Run sheets
What the evening looks like by the clock.
Most questions we get are really questions about timing: when do guests arrive, when do the speeches happen, when does it end. Below are four worked run sheets from real planning practice, with the hours written out. They are examples, not a timetable: your fixed points move everything else.
Company evening · 5 hours
The standard company evening
The shape most of our work takes: a weekday or Friday evening in a hired hall, 60 to 100 people, dinner from your caterer and a programme that leaves room for talking. The run sheet is built so that nothing important happens while people are still arriving.
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15:00
Crew on site
Set-up begins. Tables, scenography, lighting and sound are built and tested. This sits outside the five programme hours.
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18:00
Doors
The welcome point is staffed, music is at conversation volume, the photo point is already working.
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18:40
The host opens
One short address: what is in the room, what happens when, where the activities are. Two minutes, not ten.
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19:00
First activity block
The tables or stations open. Hosts explain each activity at the table, so nobody has to ask twice.
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20:15
Speech window
Thirty minutes held back for your own speeches, an award or an announcement. Music down, lighting up.
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20:45
Second activity block
Activities reopen, the music programme moves on, the photo point takes the bulk of its traffic.
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22:30
Closing block
The host closes the programme, names the winning table where there is scoring, and the last half hour runs on music alone.
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23:00
Programme ends
Pack-down starts once the room is clear and takes one to two hours. Again, outside the programme hours.
Formats that fit this shape
Awards and anniversary · 4 hours
An evening with something to announce
When the evening exists because the company has something to say: results, an anniversary, a set of awards. The programme is arranged around the announcement rather than interrupted by it, and the second half is deliberately lighter than the first.
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17:00
Technical rehearsal
Slides, microphones and the award order are run through with whoever is speaking. Thirty minutes, before guests arrive.
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18:30
Arrival
Staffed welcome, the runner and the press-style wall in use, a presenter working the queue.
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19:15
The formal block
Host, speeches, your material on screen, then the awards in a fixed order with printed cards.
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20:15
The room relaxes
Activities open, the music programme starts, the photo point takes the group shots.
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21:45
Group photograph and close
One assembled photograph, a closing word, and the programme ends on time.
Formats that fit this shape
Team day · 5 hours
A working day that is not a meeting
A daytime programme for a team that already knows each other and does not need an icebreaker. Teams are drawn at the door so departments mix, the scoring is visible from the start, and the day finishes with a round that any team can still win.
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08:30
Build
Stations, boards and sound are built and tested before anyone arrives.
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10:00
Teams drawn
Bands handed out at the door. The host runs a two-minute rules round, no longer.
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10:30
First rotation
Stations run in parallel. Crew reset each one between rotations and the board goes up after every block.
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12:30
Break
A ninety-minute break for your caterer. Stations are reset and the board stays visible.
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14:00
Second rotation
Harder tasks, bigger scores, and the teams that fell behind in the morning can catch up.
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15:00
The final round
One timed round worth double, then the result and printed certificates. No cash and no vouchers.
Formats that fit this shape
Outdoor day · 5 hours
A day on the grass with a plan B
An outdoor programme for a company that wants a daytime event. Everything is built before the first guest arrives, activity points stay staffed for the whole programme so no queue forms, and the wet-weather alternative is agreed in writing ten days ahead rather than decided on the morning.
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07:30
Site build
Marquee, stage or activity points, power and way-finding boards. Two to three hours depending on the site.
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11:00
Gates
The welcome point opens, programme sheets are handed out, every activity point is already staffed.
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11:30
Open programme
All points run at once. Guests move at their own pace; nothing requires the whole group at a given minute.
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13:30
The one fixed point
The group comes together for a short address and the group photograph. Fifteen minutes, then back to the points.
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15:00
Main set
The stage programme or the closing event, depending on which format you chose.
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16:30
Close
The group is collected back to one point, the host closes the day, and the site is cleared within two hours.
Formats that fit this shape
Adapting the shape
Four things we move for you, at no extra cost.
- The order of the parts. Activities before dinner, after dinner, or split across both.
- The difficulty of the tasks. The same stations can run as a light round or as a serious competition, and we set that with you in advance.
- The speech and dinner pause. One window of 20 to 40 minutes placed where you want it, with the music down and the lighting up.
- The closing block. A result and certificates, a group photograph, or simply music that fades out at the hour you booked.
Anything that adds crew, equipment or hours is a different price, and we tell you the figure before you decide.
Questions
Questions about how an evening runs.
Can the running order be changed?
Yes, and it usually is. The timings on this page are worked examples, not a fixed timetable. We build the run sheet around your fixed points: when the room is available, when your caterer serves, when the speeches have to happen.
What happens if the evening starts late?
The coordinator on site shortens the blocks rather than the programme. Activities open later and the closing block stays where it is, so the end time you booked holds. If you want to extend instead, that is possible when the venue allows it and it is priced in writing before the date.
Do guests have to take part in everything?
No. Taking part is voluntary in every format. A guest can watch, sit out a round or spend the evening at the table talking, and our hosts do not press anyone to join in.
Send us your fixed points.
The date, the room, the hour the venue closes. We will send back a run sheet that fits them.