of that good old word 'fun'. That will mean the return of events like the good old It's A Knockout coming back.

And so it should be. Fun is one of the key ingredients of a good event. It builds relationships and it reduces stress in the workplace. Fun is not a four letter word.

Chocolate Making Event

2009-11-06T09:31:00.000-08:00

Chocolate making events are undoubtedly the big success of 2009. We do find that there are events that just hit the moment and you see a lot of them at various times. Currently it seems to be the time for chocolate making.

The event is easy to put on in any suitable location and it appeals to people of all ages and abilities. Real teamwork is needed to achieve the aims of the activity and it suits small or large groups.

Chocolate making can be themed as well, so it's an ideal Christmas event idea.

We have a La Gavroche trained chef who oversees the group and makes sure that some wonderful chocolates are created.

It's a good fun team building event.

Qualities of event instructors

2009-10-27T03:58:00.000-07:00

Event instructors need to be smart of appearance and intelligent enough to communicate ideas and concepts to the client. They also need experience of the activities they are instructing; people can tell if someone has never actually tried the event and you can't get an all round view without experiencing it first hand.

The one quality which separates an average instructor from a good one is the ability to connect with people. You have to be 'present' on the day, which may seem an odd thing to say but in reality people are often not present when they seem to be in front of you. They're thinking about the weekend or something that is more important to them.

A connected instructor is present, cares about the client and wants them to get the maximum return from their investment.

The corporate event experience

2009-10-21T02:23:00.000-07:00

The best corporate events provide a stage on which clients can build on their history together through shared experiences. It's important not to lead participants too much and control their every action. Really the event manager needs to take a step back, because it's not about them. Clients will be laughing at 'in jokes' that the instructor won't understand, and it ruins the flow if they feel the need to be part of the team they're working with.

You may be the best instructor in the world and the event may be the most exciting and novel on offer, but the real value for the client will be the hundred of little moments between the participants.

Archery and Parkinsons Disease

2009-10-14T06:46:00.000-07:00

I was at an event instructing archery and met someone who was suffering from Parkinsons Disease. He'd seen archery on holiday in Spain and approached the instructor only to be told that he would be unable to pull the bow.

I gave him a lower powered bow and a bit of time one on one and he did well, walking off with a great smile. I wonder why that other instructor turned him away; did he genuinely believe that he couldn't do it or could he not be bothered to give him time?

I doubt many instructors do what they do for the money. My motivation has always been giving people positive experiences and sending them away with a smile. I can't imagine why anyone would choose this career if they felt differently.

Indoor Team Building

2009-10-06T07:34:00.000-07:00

The summer comes to an end and the weather starts to take a turn for the worse and thoughts naturally turn towards indoor team building.

There are plenty of indoor solutions, ranging from taking outdoor activities indoors where space permits through to events which are designed for indoor use. MTA kit, as shown in the picture to the left, is very useful for this.

Larger events include Stock Market Simulations, Game Shows and, of course, Murder Mysteries.

Coming last

2009-09-29T04:39:00.000-07:00

Corporate events are naturally competitive. Many clients try to tone down the competition element because they want the outcome to be team building and not demoralising. However, humans are naturally competitive and they want to know how they've done and how that compares to the other participants.

Often there is a debrief at the event of the event, parhaps with presentation of prizes. Most of the time people don't take this too seriously but it remains that if there are, say, ten teams it's going to be disappointing to be the team who comes last.

So, what's the best way to deal with coming last?

Hotels preying on corporate budgets

2009-09-11T03:47:00.000-07:00

Compare that last experience with the hotel I work at yesterday and stayed overnight at. It's situated on a huge run down industrial estate and that would make it either a 'hidden gem' if they got it right or add to the general disappointment.

As the corporate event manager I was given a room at the 'special rate' of £50 without breakfast so you can image my disappointment when I discovered that the room didn't even have a coffee tray with biscuits. There was a minibar, in which a small Toblerone was on offer ... for £4.50!

I turned on the television to find the option set at 'special offer' which I clicked to find a warning that the films that I was about to be offered were extremely grown up in nature - classy. I'm choosing my words carefully because I don't want to ruin my blog. This special offer included internet access for 24 hours and cost £24.99, or I could just have the internet for £4.99 for 60 minutes. Aaaargh!

