--- title: Top Ten Tips For Throwing an Awesome Office Party description: Top Ten Tips For Throwing an Awesome Office Party --- [Polco News & Knowledge ](https://blog.polco.us) # [Top Ten Tips For Throwing an Awesome Office Party](https://blog.polco.us/top-ten-tips-for-throwing-an-awesome-office-party) Written by [NRC](https://blog.polco.us/author/nrc) | November 1, 2016 -By [Erin Dixon](https://www.n-r-c.com//who-we-are/staff/erin-dixon/)- NRC employees work hard, but we still make time for fun. We celebrate birthdays, organizational milestones and holidays because we believe it’s important to foster a team spirit. After throwing many office parties over the years, we know planning them can be a daunting task. But along the way, we’ve gathered a few tips that are sure to make any work-party a great experience for everyone. **[Cookies and Costumes: NRC Halloween 2016 Photo Album](https://flic.kr/s/aHskL2y7TG)** ### **1. Plenty of Planning** Make sure to set up reservations, call caterers and schedule events well in advance of your office holiday party. This will reduce stress and ensure that your gathering goes smoothly. ### **2. Encourage All Staff Participation** Work to get participation from employees at all levels in your organization. Socializing together, from newer entry level employees to more senior staff, builds camaraderie. ### **3. Don’t Talk About Work** Discussing business is what formally scheduled meetings are for! Reserve office celebrations to relax, share funny stories and find commonalities between yourself and your colleagues. ### **4. Dazzling Décor** If your work party is at the office, a little bit of decorating can go a long way. Streamers and posters can help transform the old work-space into an inviting clubhouse, where everyone can forget their stresses for a while. ### **5. Excellent Eats** Every good gathering has a party platter. Delectable dishes shared with co-workers are always appreciated - whether they be potluck plates, catered casseroles or sweet treats. ### **6. Play Some Jams** Spooky tunes set the scene for NRC’s cookies and costumes Halloween party this year. Music takes away awkward moments of silence, breaks the ice and sets the atmosphere. It’s a good idea to make sure the lyrics are office-appropriate. ### **7. Add an Activity** Throwing your holiday party around a fun activity will make the planning process easier. Activities are also great for team-building and memory making. A great activity can spark fond conversations about it for years to come. ### **8. Set Guidelines** It’s important to create and share guidelines with staff when inviting them to your party. Setting expectations promotes safety and ensures that the fun won’t be shut down in the future. ### **9. Party in the Daytime** NRC prefers to plan work parties during daytime hours to give employees a much deserved (paid) break in their day. The business-hour bash also demonstrates workplace flexibility and doesn’t take away from family-time in the evenings. ### **10. Definitely Document It** If an organization threw a party and nobody posted it on Facebook, did it really happen? Take photos throughout the shindig and share them on social media. This is a fun way to invite your audience into your company culture. It also encourages staff engagement and creates a space for them to look back later on all the fun they had.   *Special thanks to Tammy Dameron for providing cookies and frosting for our featured activity.*       **Related Articles** - [Top Ten Reasons Why Companies Should Celebrate Holidays](https://www.n-r-c.com//top-ten-reasons-why-companies-should-celebrate-holidays/) - [Local Government Employees Reveal What Makes for Job Satisfaction](https://www.n-r-c.com//local-government-employees-reveal-what-makes-for-job-satisfaction/) - [Do Election Seasons Hurt Citizen Survey Responses?](https://www.n-r-c.com//do-election-seasons-hurt-citizen-survey-responses/) [View full post](https://blog.polco.us/top-ten-tips-for-throwing-an-awesome-office-party) ```json { "@context" : "http://schema.org", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "NRC" }, "dateModified" : "2025-08-21T05:17:57.654Z", "datePublished" : "2016-11-01T04:00:00Z", "headline" : "Top Ten Tips For Throwing an Awesome Office Party", "image" : { "@type" : "ImageObject", "height" : 4216, "url" : "https://50271976.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hubfs/50271976/Imported_Blog_Media/NRC-Halloween-2016-14.jpg", "width" : 5166 }, "mainEntityOfPage" : "https://blog.polco.us/top-ten-tips-for-throwing-an-awesome-office-party", "publisher" : { "@type" : "Organization", "logo" : { "@type" : "ImageObject", "height" : 60, "url" : "/hs/hsstatic/content_shared_assets/static-1.4092/img/default-amp-logo.png", "width" : 60 }, "name" : "Polco News & Knowledge" } } ```