From company holiday parties and summer picnics to post-work happy hours and team building activities, it’s no secret that investing in your company culture can provide real benefits to your business — think greater employee engagement, increased morale and stronger workplace relationships.

Increasingly, HR pros are looking for ways to treat their employees to thoughtful recognition initiatives that are better aligned with their employee demographics, interests, and own unique brand of fun. In fact, a 2016 Gallup poll on millennial job habits — the largest generation in today’s workforce — found that “engaged millennials are 64 percent less likely to say they will switch jobs if the market improves.”

In short, your company culture is unique, and the ways in which you recognize your employees should be too.

“Clients are coming to us looking for thoughtful and unique ways to recognize their employees — they want unconventional, outside-the-box, and perhaps even a little quirky,” says Samantha Brown, Catering Sales Manager at Off the Grid. “Mobile catering is a really attractive option because of the possibilities for menu customization, full-service event production, and indoor and outdoor service styles. Not to mention, it’s fun, approachable and far from the ordinary.”

With long, warm days just around the corner, it’s the perfect time to start thinking about how to beef — or veg! — up your employee recognition initiatives this summer. Here are three innovative ideas for a mobile food-fueled event to salute a job well done.

 

 

1. Foster feel-good vibes with a company block party.

Take over your company’s parking lot, or other outdoor space of your choosing, and host a streetside event that will keep employees mingling, munching and memory-making well into the night.

In true block party fashion, let your mobile caterer curate a crowd-pleasing menu of street eats and nostalgic favorites (like cotton candy from Sugar & Spun), employ friendly service staff to carry food and drinks directly to party-goers, and incorporate games and activities like giant beer pong, Jenga and cornhole. For a truly unique experience, add an unexpected element to your event like live caricature illustrations from Silent James.

 

 

2. Throw your team one “tech” of a party.

Hosting a mobile event gives planners the opportunity to throw in of-the-moment experiences that go beyond just food. Why not treat your employees to a tech-savvy soiree decked out with party robotics, a digital dance floor and video game rentals?

If you really want to make a splash with guests, toss in an immersive mobile VR experience — hailed as one of the biggest trends impacting the event industry this year — like Exit Reality’s “cowbots and aliens” virtual reality game aboard their custom VR truck.

 

 

3. Raise a glass (or three) to employee success.

Perfect for larger companies or those with teams who work remotely, a tapas-style experience provides guests with freedom and variety while encouraging interdepartmental networking, relationship-building, and all around fuzzy feelings.

For a truly sophisticated event, talk to your caterer about coordinating full bar service (including taking care of all the nitty gritty like insurance and liability coverage), custom branded menu signage featuring your company logo, and passed bites from premier mobile food vendors paired with specialty cocktails. Better yet, keep your employees mingling — and mixing — with hands-on cocktail-making classes from Elixir to Go.

If you’re looking for innovative ways to toast your employees in 2018, mobile catering could be just the ticket — after all, nothing screams “we appreciate you” like delicious street food, craft beverages and attentive staff to make sure the whole thing goes off without a hitch.

Book your summer work event with Off the Grid Catering! We create unique experiences to suit any space, size and creative vision. Get in touch >