Company Picnic Ideas and Planning Tips
By
Ellen Zucker
The company picnic is a beloved tradition at many firms.
It's an opportunity for employees to mingle and "let down their hair."
A well organized company picnic with planned activities can help integrate employees with each other. This is particularly important if the company has undergone recent reorganization. As such it functions as a "team bonding" mechanism.
A company picnic can be held for an entire firm of thousands or for a single department of 30.
In my role of party entertainer (and prior to that corporate employee), I have attended countless such events. Here are some observations, tips, and ideas I picked up along the way.
General Considerations
Like any other type of event, you need to decide what you want your picnic to be like and how much you want to spend.
As with any event, it is important to keep the needs and tastes of your attendees paramount.
Allow yourself sufficient time to book your venue if the picnic is offsite. Demand for some venues is at a premium during peak periods. It is not uncommon to make reservations several months or more in advance of a given date.
You'll need to plan food and beverages, and activities and entertainment and, in some cases, transportation to the picnic site.
Allow enough time so you can give your employees sufficient advance notice to include the picnic into their plans. This is especially important if you'll be inviting family members or if it is held on a weekend.
Company picnics and company picnic ideas can range from the very simple to a pull-out-all-stops extravaganza. My observation is that people have a good time at both.
Do you want to have a theme? A theme is fun! Plus it makes it easier to organize food and activities.
WHEN do you want to hold you company's picnic?
Here, in the Philadelphia area, companies hold their picnics beginning in June through early October.
Considerations such as your company's workflow, availability of a desired venue, etc., will help you determine the date. Employees are less apt to be away on vacation in June or September, but they will really enjoy the chance to kick back in July or August.
There are pros and cons to weekday picnics versus weekend picnics.
Company picnics held during a workday will ensure a greater attendance for employees when they would normally be in the office. And, they don't cut into precious personal time.
But spouses and children are generally more available for a weekend date.
WHOM do you want to invite?
Staff only? Members of the employee's immediate family? What about significant others, friends? Decide where to draw the line.
Family picnics are a great way for employees to meet co-workers’ families. It humanizes co-workers by allowing them to relax their at-work personas.
On the other hand, single or divorced employees can feel like the odd wheel at a very family oriented event. That can be overcome by planning activities suitable for people of all ages.
Activities that require participants to form groups can help integrate the attendees. And it keeps your guests occupied.
WHERE do you want to have your company picnic?
While many picnics take place under a tent in the company's parking lot, offsite venues can make people feel more relaxed. If you're on a strict budget, one option is a nearby state park. Many have large pavilions ideally suited for such events.
I've also been to company picnics given at the home of the firm's CEO or owner. This kind of setting adds a homey touch to the festivities. In some instances, facilities were set up
Maison Lafette, where "Gone With the Wind" was filmed Briarcliff Manor, Town of Mount Pleasant NY
Briarcliff Manor is a village located in Westchester County, New York. It is shared between the towns of Mount Pleasant and Ossining, and lies entirely within the zip code of 10510. As of the 2000 census, the village had a total population of 7,696, over 91% of whom lived in the Town of Ossining. The town is known for its award-winning school district (ranked 94th nationally as a public school system) and is also home to a campus of Pace University. It is the site of the Trump National Golf Course (formerly Briar Hall Country Club, originally Briarcliff Lodge early 1900's), owned by real-estate mogul Donald Trump.
Though it has few minorities, Briarcliff has a decent-sized Jewish population, and a synagogue called Congregational Sons of Israel (CSI).
Neighborhoods
The Tree Streets are a network of streets named after trees. They are popular trick or treating sites for the local youth.
North State Road is a street with apartment buildings, businesses, and small houses. This area incorporates streets such as Schrade Road, which also has apartment buildings and small houses. The Wyndcrest condominium development is also in this area.
Downtown, commonly referred to as Town, Pleasantville Road is the closest thing to a 'main street' in Briarcliff Manor. It is home to the Briarcliff Manor Fire Department as well as a number of commercial establishments. Farther along the road are the Briarcliff High School and Briarcliff Middle School. The elementary school, Todd School, is located on Ingham Road, which intersects with Pleasantville Road.
Long Hill Road stretches a long distance across Briarcliff. Many nice houses can be found on this road, as well as on the roads that branch off of it, such as Law Road, Holly Place, Cottonwood Lane, Hirst Road, and Cedar Drive East and West.
Rosecliff is a development of similar houses in the south-west corner of Briarcliff Manor.
Carleton Avenue and Washburn Road are streets in an area that falls under the postal and school systems of Briarcliff but is not governed under the village. It is governed under the Town of Mount Pleasant.
The Manor
Briarcliff Manor is located in the municipality of Briarcliff Manor in the central western part of Westchester County, NY. To the east of the Village of Ossining lay an area called Whitson’s Corners. It was settled during the 19th century. On November 21, 1902, it was officially incorporated as the Village of Briarcliff Manor
In 1890, an English businessman named Law bought 232 acres of farmland in Whitson’s Corners, calling it 'Briarcliff Farms'. He turned the farm's poor herd of Jersey cows into a profitable venture, distributing milk products. He also cultivated American Beauty Roses 'Briarcliff Roses' which were shipped daily to New York City. His holdings soon increased to 5,000 acres and he had about 300 employees. A community began to evolve there. Law’s estate was said to be a city within itself, including houses for his employees, roads, a Church, the Briarcliff Lodge, a vacation resort and the Briarcliff Manor Light and Power Company. Law’s friend, industrialist Andrew Carnegie, called him 'Laird of Briarcliff Manor'.
Westchester Limousine (800) 720-2021
Hire a limo for your weddings, birthdays, proms, and romantic dates, or treat your guests and clients to a Westchester limousine shuttle service for a tour around town, to and from hotels and airports, and during special corporate events. And for your limousine service needs only one name can be trusted: Westchester Limousine Service. Five years of first-class quality limousine service by our professionally trained chauffeurs and staff have earned Westchester Limousine Service a reputation as the New York limousine service company to hire for every function or occasion. Our stable of limousines is widely arrayed from simple elegant town cars to stylish sedans and luxurious stretch limousines. Our services cover all cities, towns and villages in Westchester County, New York.