How to plan a company Dinner & Dance

Planning a company Dinner & Dance usually lands on someone who already has a full-time job. This guide breaks the work into a timeline you can follow, with the decisions that matter at each stage. The timings are a guide: a small team dinner needs less lead time, and a large year-end D&D on a popular date needs more.

4 to 6 months before: set the foundations

• Agree the purpose. A thank-you, a celebration of results, or a culture-building night. This decides almost everything else.
• Fix the date range and headcount. Year-end Fridays and Saturdays are the most requested dates in Singapore, so decide early and keep one backup date.
• Set the budget and who approves it. Decide whether you're working to a fixed budget or asking for options.
• Form a small committee. Three to five people from different departments is enough. Give one person the final say.
• Shortlist venues or bring in a planner. If you use an event company, this is the point to brief them, while good dates and venues are still open.

3 months before: lock the big items

• Confirm the venue and date. Check capacity, stage and dance floor space, sound limits, the end time, and what the venue provides.
• Choose the concept or theme. See our Dinner & Dance ideas if you need a starting point.
• Book the key people. The emcee, band or DJ, photographer and videographer are booked earliest for year-end dates.
• Plan the programme outline. Arrival, dinner, speeches, awards, entertainment, lucky draw, dance floor. Keep the formal part short.

2 months before: details and communication

• Send the save-the-date, then the invitation with the dress code and RSVP deadline.
• Collect dietary needs with the RSVP, including halal, vegetarian and allergies.
• Decide awards and prizes. Order trophies and lucky draw prizes, and prepare short write-ups or videos for award winners.
• Brief the leaders. Agree who speaks, for how long, and in what order.
• Plan transport if the venue is hard to reach or the night ends late.

1 month before: confirm everything

• Final headcount and seating plan. Mix departments where you can.
• Run sheet. A minute-by-minute schedule that names who is responsible for each item.
• AV and stage plan. Slides, videos, music cues, microphones, lighting and walk-on music.
• Vendor confirmations. Arrival times, set-up needs, power, meals for crew, and final payments due.
• A wet-weather plan for any outdoor element.

The final week

• Reminder to guests with the time, address, dress code and how to get there.
• Rehearsal for the emcee, speakers and any performers, ideally at the venue.
• Print and pack. Name lists, table numbers, lucky draw tickets, awards and scripts.
• One point of contact on the day, so vendors and the venue know who decides.

On the night

Arrive early, walk the room, and test every microphone and video. Keep the programme moving: a late start is the most common reason a D&D loses energy. Then enjoy it. The committee should get to celebrate too.

After the event

Share photos and a highlight video within a week while people are still talking about it, thank the vendors and the committee, and write down what worked while it's fresh. Next year's planning starts with those notes.

If you'd rather hand over the timeline, the vendors and the run sheet, that's what our Dinner & Dance planning service is for. You can also read what goes into a D&D budget, or request a proposal.

Dinner & Dance: how we plan it →