Beyond the Ballroom: Planning a Corporate Event People Actually Want to Attend
By Nancy Wiser
The corporate event is having a moment — but perhaps not in the way you might expect.
Companies are continuing to bring employees, customers and partners together in person, even as businesses keep a close eye on expenses. But there is a significant shift in what those gatherings are expected to accomplish.
Research of more than 1,650 event planners found that 70% expect the number of in-person meetings to increase by as much as 20% this year. At the same time, rising costs and tighter budgets are forcing planners to be more deliberate about where they spend their money, reported Cvent, a global meetings and events technology company.
The result is a shift from simply holding an event to creating an experience with a purpose.
For Central Kentucky businesses planning retreats, meetings, client gatherings and holiday celebrations this fall and winter, that change presents an opportunity. Our region offers something companies increasingly want: distinctive places and authentic experiences that can help people connect.
Engagement is the new measure of success
For years, event success could be measured fairly easily: How many people attended? Did we stay within budget? Did everything run on schedule?
Those things still matter. But Cvent’s 2026 Planner Sourcing Report found that attendee engagement has emerged as a leading measure of event success. Sixty-three percent of planners cited engagement as a primary success metric.
That’s significant because it changes the fundamental planning question.
Instead of asking, “Where can we put 100 people?” businesses should be asking, “What do we want those 100 people to experience while they’re together?”
“People want an opportunity to connect with one another, and the setting can play an important role in creating that experience,” says Victoria Agnew Benson, president of Mustard Seed Hill in Millersburg. “The most successful corporate events have a sense of purpose and are in a place that support that.”
That purpose should be identified before choosing the menu, entertainment or even the venue.
Is the goal to celebrate a strong year? Reconnect employees who don’t regularly work together in person? Thank customers? Develop a leadership team? Recognize employees? Introduce a new company strategy?
The answer should drive virtually every decision that follows.
Think beyond the traditional meeting room
Another finding from Cvent suggests just how much expectations are changing: 48% of planners now report sourcing non-hotel venues, including restaurants, galleries and other special-event spaces.
Why? Flexibility and attendee experience are among the leading reasons.
That doesn’t mean the traditional hotel ballroom is going away. It does mean planners are thinking much more intentionally about the environment in which people gather.
Central Kentucky is particularly well positioned for that trend.
A corporate gathering here can take place at a historic property, horse farm, distillery, restaurant or other distinctive venue. A meeting can be combined with a chef-driven dinner, bourbon experience, horse-country tour, team-building activity or another experience tied to the Bluegrass.
At Mustard Seed Hill, a historic property in Bourbon County, corporate groups can combine meeting and presentation space with a setting that feels removed from the ordinary workday. In the fall, that can mean enjoying the surrounding Kentucky landscape. As the year moves toward the holidays, the property’s exceptional seasonal atmosphere can become part of the gathering itself.
The important consideration isn’t simply finding someplace unusual, Benson says. The setting should support what the organization wants the gathering to accomplish.
Use the destination as part of the event
Karla Stahlman Welch, owner of Destination Bluegrass, has spent decades helping corporate and association groups do just that.
Destination management companies coordinate the many elements that can surround a meeting — transportation, venues, food and beverage, entertainment, tours, team building and other logistics — and often help planners turn the destination itself into part of the program.
“One of the advantages we have in the Bluegrass is the variety of experiences available within a relatively small geographic area,” Stahlman Welch says. “You can create something that feels very Kentucky without asking your guests to spend the entire day traveling from place to place.”
For a company entertaining out-of-town clients, that might mean incorporating bourbon or Thoroughbred culture into the itinerary. An employee retreat could pair productive meeting time with an experience that encourages people to interact in an entirely different way. A holiday gathering could incorporate Kentucky food, music, locally made gifts or a distinctive setting rather than simply recreating last year’s party.
The experience doesn’t need to be extravagant to be effective.
In fact, that’s another important part of the 2026 event story.
Bigger isn’t necessarily better
The meetings industry is confronting the same cost pressures affecting other businesses. Cvent reports that 72% of planners expect event costs to rise this year, while 35% identify staying within budget as their biggest concern.
Yet organizations aren’t simply abandoning events.
Instead, the emphasis is shifting toward getting greater value from the occasions when people do come together. American Express Global Business Travel’s 2026 Global Meetings and Events Forecast similarly identifies human connection and deeper engagement as central priorities for the industry.
That suggests an important lesson for employers: memorable doesn’t necessarily mean expensive.
A smaller gathering that gives employees time for genuine conversation may accomplish more than an elaborate event packed with programming. A locally sourced dinner can be more memorable than a complicated menu. A beautiful setting can reduce the need for expensive décor.
Start with the experience you want people to have, then determine where spending will make the greatest difference.
Don’t overprogram the experience
Perhaps one of the simplest ways to improve a corporate gathering costs nothing at all: leave some room in the schedule.
If the reason for bringing people together is connection, don’t fill every minute with presentations.
Some of the most valuable moments at an event happen between the scheduled activities — the conversation over coffee, the dinner where people from different departments finally get acquainted or the unexpected discussion after a presentation.
That can be particularly valuable for companies with remote or hybrid employees.
Technology has made it remarkably easy to exchange information without being in the same room. What technology can’t replicate as easily is the spontaneous conversation and relationship-building that happen when people spend time together.
If an employer is investing the time and money to bring people together, the agenda should allow those interactions to happen.
Start planning fall and holiday events now
For businesses considering a fall or winter event, now is the time to begin the conversation.
The most desirable dates compete with weddings, community events, holiday parties and other corporate gatherings. Transportation providers, caterers, entertainment and specialty vendors also have finite capacity.
Starting early isn’t only about getting a preferred date. It gives planners the freedom to think creatively rather than building an event around whatever happens to still be available.
And creativity matters because expectations have changed.
People don’t necessarily need another event. They need a reason to gather.
The opportunity for employers this fall and winter is to be intentional about identifying why people should be together, choosing a setting that supports that purpose and giving them enough time and space to actually connect.
If the reason is to share the spirit of the season, Benson points out that the same historic setting elegantly filled with lights and Christmas magic can create a memorable company celebration.
“Businesses can join the public festivities that draw thousands to Millersburg each year or reserve select nights for a private event at Mustard Seed Hill,” she said. “We have the flexibility to develop a memorable experience on most any budget.”
In a business environment increasingly shaped by screens, hybrid work and digital communication, the value of gathering face-to-face may ultimately be something very human: giving people an experience worth showing up for.
Nancy Wiser, APR, Fellow, PRSA, is president of Wiser Strategies, a Central Kentucky based public relations and marketing firm. She advises businesses, nonprofits and public-sector organizations on strategic communications, public relations and reputation management.