Corporate Events Blog

So it's that time of year.....to be getting your company holiday cards signed, sealed and delivered. While they can be time consuming, when done right, they can leave a lasting impression and make somebody feel good about doing or having done business with you. Here are some tips that are helpful when getting your holiday cards, thank you notes, or other personal correspondence ready to send out:

1. Choose stationary that represents your company's image.

2. Do the same with your stamps; while metered mail is easy there is a personal touch with a stamp.

3. Hand write the address and make sure you sign the cards personally (with black or blue ink).

4. Handwritten is definitely the most personal way to go, but for very lare quantities or an audience who is particularly tech savvy choose an ecard with fun graphics that depicts your company's "personality".

5. Try to write personal messages, and be as specific with details as possible.

6. Avoid using specific job titles, as they tend to change. Also take special care in the correct spelling of recipient's name.

7. Always err on the formal side when it comes to grammar and tone.

8. SPELL CHECK!!

With the holidays around the corner many of us are getting ready for our annual trip to drop off toys at the local shelter, pop in to a nearby soup kitchen to serve meals or get extra coins ready to drop in the salvation army buckets around town.

Many companies  in Houston already participate in some type of giving back throughout the year, but maybe yours is not one of them, or maybe you feel like your employees could do more?

Consider having a day or 1/2 day where employees visit a local charity of their selection; or maybe divide the office into teams each with a budget to go out and pay-it-forward or donate to a family or organization in need. On a tight budget? Maybe it is as simple as having an office bake sale or create recipe books to sell and donate the profits.

Whatever it is that works for your office it is sure to put everyone in the holiday spirit, and promote a positive image for your company.

For information on local opportunties visit the corporate page of Volunteer Houston's website and sign up today! http://www.volunteerhouston.org/involved/corporations

We've all been there. The workplace where gossip runs rampant, where there is always some unidentifiable tension in the air, and where coworkers are lucky to know each other's first names, let alone their last. I think it's safe to say that most of us have at some point or another have also been part of a team that is cohesive, friendly and supportive. The later of these is assuredly the more desirable of the 2, but still so many organizations have such a hard time getting everyone on the same page.

 Forming a close knit team of people will lead to a more productive workplace and more success for your company in the long term. Think your office could use a few pointers on gettings things back on track? Take a look at this article from Forbes for a few ideas. http://www.forbes.com/sites/glennllopis/2012/10/01/6-ways-successful-teams-are-built-to-last/

With an abundance of articles such as this recent one from Forbes http://www.forbes.com/sites/stevecooper/2012/07/30/make-more-money-by-making-your-employees-happy/    it is no longer a big secret that happy employees make for productive employees.

Here are some tips to keep your happy office happy or some ideas to boost morale if everybody could use a little pick-me-up.

1. Make sure upper management is available, engaged and listening to employees.
2. Have a volunteer "day off" where employees do 1 day of community service at the location of their choice.
3. Make meetings more enjoyable; have small snacks, pick a theme or have a raffle.
4. Improve teamwork by having each team (given a small budget) decorate 1 room or area of the office.
5. Reward and acknowledge tenure; give newer employees something to work for and look forward  to.
6. Celebrate birthdays, decorate for holidays, send flowers for congratulations or sympathies; small personal touches go a long way.
7. Throw one big party; whether it is for a holiday, a company anniversary or to celebrate a big milestone in the corporation have one event where you go the extra mile and let employees kick back and have a good time.
8. Share the bad news along with the good news;  if information is not shared it will get made up, so better to get the true story out there with accurate information.
9. Offer frequent training and continuing education; employees will appreciate the extra tools, and a good refresher never hurt.
10. Ask employees what motivates them; all you have to do is ask, it might be the smallest things that would make somebody enjoy their time at work a little bit more.

It might not quite be October yet, but when you actually start thinking about October you also start thinking of November and December!  The last three months of the year means the Holidays are coming and you are already behind.  Many of us wait until the last couple months in the year to evaluate our budget to see how much we have for a Holiday Party.  Then of course you start to worry and think “December is two months away and I still need to book a venue, which venues will still have dates left!”  Well do not worry many The Courtyard still has Friday, Saturdays, and Sundays available as well as many week day opportunities.  Now if you are concerned about having a Holiday Party on a Monday through Thursday because many people don’t like to go out those nights knowing they have work the next day, why don’t you give them a little extra gift.  Have your Holiday Party on a Thursday and surprise your employees with that Friday off or even a half day. 

What if the budget is still tight, but you know there is still room for a Holiday Party.  One great way to celebrate without breaking the bank is having a Happy Hour with light hors d’oeuvres!  You can even consider having a great private lunch at The Courtyard, it is much nicer then taking your employees to Restaurant and cost almost the same. 

When it comes to Holiday Parties you really have to be open-minded and think about all the opportunities you have.  The budget always plays a big part, but I assure you we will do our best to work with you!

The Courtyard on St. James still has available dates open for Holiday Parties whether you have 20 or 300 guests, please don’t wait to call us we are happy to work with you!

As repetitive and as crazy as work can be at times we must remember that there are simple ways to take our mind off things and then get back on track after a small mental break!

I highly recommend taking a walk around the block, even if you do live somewhere like Houston where it is 105 degrees it is totally worth it!  Fresh air combined with a change in scenery is great for productivity.  I know most people already do the next suggestion, but spend 10 minutes checking your favorite social media sites; it’s a great mental distraction!  I also highly recommend having a quite chat about something non work related or event a different perspective on a work task with another coworker.  My Fiancé often goes to the gym during his lunch break, because typically he eats lunch at his desk and it definitely takes your mind off things. 

