Welcome to a new year event profs!
It’s time to get prepared to plan the ultimate corporate events this 2025. Our expert event management team are here to help you spruce up your knowledge of the trends hitting the corporate event industry this year, so you can plan unforgettable experiences that meet your objectives and make great returns for your organisation.
Whether you hold internal events quarterly or annually, it’s your only shot at making it work for your delegates and your organisation, take a look at these trends and think about how you can incorporate some of them into your corporate event planning for 2025.
1. Delegate Wellness
Okay, so jumping into a bath of freezing cold water like the guy in the photo above may not be your team’s idea of fun. It’s not for everyone, however, the beauty of delegate wellness is that there is so much you can incorporate into the wider event to suit all abilities and preferences.
Over recent years we’ve become more aware of the importance of taking care of the ‘people’ within our organisation. With mental health on the rise, employers must do their bit to create safe and nurturing working environments. It is in any organisation’s best interest to take care of the mental well-being of their team, not only does it help their brand reputation, but it also helps them attract and retain top talent.
A report by Wellable states that 56% of employees had fewer sick days because of wellness programs. A survey also found that 22% of 18 to 24-year-olds prefer to allocate their disposable income to health and fitness, surpassing spending on going for a drink. Organisations should consider no or low-alcohol events as part of their wellness strategies. (See point 8)
Sober University Events: Scottish universities have shifted from traditional alcohol-heavy freshers’ weeks to “Welcome Weeks,” featuring activities like yoga and movie screenings, reflecting changing preferences among students.
But what do you need to consider before searching for the perfect wellness activity for your next conference or away day?
Did you know? There are three sides to well-being:
- Physical health: How well your body functions
- Mental health: How well you manage your thoughts, emotions, and behaviours
- Social health: How well you communicate with others and your relationships
It is important to consider that each delegate is different and may require support in different areas. If you can, try to add a few wellness activities to your event so you can satisfy the needs of all of your employees.
Ideas for delegate wellness at your corporate event:
- Mindful practices – Breathwork, Meditation, Gratitude
- Low physical activity – Yoga, Tai Chi, Team Building Activities such as a Sports Day or an iPad Treasure Hunt
- Healthy food and drink – Smoothies, Plant-Based Menus
- Being outdoors in nature – Country Pursuits, wellness walks, Corporate Festivals or Company Fun Days
- Low or no alcohol – Having plenty of alternatives to alcohol and encouraging employees to interact and have fun without alcohol
- Quiet spaces – Limit sensory overload with designated quiet zones for delegates who may need some time away from the hustle and bustle of your event
2. Sustainably Focused Events
So we’ve spoken about the importance of taking care of people but it’s equally important to consider the planet. In fact, you may not know that in total there are 5 Ps that underpin the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) you should aim towards:
- People
- Planet
- Prosperity
- Partnerships
- Peace
Corporate events are the perfect platform to showcase your organisation’s culture and sustainability efforts. Think about it, there is so much tangible change you can make at a corporate event to minimise your impact on the planet, improve the lives of people, nurture the right partnerships, support economic growth and promote peace and inclusivity.
According to Proseed by ISLA there are four key areas of your event you should review to reduce your carbon footprint OR you can leave this work to us and with the help of our Carbon Calculator we can recommend further changes for future events too.
- Energy – Venue Energy, Organisation Energy, Event Energy, Generators
- Food and Water – Sourcing, Service and Packaging, Food Surplus and Waste, Conserving Water
- Travel and Transport – Audience Travel, Staff Travel, Event Transport, Supply Chain
- Production – Purchasing, Graphics, Built Elements, Waste
By working alongside an ECOsmart-accredited Event Agency such as Eventurous, you can highlight where you want to make big or small positive changes according to your resources and budget.
3. Diversity, Accessibility, and Inclusivity
Diversity, Equality and Inclusion (DEI) will be at the forefront of event planning in 2025 and as a company whose core values include ‘we care’ which refers to our ethos around people and the planet, we are on hand to support you with your inclusivity goals.
Having diverse perspectives and representation within your company can be crucial, for improved decision-making or problem-solving, enhanced creativity and overall better performance. For too many years now, DEI has not been considered enough in event planning, but by incorporating these into your event can elevate the experience for your attendees and make it a truly memorable and accessible one for all.
Easy tips for making your corporate event more DEI-focused:
- Accessibility: Consider who your delegates are and their individual needs, you must also think about the needs they may have that you may not be able to see like specific disabilities such as hearing impairments. Discuss the accessibility needs of your delegates with your event management partner and allow them to find you an appropriate venue using their professional knowledge. The use of ramps, AI interpreters and braille are all examples of ways you can make your event and its content enjoyable to everyone.
