A reader of the blog asked about the advantages of an outdoor corporate gathering since it is summer across the land. Outdoor functions require different planning guides but can provide many advantages to your guests’ experience as well as your company’s budget. Companies with a great deal of experience planning and executing outdoor functions like Just Corporate Catering can help make an outdoor event memorable.

Having an outdoor party may save your company hundreds if not thousands of dollars. If held at a county or state park the cost, could be next to nothing if not entirely free altogether. In some instances, all that is required is to reserve the space, and at some there may be a small fee and a permit may be required depending on the size of the gathering. Renting a hall or a room at a facility can be very costly. There are other advantages to having your party outdoors.

One of the advantages is that it can be fun, which sometimes makes it easier to slip in some work while people are enjoying themselves and employees do, (in spite of what they may say) appreciate a good time. There are many activities that can be done in the great outdoors that can’t be done in a facility, such as softball, volleyball and other competitive sports.

The disadvantages can of course be the weather, getting  all of the supplies to and from the park, and getting people to pay attention to serious business can be difficult at such events as well. These problems can be avoided , or at least minimized with tents, vans and if at all possible, leave the work and serious discussions out till a later time.

The food choices at an outdoor event can range from traditional BBQ , which can be prepared by the caterer on site, to almost any kind of menu which can be brought to the location and served. Another thing to consider is refrigeration. If the size of your party warrants it, rather than have multiple coolers with tons of ice , a generator and refrigerator could be a good choice.

So whether it’s a reward for your employees or an opportunity to mix business with pleasure, it may be a good decision to have an outdoor event.

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Justin Cook stirs up his recipes concerning corporate catering, event planning and other dining related topics on his Just Corporate Catering blog. Please feel free to add comments to his posts and contact Justin with questions or other communication at justin.cook@justcorporatecatering.com