Taste of Black AlphaRoswell

You don't need to spend tons of money to have tons of impact. I have ALWAYS known this to be true, but never was this notion more clear than when I was planning this particular event. On paper, the ask was quite open ended -- the company wanted an inexpensive internal event during the first quarter that would engage not only the employees located at their Roswell, Georgia headquarters, but would also unite its other two satellite locations in Knoxville, Tennessee and Savannah, Georgia, AND its solo state-hopping contractors, as well!

In my experience, nothing brings people together quite like food. So, A) inspired by major foodie events such as a "A Taste of Chicago," in which food vendors come from all over the state to share samples of their best dishes, and B) February being Black History Month, I devised the "Taste of" series, in which every member of the organization was invited to participate in an experience that was both scrumptious and cultural. At their HQ, the most popular dish from every Black-owned resturant within a 10 mile radius of the office was brought in to sample, and put on display in a gallery-like fashion along with the restaurant's menu, a description of the restaurant and its history, and a photo of its owner. At the smaller sattelite locations, lunch was catered by each city's most popular black-owned restaurant. And for the contractors on the road, a stipened was provided for each contractor to purchase dinner from a black-owned restaurant in their respective current cities.

I was SO proud of this company's willingness to support black busisnesses LITERALLY all over the country that day, and the employee camaeraderie across all locations was palpable. However, my favorite part of the whole event was when one of the employees came up to me and said "You know, I've sat next to Katie for months now, but we never really speak or get to interact. Today, we just chatted for like 20 minutes, and I met two new people I have never even seen before. I don't think that would have happened if not for this. Thank you for giving us that opportunity."

My heart absolutely floated!!! Employee engagement, indeed.

Key Skills: Engagement Strategy, Event Planning, Vendor Management, Graphic Design