Should we serve alcohol at our company event?

There is a fine balance between wanting your employees to enjoy themselves at your company event and hosting a drunken binge. Employers want to safeguard the health of their employees and do not want to encourage excessive alcohol consumption. On the other hand, no-one likes to be labelled as a killjoy. Here are some pointers if you are wondering whether you should serve alcoholic drinks at your next company event.

Should we serve alcohol at our company event

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How to serve alcohol safely at a company event

Take steps to remove the focus from drinking alcohol, and especially from getting drunk. You can do this by offering attractive non-alcoholic beverages and delicious food. Use entertainment as a distraction, and pack out the event with games, speeches and presentations.

Food must be readily available. According to the alcohol charity Drink Aware, when you drink on an empty stomach, the alcohol gets absorbed into the system very quickly. This is likely to result in more drunkenness at your event. Snack bars located at various locations around the event can help avoid this. They should be open all night and serve simple food such as chips.

A good method for limiting the quantity of alcohol consumed is to serve drinks via drink tickets. Event management firms, such as http://davisevents.ie, can take care of details like this for you.

Stick to wine and beer. These don’t get people drunk so quickly and it is easier to keep track of how much has been drunk.

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Recruiting the right staff for your business event

The top tip on how to plan a business event with alcohol is to recruit experienced staff. Have a limit for the number of bars and the time that they are open. You do not have to keep the bar open whilst meals are being served or during presentations.

Insist on trained and experienced bartenders. Don’t cut corners by using your own employees, and self-serve and free bars should definitely be avoided.

Experienced bartenders will know how to spot a person who has had enough to drink and will know how to politely but firmly refuse to serve them anymore. Managers and professional event planners can also patrol the event looking out for those that are worse for wear. They can arrange safe transport home if needed.

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