Networking

Corporate events such as cocktail parties and other social gatherings are more popular than ever because such events help encourage better personnel relations and boost morale among employees. With this in mind, most corporate events are organized at a month or a year’s end. A critical part of a successful corporate event includes the venue where the party will be held. A great venue helps leave a positive impression on employees as well as create the perfect ambience for the social gathering.

If you are organizing a corporate event, it pays to have deep understanding on what factors you have to consider when choosing the right function venue for the party. Consider these tips for starters:

Party Theme

The right venue will depend on the party’s invited guests. For instance, simple cocktail parties call for relaxed, unrestricted venues. On the other hand, formal social gatherings for important office delegates or board members are usually held in more upscale venues.

Are you organizing a simple Christmas or Halloween party or are you planning a company-wide event that will include the presence of key company officers, including the CEO, COO, etc. When it comes to picking the right venue for a social event, it’s a matter of knowing which type of social gathering it will be.

Accessibility

Choosing the right venue helps establish an impressive company image. So it’s always important to consider the location of the venue as well.

How accessible is the venue to all invitees? Most resorts or hotels require a specific number of orders per head before the actual event so it’s essential that all invitees can reach the venue without any problems at all. One way to make the venue accessible to all guests is to find a function room that has a good means of transport so even those who do not have their own cars can come to the party on their own. For bigger social gatherings that include foreign delegates, some hotels and venues owners will provide accommodation.

Booking for a venue that offer additional services like catering, accommodations or extra rooms for all party attendees will save you headache if certain things don’t go as planned. Whichever part of town you chose to hold a corporate event, make sure you checked and organized the little details first!

Decor

When invitations are sent and confirmation of attendees is received, it’s now time to take charge of the venue’s decorations. From the dance floor to the sitting arrangements, make sure you are sitting the right people together but don’t go overboard because you want to encourage conversations between personnel too. You can also set up a small stage if the company owner has to address their employees, for the band/DJ to start playing songs, etc.

Job hunting involves widening one’s network to increase the chances of finding the right job, which is why it’s important to extend your contact and connect to the right people in order to land the job of your dreams.

A successful job search requires finding leads and leaving no stone unturned in order to land the job you’ve always dreamed of. And one of the most critical parts of job hunting is knowing people who might be able to help you achieve your goals.

A typical network is split into three levels:

First Level (Inner Circle)

• Spouse or partner
• Immediate family members
• Extended family members
• In-laws
• Close friends
• Close friends’ spouses

Second Level (Acquaintances or Colleagues)

• Colleagues
• Former Classmates
• Neighbors
• Sorority Sisters/Fraternity Brothers
• Hobby, sports, religious group members
• Neighbors
• Former Co-Employees

Third Level (Personalities You Don’t Know)

• Industry leaders
• Internet group members
• Professional and industry organization members
• Speakers and/or authors
• Alumni members

In terms of landing the right job, it’s best to focus on finding leads from people from the second and third level because these people are likely to give you access to a hidden job market.

Expand Your Network: Connect With The Right People

Growing Your Network With Second-Level People: With social media being in full swing online, reconnecting with second level people has never been easier. It won’t hurt to ask! You can start by checking out what they’ve been up to and update them with your current situation. You just might come across people who can present you with great job opportunities. During the initial reconnection phase, you can also develop a great brand in order to be presented properly to third-level people.

Growing Your Network With Third Level People:Basically, you want to establish rapport with people you don’t know. If you need help introducing yourself to third level people, look for second level persons within your network. Startby determining which people are part of your inner circle and which ones is part of your second-level network.

The key to establishing contact with people you don’t know is to find a mutual connection, a person whom you and a third-level person knows very well, one that can introduce you to the other.

Establishing Contact: Practical Tips

Join LinkedIn: One of the easiest ways to widen your network is to create an account on LinkedIn. LinkedIn is a social network site for professionals seeking to find mutual connections online.

Engaging Online: If say, you are unsuccessful in widening your network via LinkedIn, you can turn to the internet to look for industries you belong and searching for great articles from authors or online personalities who can likely help you tap into a hidden market. You can do so by leaving comments on their blog posts or participating in forum discussions, etc.

Connect With Key Personalities: They say fortune befriends the bold so why not go out there and establish connection with a prominent author or speaker by emailing them and simply introduce yourself and express your desire to connect with that person? It might be intimidating to send them an email on your own but you might be surprised at how many job-seeking opportunities you could come across by establishing communication with industry leaders.

When it comes to growing your network, it’s important that you set your goals and do your best to reach them. You can land the job of your dreams by simply relying on people you know and making sure to thank these people who were instrumental to your success later on!