Creating Memorable Associate
By Frank Harlan, Comedic Performance Artist & Entertainment Producer
Comedy Entertainment Programs, Seattle, WA

Once the guests arrive, most associate gatherings are all the same, a room full of people drinking and sitting down together for a meal.

You can call that a party if you want, but add a heart beat and you have a memorable celebration!

As a professional entertainer and entertainment producer I am always impressed by the energy someone’s Administrative Assistant puts into organizing their company’s annual event that will host 50-250 guests. They research venues, catering costs, parking options, theme ideas and general communications with associate and vendors. It’s amazing what it takes to bring everyone in your organization, and their significant others together, on the same day, for a few hours of camaraderie.

When it comes to location, food and drink it’s easy to define bottom line expenses. With catering, it’s basic math: quantity of guests times the cost of chosen menu options. The bar works the same way and as far as a venue, the questions are usually, can it accommodate the number of guests expected to attend the event and how much? Add up all the numbers divide that by the number of guests and the bottom line could range from as little as $50, or may even exceed a few hundred dollars, per guest.

A ticket for a movie, in my neighborhood is $9, $10 for IMAX. And, the ballet or a professional theater production can range $25-$125 or more and the same holds true for many live concerts and sporting events. Heck! In Seattle, some guests may be paying $10-$20 just to park their car! But, when it comes to entertainment, for just about any event, many planners have a problem budgeting as little as $20 per guest.

When you decide to incorporate entertainment or interactive activities into your social gathering, it’s important that you begin with an entertainment budget that is realistic. Personally, for a small dinner event (less than 300), I believe you should consider allocating 20-25% of what you are spending for everything else. You need to keep in mind that you are entertaining adults, not children, so when it comes to any performer, with the skills required to engage an adult audience, the best entertainers are probably not going to be the lowest bidders.

Whether you are organizing a Service Awards Program or your firm’s Annual Employee Dinner, the entertainment concepts suggested, may be easily obtained from Washington based vendors and entertainers with a little research.  Below is an outline of where you might consider incorporating entertainment into your next associate get-together or corporate function.

Define an Entertainment Timeline
I like to start every production by blocking out each hour of the event, I think of each block of time as its own mini production that should seamlessly connect to the next as the evening progresses. Besides pre-production organizing and cleaning up after the event, the standard formula for a dinner party may look a little like this:

6-7:00 pm            Meet & Greet with Cocktails and Appetizers

7-8:00 pm             Dinner (Buffet or Table Service)

8-9:00 pm            After-Dinner Program

9:00-10 pm            Socializing (Extend this block if you plan to have dance music)

Unless you are planning dinner to be followed by casino gaming, group activities, a DJ or dance band, 3-4 hours should be plenty of time to host a really great dinner event.

6-7:PM Meet & Greet with Cocktails and Appetizers

Something I like to incorporate is a greeter, host or hostess, someone with a smile to offer a hearty handshake, make introductions and welcome guests? Someone, who can point out the coat check and who knows where to find the restrooms? Guests will usually begin to arrive a little early so have some kind of ice breaker scenario in play.

Should there be entertainment or any activity during the first hour of your program?

Sure! Why not? This is the perfect time to feature a solo musician to create atmosphere with a live ambient soundtrack. A solo guitarist or pianist, strolling accordionist or a violinist are all first-rate options, especially if their repertoire of music can support your theme. For larger rooms an upbeat Jazz Trio, Lounge Singer or Bhangra band are great cocktail hour treats.

In addition to a still photographer, consider letting couples create their own photos in an old fashion photo booth. Guests always treasure their little strips of black and white images! This ongoing activity can be available for the duration of the event. Stage the Photo Booth in a visual and high traffic location where others can witness the fun.

7-8:PM Dinner

Dinner rarely takes more than an hour for a small group (under 100) and some people eat faster then others. Some guests are ready for dessert when others are just getting started. What can you do to entertain them?
 
If the venue has a dance floor or large staging area (at least 20x20’), consider serving up a series of dance performances during the Entrée. TV programs like “Dancing with the Stars” and MTV’s “Dancelife” has created a huge interest in watching very technical Pro/Am level dance performances as entertainment.

Live music during the meal adds a certain kind of quality that can enhance any event. An experienced musician knows that your party is not their “world premiere” performance and that they are simply background music so guests can socialize and not feel obligated to be too attentive to the performer. Some comedy groups offer passive and interactive Dinner Theater-style performances, and roving entertainment is also well received during dinner.

8-9:PM After-Dinner Program

For an annual dinner, the Recognition and Awards program usually starts after the dessert course. Anyone that has ever attended, or been a part of, one of these internal programs knows they are packed full of highs and lows, depending on the ability of VIP’s to stand at the microphone and engage a roomful of people… obviously, a daunting task for some. On the other hand, I’ve seen organization’s VIP’s who are wonderfully comfortable in this role and it is easy for me, as an outsider, to see that the VIP’s has amazing relationships with their employees while others are simply trying to get through the program. If the latter is where your fearless leader resides, consider a professional Master of Ceremonies to facilitate the entire evening’s program. An experienced MC can call the room to order, introduce VIP’s and knows how to keep everything moving in a timely fashion.

Choosing an After-Dinner Program for a small to medium sized dinner event can be tricky. Where can you find an act or entertainer that can perform their show in limited space and engage your guests for 30-45 minutes, without offending anyone in the audience?  As much as I hate to write this, experience is a great teacher, so, here goes… if you decide on a stand-up comedian, avoid comedians that perform regularly at comedy clubs. Many do not have enough material to provide a “Corporate Safe” performance and will ultimately cross the line of good taste. Unless the comedian you choose has a record of performing for corporate clientele you may end up with some disturbing surprises. You can always request a list of references.

So, what are “corporate safe” choices for after dinner entertainment? That’s a good question. Personally, I find that engaging and lighthearted comedy is always a winner. Most magicians, jugglers and professional Buskers with a stage show are in the category of “comedy”. However, beware of the “Best of” video demo you might find on entertainer’s web site. In my opinion, the Litmus test of an experienced comedic entertainer; is one who has a history of successfully performing their show, whatever it may be, for as few as a dozen guests in a private residence to several hundred seated at tables.

Reading this article, you’re probably thinking, these are fun ideas and it all seems so easy so, why don’t I see more creative entertainment programs at associate dinner events? The answer is easy, resources; top-notch entertainers are not always readily available, and expense. Venue, food and drink costs are necessities; entertainment often appears to be an expensive add-on. It’s the first thing to get cut or whittled down to the minimum expense as possible. If you are considering  incorporating any kind of entertainment or interactive activity for an Associate Dinner Party, allow me to repeat myself, when it comes to any performer with the skills required to engage an adult audience, the best entertainers are probably not going to be the lowest bidders.
 
Organizing all the details of any event and taking on the role of an event planner to an already long list of daily “to do’s” can be overwhelming for anyone, even the best Admin… However, for some of you, it can be a wonderfully engaging creative process that takes you outside of the day to day mindset of the cubical environment. Have fun with the process and trust the vendors you choose to do business with, they too, are experts at what they do.