I wandered down to the bar where I saw a sign at around 4 foot from the floor which told me that the bar only served doubles unless you asked for a single.

It's clear that this organisation sees its clients as a production line to extract cash from at every turn. The staff I interacted with were efficient enough, if a little cold. Why would you be any different when you work somewhere with such a cold and calculating culture?

I did at least get one laugh out of the whole experience. The complimentary body wash claimed to contain something called Oligoeelements. I'm of an age where we studied something called The Periodic Table at school and I don't remember every seeing an Oligoe amongst the elements. That's the thing about education; the less we do it properly the more guff and nonsense we're going to see out there masquerading as science.

So, lots to reflect on there for any hoteliers reading. The £4.50 Toblerone is bad, but my real beef remains charging such ridiculous rates for internet access when you're marketing your services to businesspeople. It's not a luxury, it's a necessity. Would you charge £4.99 for 60 inutes of hot water? Hang on, these people don't need ideas.

Sundial Group

2009-08-19T07:09:00.000-07:00

I was on an event at Highgate House, part of The Sundial Group, yesterday and I'm a big fan of their venues.

The venue is great and has most of the facilities you would expect, as well as plenty of land for corporate events. Highgate has a really nice Baronial Hall and a lot of meeting rooms. So far, so much like a lot of other venues. So, why am I writing about them?

Firstly they have free broadband (5 megs of it). Venues really haven't cottoned on to this and some of them charge £20 to get connected. They're using it as a money maker, whereas these days broadband is a necessity and not a luxury. Okay, you make your £20 but your client isn't stupid and senses a rip off. So, good for them for realising how important this is.

The second reason I've decided to champion them is that they look after instructors. We were offered breakfast. That may seem unimportant, but at the beginning of a long day it's a welcome offer. Many venues treat instructors like unwanted tradespeople. However, and this is particularly the case in these tough times, teams of instructors are often made up of sales people and even directors of event companies. Please them and they might influence the next booking. Looking after event companies when they're on site costs very little and it may be a pretty good tactic.

Corporate sailing events

2009-08-19T01:50:00.000-07:00

Solent Events in Lymington deliver excellent corporate sailing events. These days are challenging some times and relaxing at others and give teams the chance to really get away from the office and bond while partaking in a fantastic experience.

They usually work in The Solent, which is a fantastic stretch of water between the south coast and The Isle of Wight. Although day trips are possible teams usually stay at one of the many luxury hotels close to Southampton or Lymington.

Summer update

2007-02-05T14:54:00.000-08:00

It's not easy keeping up a blog. Actually I haven't posted since last Summer and there is no excuse really.

The corporate event year has started again and it has been a busier start than last year. The warm winter meant that there were more outdoor events than usual. It's been the usual; treasure hunts, outdoor activities, spy themed events and the odd murder mystery.

Let's see what the rest of the year has in store.

Corporate event update

2006-06-14T12:21:00.000-07:00

I've had to change the settings of this blog because there have been comments for people selling dodgy pills and worse. Spam is a real menace.

The 2006 season is underway after a bit of a late start, I think because Easter was later. I seem to have been doing a lot of water based events such as sailing and speedboat treasure hunts. This is probably because it's a very social activity and once you get to know one of the organisers you soon meet them all.

I have been learning about team building theory, for example Belbin, and want to learn more of this sort of thing. This is when events really get fascinating; when you start to see why they are needed.

I'm off to Paris next week to work on a big treasure hunt and that's quite exciting. The success of the DaVinci Code seems to have rubbed off on the corporate event industry and there's all sorts of themed events. Hopefully we won't upset any Catholics; I'm surprised that events would be based on such a controversial subject. Usually it's inflatable games, murder mysteries ... more trivial stuff.

