Corporate Awards Ceremony Ideas

Rewarding the “above and beyond” members is a tradition that has kept many businesses and organisations on track. In fact, 53% of employees claim that the respect they receive for their skills and expertise is one of the key motivation drivers in their workplace. Recognition programs are the most efficient tools to help demonstrate this respect in a way that resonates with employees’ ambitions.

But let’s be real. Without a bunch of exciting ideas and a detailed plan, it’s very easy for your awards ceremony to turn into a boring employee-of-the-year or team-of-the-year event.

Keep reading to learn how you can create an engaging recognition show for both nominees and other guests.

Ways to improve your next corporate awards ceremony

An important thing to remember here is that corporate recognition is a big deal. By rewarding specific achievements, you identify the behaviors that are desired and valuable in a given work setting. In other words, you reward behavioral patterns that other members of the company will logically want to follow. Because of this, paying close attention to the criteria, nominations, and agenda is fundamental.

Serious stuff aside, the performance of an awards ceremony pretty much depends on how far your imagination flies. We’ve collected a few simple ideas for corporate awards ceremonies that are attention grabbing and interesting:

• Add a surprise nomination category: Most likely, your guests will come prepared. This means that nominees usually understand what’s going to happen at the ceremony because they have either applied to take part in the contest or they have been nominated beforehand. But what if someone comes to the ceremony and, to his or her surprise, gets called out to the stage? Fun is guaranteed! Add one secret nomination category that your staff doesn’t know about, and leave some space for a “surprise speech” in your agenda.
• Prepare creative swag: The main reason why there tends to be an engagement gap between guests and nominees is that an awards ceremony often doesn’t “talk” to those who are just observing. Think about some cool on-brand giveaways for all attendees that will help you to both connect to guests and raise awareness about a company. Just to give you an idea, a portable power bank is a surefire option in this context. It is something that appeals to the wider audience and can be easily branded.

• Follow the 3 wows rule: If you are hosting an awards ceremony for the first time, you may have a hard time reading the audience, so focus on wow effects. We recommend embedding at least three attention-grabbing features in your event. These could be a moving stage + a good MC + VR games or any other recipe you choose based on the ceremony goals.

How to revive your next corporate awards ceremony

To get your ideas for a corporate awards ceremony into shape, you first need a checklist. In the following steps, we offer an engagement-centric strategy for awards event organisers:

Choose a venue

Even if it’s a formal black-tie ceremony, we challenge you to think outside of the box in terms of venue selection. A luxurious ballroom isn’t boredom-proof and neither is a spacious restaurant or an outdoor space. In contrast, an unconventional venue solution like a stadium could add some much needed spice.

Don’t go too crazy with your venues ideas though. Convenience and safety should always come first. Still, if you can spot some creative spaces in your target area that seem to match the spirit of your event, try a little experiment. For instance, if you are in Chicago and you think spaceships hovering above the ground is fun, consider setting up an event in the Museum of Science and Industry!

Create unique invitations

The first impression starts with a proper invitation. Think about emotional appeal when putting together your invitation. It’s important to understand what type of content will drive the desired behaviors for your specific target audience.

Once you have the content idea, think about the ways to put this idea into a creative invitation. You can either go digital or create tangible invitations. If it’s a large event, it’s better to use email marketing solutions that will help you craft targeted messages for every audience segment and will automate blasting. The must have in any email invitation is a catchy element like a short bio of a keynote speaker, nominees’ photos, or an event recap video from the prior year.

If you want to make it tangible, try to align the object you use as an invitation with the event theme. For instance, if the goal of an awards ceremony is to reward the best musician or a band, you can use vinyl or toy guitars.

Create a good program

As self-evident as it may seem, an attendance journey is super important. It’s not only about the experiences of those participating in nominations but the other guests as well. Apart from the formal part, plan some surprise activities like a speech from an industry leader, a live polling activity, or some kind of VR entertainment. Put simply, make sure everyone is engaged.

Choose a theme

If you are short on ideas on how to spice up the ceremony, an engaging theme can give you some. From dress code to catering, you can plan the key elements of your award ceremony based on the theme you choose. For instance, a masquerade theme will add some flavour to your event in the form of red carpets, vases filled with feathers, and mysterious masks. Enjoy a ready-to-use scenario!

Create a delicious menu

Recognition should be followed by celebration! Think about the food and drink part of your awards ceremony far in advance to cater to the special dietary requirements and preferences of your guests. It’s a good practice to conduct a short pre-event survey where attendees can identify what their perfect meal should look like.

Apart from tasting good, food and drinks at your ceremony should also look good. Visualise your catering concept, and come up with creative serving ideas. Check out this awesome wine-themed serving idea:

Mind your budget

Last but definitely not least, each stage of event preparation should be based on the smart use of your corporate budget. Even if you are challenged to set up an awards ceremony on a shoestring budget, there are many ways to optimise the budget by inviting industry leaders to speak for free at your event, driving sponsorships, or negotiating prices with vendors.

Conclusion

Creative ideas for corporate awards ceremonies will make your event into something more than just a recognition program. Make sure the awards event guests have a pleasant experience with the use of exciting themes, entertainment, surprise nominations, or whatever your imagination leads you to.