- Champion inclusivity: There are numerous ways to do this, you can raise awareness of the importance of inclusivity during talks, showcase a diverse range of speakers,
- Offer equal opportunities: It is important to select activities such as team building or evening entertainment that allows everyone to join in. Another way you can offer equal opportunities is by partnering with suppliers that work with social enterprises to support important causes such as helping ex-prisoners, people with disabilities and young people to get into work.
At Eventurous we can help you choose the right entertainment, venue and activities that feature a diverse range of speakers, performers, and content to help inspire your audience and represent wider perspectives of the community. Our venue-finding team can support you in sourcing a venue that is accessible for each person attending.
4. Gamification Tech On Events
Adding gamification technology to your conference or away day is a simple and sustainable way to increase audience engagement and incentivise people to collaborate. You will notice technology evolving more at corporate events such as conferences and team away days.
A popular new tool for audience engagement is the use of apps such as ‘Slido’ which asks your audience to answer polls or questions during panel or speaker sessions at your conference. This helps keep delegates focused, and listening and in turn increases your return on investment by helping the message of your content really sink in.
Another way you may find gamification making its way into your internal events is the use of bespoke quiz software on devices such as iPads as part of your team building activities. Use of such software removes the use of the old school methods such as pens and paper, reducing waste and making your content more visually appealing, and modern and even giving you the choice to add some personalisation with company branding and bespoke questions that will make your delegates feel valued.
5. AI on Corporate Events
AI is evolving year by year, in 2024 we saw the rise of the use of ChatBots to support pre-event communications and planning amongst other things and this year we can expect to see more. AI is being used to support easier planning, inclusivity, efficiency and delegate engagement. For example, you can use AI to support your DEI objectives at your next conference.
Platforms such as Interprefy can interpret speaker or panel sessions projecting the script onto large screens for those in the audience who have hearing disabilities. You can also use this tool for taking meeting notes or to translate speaker sessions into another language live for your international delegates.
AI can be used to streamline event planning and execution processes such as delegate registration or social listening and can reduce the cost of having someone manually do them.
Speak to your event management partner about incorporating AI into your event.
6. CSR / Charity Team Building
Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is a term that only marketers knew and heard of now it’s a phrase on everyone’s lips! CSR is a commitment to ethically conducting business and thinking about the impact their decisions have on people and the planet.
There are huge benefits to businesses for incorporating CSR into their values and objectives. Studies have found that eight out of ten consumers are willing to pay more for sustainably produced goods and young people are looking for purpose-driven work somewhere with strong CSR commitments.
Corporate events and team building days are the ideal platform for demonstrating these values. Outdoor team building events such as company fun days and festivals allow organisations to meet multiple CSR objectives such as:
- Develop team skills
- Promote physical, mental and social employee wellbeing
- Working together to give back to those who need it most
A trend taking the corporate event industry by storm in 2024 and is predicted to continue into 2025 is the demand for team building events that allow employees to give back to charities or local communities. Eventurous has a range of charitable team building activities which engage employees in fun challenges that allow them to win donations for charity such as their Fairway to Foodbank charity golf event or their Charity Bike Build.
There are also team building activities that focus on giving back to employees in the sense of education and knowledge of important topics such as sustainability – check out the Eventurous Wind Farm Challenge.
7. Low or No Alcohol Events
The UK is seeing a decline in alcohol consumption, particularly in young people, as a result, we are seeing a shift in event and entertainment market trends. A social media post from famous Entrepreneur Steven Bartlett stated that:
- Increased sobriety: 36% of 18-24-year-olds now identify as teetotal, up from 24% in 2022.
- 47% of people in younger generations say they have reduced or stopped drinking alcohol in the past six months.
- Scottish universities have shifted from freshers’ weeks to “Welcome Weeks,” featuring activities like yoga and movie screenings, as opposed to alcohol.
Interestingly because of this social change, we are seeing demand from corporate event bookers for activities and events that have no or low alcohol. The majority of clients are still having alcohol present but are ensuring that it is not the focal point of the event and there are plenty of other ways to have fun!
Competitive socialising has grown in popularity and gaming bars such as Fight Club and Boom Battle Bar have grown a huge 80% in the last two years. On top of this, team building providers are seeing demand increase for large-scale outdoor events such as corporate festivals, family fun days and away days to include some competitive socialising such as Axe Throwing and Rifle Shooting. The trend has even begun feeding into indoor team building with requests for Free Play Games such as our Casino Night and Racing Simulators at conferences and Christmas parties.
You’re Ready to Get Planning!
So, whatever your plans are for corporate events in 2025, consider ways in which your experience can rise above the rest and even make a difference along the way by including sustainable and diverse methods that will change the corporate game and wow your audience. The benefits from corporate events and team building are no longer something your business can afford to miss out on, but to gain the best return on the event, it is vital to get your audience interacting, having fun, and finding new ways to stay engaged.
