Posted on January 15, 2024
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Event Management
Start 2024 with an event with a real impact
Welcome to the start of another year – and we’re stepping into 2024 with a huge sense of positivity and optimism.
The past six months have seen considerable momentum in returning to face-to-face events. While hybrid and virtual events are fantastic for many reasons, we’re seeing people remember the massive benefits of in-person events – especially for those more subtle relationship-building aspects.
As you and your team prepare for another year, now is the perfect time to book your 2024 kick-off events, strategy days and planning sessions. Events like these are a great way to break your team out of the day-to-day routine, fostering creativity and providing the chance to interact with people from across the organisation.
So, what are the elements that we think are going to make your 2024 strategy sessions and team days unmissable?
A great venue
Using offsite venues can offer many advantages that can significantly enhance the effectiveness of strategic sessions and meetings. One notable benefit is the change of environment, which can break the monotony of routine and infuse fresh air into brainstorming sessions. This change can act as a catalyst for creativity, inspiring participants with new perspectives and ideas. Furthermore, moving to an offsite venue helps reduce distractions commonly found in the usual workplace. Away from the daily grind, individuals can also dedicate their time and energy exclusively to the task at hand, fostering a more dedicated and concentrated atmosphere.
Here are some additional elements you may like to consider:
- Ample space for the core sessions, as well as breakout rooms for smaller workshop sessions
- Spaces for people to relax, including quiet zones for team members to recharge
- Proximity to public transport for ease of travel
- Natural light
- Ability to connect remotely with other locations for seamless multi-city events.
Top-notch catering
Food and beverage can often be a factor that makes or breaks an event. Nothing will put a downer on an event faster than sub-standard food – or, even worse, insufficient food.
Keeping your team energised throughout the day means providing regular meals, with ample breaks for morning tea, lunch, and afternoon tea. Think about how you can provide nourishing but not heavy options to give everyone the fuel to collaborate and innovate without leaving anyone hungry for more or so full of rich food that they need a nap.
Engaging content
If you’re going to get your team together, don’t just make it a day of PowerPoint. An excellent strategy day is more than just back-to-back corporate presentations with information that could have been communicated in an email.
Think about how you want to engage your team and make the day interactive. This could include:
- Dynamic use of audio-visual elements, such as videos, audio, images, and even gifs, to make presentations more entertaining.
- Popular speaker and best-seller author, Guy Kawasaki, suggested the 10/20/30 rule of
- PowerPoint. Keep presentations brief (20 minutes) and keep the number of slides short (approximately 10). Finally, he suggests using 30 pt font to minimise the number of words on each slide.
- Interactive workshops to break up the day and get people operating in cross-functional teams outside of their usual silos.
- Motivational speakers to shake up thinking and promote new ideas.
- Immersive experiences like dark dining events or a wellness session.
- Icebreakers and team building activities, with options that are just for fun or are designed to address specific challenges.
Get your events locked in for 2024
Cliftons is the expert in planning and delivering remarkable events – and we’ll guide you through all the steps to make your 2024 kick-off event the best one ever. Our team will work with you to understand your goals and create a strategy and planning day that your team will WANT to attend – not just a ‘tick-the-box’ attendance exercise.
Talk to our team to start planning events with impact.
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