There are some things that will help boost your work productivity that are available to some, but not to others.  These things include taking a small cat nap for 15 minutes at your desk; I wouldn’t be caught dead doing this even if it was allowed.  Running an errand is like walking around the block, but you take care of some of your own business while giving your mind a mental break.  The last one everyone is capable of doing, which is brushing your teeth.  Apparently removing decay and plaque can cause you to feel less sluggish!  I’ll have to give this one a try!!

For those of you that get crazy cravings for cupcakes, delicious Jamba Juices or Seattle’s Best Coffee keep your eye out for the new automated kiosk restaurants that should be popping up in the next year!  Of course vending machines have been around for decades churning out sugar filled sodas and candy bars, but this will be completely different from the norm. 

Even though Starbucks owns Seattle’s Best Coffee, I would expect to see a decrease in sales for them.  In the next year the company plans on installing 500 “Rubi” Kiosks in grocery and retail stores around the country.  These machines will grind whole coffee beans and brew cups to order, ranging from mochas to vanillas lattes with prices starting at just a $1.00.  Not only is there a Starbucks on every corner, there will now be coffee dispensing kiosks when we actually get into the stores! 

People might call me crazy for this, but I have never actually been to a Jamba Juice.  Maybe I will give it a go one day when I start seeing the 500 units (also known as JambaGO) they will be installing in schools, convenience stores, colleges and entertainment venues within the next year. They expect the first units to be in elementary and secondary schools and they expect a $700,000 in revenue until the end of 2012! To all the parents you could only hope that this is where your kid’s lunch money will be going, instead of those warm chocolate chip cookies!

I would like to save the best new kiosk for last!  Most people are already aware that Sprinkles have already installed there “Cupcake ATM” in Beverly Hills, but did you know they are also coming to New York, Washington D.C., Chicago, Dallas and HOUSTON!  Don’t worry about the cupcakes freshness either, bakers already work at the stores until midnight and are back at 3AM so the “ATMs” will be stocked at least twice daily.  Now I’m not too much of a sweet eater, but cupcakes 24/7 seems like a sweet eaters delight!

Yelp you can’t live with it and you can’t live without it.  Yelp can be so untrustworthy at times, one person has a bad experience and it takes your whole rating down or on the other side there are so many glowing reviews that they seem almost too “glowing”, if you know what I mean. There are a few interesting facts about Yelp that have helped me to decide to avoid that website all together.  I have condoned it as untrustworthy and bias.  Did you know that Yelp will offer to push bad reviews far down the list if that business will agree to pay to advertise? This has got to be almost like blackmail.  There are also no guidelines set as to what the different star ratings mean.  I can also say that I was guilty, I was just on Yelp to read reviews I never actually wrote one or gave any star ratings and that’s how are majority of there users actually are.  How can some of us judge so much when we don’t even give our two cents either. Get this, did you know you can become part of the “Yelp Elite” when you write yelp reviews over restaurants, nail/hair salons, ect continuously.  These “Yelp Eliters” then get invited to private parties hosted by businesses, how bias is that.  There is also a filtration for any reviews that you write, most don’t even get posted.  The confusing part about this is that when you are logged on you can read your posts, but it is when you search for them they won’t pop up for other viewers to see, how unfair.  This filtration system is programmed to filter out untrustworthy reviews, who is to judge if they are trustworthy or not, last time I heard everyone is entitled to there own opinion.  Reviews can be so helpful and everyone is entitled to there own opinion but who is controlling these opinions. These review sites can be very misleading and I happen to believe Yelp is the worst offender.

Some new announcements have been made about OTC just recently!  They are actually expanding square footage this year by another 35,000 feet, which makes it the largest exhibit in OTC’s history.  The extra room will be able to spotlight some new technology this could potentially revolutionize certain areas of the industry. Some particular ones to look out for will be Baker Hughes with downhole communications, one from Versabar with the Claw, an offshore system for handling equipment.  There’s two from FMC, focused on three-phase subsea separation systems.  It looks as though OTC, like every other year, has even more in store for all the attendees this year!

As many times as I find myself during the week wondering what fun activities I should plan, I always come back to the same thought, “what is there to do in this city?”  I have been a Houstonian for 23 years and it is just as hard for me to think of something to do today as it was 5 years ago.  A few of my favorite places I have listed below:

-Alamo Draft House

-Track 21 for laser tag and adult go-carts

-Take a picnic and a bottle of wine to Discovery Green, some nights they offer movies, band or shows.

-Did you know that Miller Out Door Theater offers free TUTS performances, bring a great picnic, beverage of choice and blanket and enjoy the show (plan ahead and arrive early though)

-Get a group together and go play Volleyball at memorial Park or they have a great driving range as well.

-Brazos Bend State Park has an Alligator Park (although sparse last time I went), but you better plan to have your bike, walking shoes and a picnic.

-St. Arnolds brewery opens from 11AM to 2PM on Saturdays and it cost $7.00 for four beers and a free tour, you can also bring your own food.

-Herman Park is right next to the zoo and has paddle boats you can rent and bring your own picnic as well.

-Hit up the Houston Horse Track on a Friday night for $.50 beers.

These are just a few of my favorite things to do in Houston, but the events are endless. Enjoy!