Corporate Events in 2006

2006-01-13T04:14:00.000-08:00

It's going to be a big year. The market for corporate events is very positive and there are plenty of external influences coming into play. Firstly the UK wining the Olympics has been a huge boost and naturally there are going to be many Olympic themed events over the next 7 years. One of the things that also influences the market is a new film release. This year we have a James Bond film coming out and that always influences themes, however this year we have a new James Bond and the film is being released in November, so it will have a huge influence on the Christmas party season. The most exciting point about this film though is that it is a remake of Casino Royale and this will be a boon for fun casino events. Casinos were in the news last year with plenty of television coverage and big growth in the popularity of poker, fuelled by the online casino operators. Casino Royale is just going to make it even more popular. Watch this space.

Corporate Events through the Summer

2005-08-25T12:59:00.000-07:00

Well, the weather hasn't got much better. I did an event today and it hailed - in August! Some of the activities cannot be run in wet weather, for example the inflatables. This is because they're dangerous when they get slippery. One of the funny things about the summer is that you get to the stage when you just can't face eating another barbecue. It seems to be the staple diet of corporates when they have an event. It's a shame because it always used to be one of my favourite things about summer. Now if I go to a friend's barbecue I tend to take a trout!

What's with this weather?

2005-06-05T08:35:00.000-07:00

What a strange year weather wise. I think it's been the driest winter in the last 100 years and then we seemed to have an early Summer. Now it's June and it's grey and raining. Bad weather always puts a bit of a spoiler of fun days and I feel sorry for the people it affects. I remember one event last year when it rained solidly all morning complete with distant thunder. The guests literally stood in the marquee watching it our down and because it was summer and still quite warm the atmosphere was horrid. Then at lunchtime it cleared up and there was brilliant sunshine for the rest of the day. At least they had some fun. I also remember a team building event when it rained all day but everyone just got on with it and it created an air of resolve. In the end it worked really well and everyone said it was the best event they'd had. Generally though bad weather is a spoiler. Apparently the late Summer is going to be a scorcher.

I've been busy

2005-04-23T12:44:00.000-07:00

The year is off to a great start and I think this is going to be the busiest one yet. I had worried that the election would be a distraction and I know that corporates don't like change. Most people seem fairly sure that there isn't going to be any change anyway. I've been doing a lot of work at Coltsford Mill, which is a great venue for corporate events close to London.

As ever Treasure Hunts are extremely busy and Progressive Resources have one called The Parmesan Job which is based on The Italian Job and uses Mini Coopers. I was on an event recently with 12 of them it we all travelled to the event in convoy. That was great fun.

I've got a pretty full diary and I'm looking forward to the season.

New Year, new events

2005-01-04T10:46:00.000-08:00

Well Happy New Year. I've been a bit negligent in posting, but the second half of last year was extremely busy with some amazing events. It's A Knockout tournaments seemed to be very popular; big events with a range of inflatable games of which Human Table Football seemed to be one of the most popular. Then as Winter approached the party season began and I found myself being everything from a Murder Mystery actor to a paparazzi press photographer at an Oscars Ceremony themed night. I had a good Christmas break and now I'm back to see what the events industry will throw at me for 2005.

September Corporate Event work

2004-08-28T03:05:00.000-07:00

August was a bit more relaxed; I even managed to have a short holiday. September is looking extremely busy though, I could have filled two diaries. I am running a Laser Shoot on Monday but apart from that there's not much on this weekend. Bank holidays tend to be quiet. I have decided to get qualified in archery. This is done through the Grand National Archery Society.

James Bond Theme

2004-07-18T06:05:00.000-07:00

I worked on a large James Bond theme event for 500 people in a marquee at Beaulieu last night. There was an excellent tarot card reader - spookily relevant. There were also lookalikes of James Bond, Dr Evil and Odd Job. The James Bond lookalike is called Donald and he's a big chap, very larger than life and charismatic. The ladies certainly enjoyed him. There were casino tables, as there usually are at these events. It was quite hot, which is a problem in marquees in the Summer. The worst bit for me was having to pack down all the kit and load it in a van afterwards. I was knackered by the time it was all over. The event was organised by Progressive Resources who have a website for their evening events at this link. They are always looking for good instructors and event staff.

Greetings!

2004-07-08T02:05:00.000-07:00

Well, this is the first posting on my blog. I am interested in corporate event management - team building, corporate entertainment, treasure hunts, murder mysteries etc. I work as a freelance event manager for such companies as Progressive Resources and Wild Events.