How to organise a company party during COVID-19?

Tips for organising a company party during COVID-19

Barrier gestures, social distancing, mask-wearing, video conferencing. The corporate events sector has been hit hard by the new health rules in place since the end of lockdown. Company parties, cocktail evenings, staff-committee events and seminars all have to contend with drastic measures that it is vital to respect. At Morning, we create and host bespoke events for companies looking to treat themselves to an inspiring, creative or fun interlude. And, like everyone in the industry, we have had to adapt to these new restrictions too. So here are our best practices for holding your company party in complete safety!

Creating a reassuring, safety-focused corporate event

Even before launching your event or company party, it is essential to make safety the focus of your communications. In the case of an in-person event, you need to reassure the people attending your conference, cocktail evening or party that the barrier gestures will be respected. Be sure to remind everyone that masks are compulsory, that social distancing will be in force and that you will be providing hand sanitiser, among other things. The venue's capacity for your company party will also be revised downwards. So remember to set a clear registration limit on your online ticketing.

You can also opt for a "phygital" company party. This is an event that combines the in-person and the digital. This hybrid model lets participants choose to stay at home to take part in the event.

Adapting the venue for your company party

Safety is the main priority for your company party. It is therefore essential to adapt the venue accordingly. To do so, you need to follow a few of the rules currently in force:

• First of all, it is important to remind people once again to respect the barrier gestures, through clear, dedicated signage and by providing masks and hand sanitiser.
• As your participants arrive, a sign-in sheet will also make it possible to identify everyone present. Should there be an infection, it will be easier to get in touch with them. You can also take their temperature as they arrive at your company party.
• Be sure to control the flow of people too. The entrance and exit to the venue must be separate, and it is also mandatory to create and follow a single, one-way route. The aim is to keep comings and goings to a minimum so that people cross paths as little as possible.
• When it comes to managing the space, you must observe the rule of 4 m² per participant. In a plenary format, you will need to place the chairs one metre apart. Each chair must have a clear space of one metre in front, behind and on either side. The venue must also be aired out through windows (it is worth remembering, incidentally, that air conditioning is not advised during COVID) before and after your company party. And cleaning must be stepped up, especially on contact surfaces.
• Remember to adapt your equipment properly too. Kit yourself out with good streaming or video-conferencing gear so as not to reduce the quality of the event or your participants' attention, whether they are there in person or joining from home. Provide plenty of microphones, too, to avoid passing a single one around the whole audience during a Q&A session, for example. In the same way, setting up several screens showing the presentation will help you keep groups from gathering.
• As for catering, forget the buffet. Individual meal trays and boxes are the way to go, whether for breakfast, a snack, lunch or dinner. In the case of a phygital event, our little tip is to have the same food delivered to remote participants as the one served on site. A fresh breakfast delivered to your door helps you feel far more included in the event!

If you need any further information, UNIMEV, the French union of events-industry professions, lists all the solutions available to help events get back up and running here. Digital solutions, technical solutions and service solutions. There is something for every taste and every company party.

Phygital, the hybrid company-party model

As we have explained, you can hold your company party in person, but also add a digital element to it. This is what is known as the phygital model. To do so, there are plenty of tools available for quality streaming or video conferencing. If you are wondering which tool to use for a quality video conference, we put together a selection of the best tools back in March. You will then need to adapt the content of the party so that people joining remotely can also speak up and/or take part.

Suitable entertainment

If you had planned a special experience to enrich your event – a sports class, a workshop, a taster session, and so on – remember that some of these will not be feasible safely, such as karaoke (for obvious reasons). Others will simply need adapting to observe the social distancing rules properly. It is up to you to decide how to adapt each activity.

• If you are organising a yoga class, for example, it will need to respect social distancing.
• Be sure to equip each person individually during a creative or recreational workshop, to avoid everyone touching the same equipment.
• Limit the number of people per workshop.

And where does the events team fit into all this?

Still with a view to putting the safety of your company party first, your team must also be beyond reproach. Every member of the team should be kitted out with visors, glasses and masks, and the people welcoming participants must be protected by sneeze guards. The events team's role is to make sure the health rules are properly observed.

Organise your next company party at Morning

Our events team is on hand to help you organise your next company party while respecting all the rules we have just listed. Our various event spaces in Paris are all adapted to the new health measures in force, our teams are trained for it too, and they can support you with the entire organisation and running of your event.

We offer a variety of modules and formats (seminars, team building, workshops, guided tours, conferences) whose length and number can be tailored to your needs. Three hours or several days, we design your events on a turnkey basis. On the agenda: inspiring talks, substantial content, tours of places of innovation and moments of team bonding.

You are now all set to put on the perfect corporate event during COVID-19.

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