Planning a corporate function may not be as hard as you think. 

The difference between planning a corporate function and planning a birthday party is the amount of people and the type of people.  Corporate functions deals with a huge amount of people, depending on the size of the company.  If you have been put in charge of planning your company's corporate function, do not stress out, here are a few ideas and a few tips that you can take along with you!
 
The very first thing that you are going to need to know is the actual budget of the function.  Knowing what you can spend is going to put your plans into a new perspective.  With some functions, the sky is literally the limit, but with other, instead of steak fillets, you might just have to settle for hamburgers and hot dogs, so know what your budget is before you being.
 
Once you know what you can spend, you might want to look into a particular location.  Having a corporate function outside of the actual office will bring people closer together and it will make the function a little more light hearted and fun.  Try renting out an amusement park for the day, or head down to the beach and have a bonfire.  Make sure that the function itself is relaxed and laid back, it is not about work in this case, it is just about getting away from the office for a bit and getting to know your co workers a bit better.
 
Now, once you have a place and you know what you want to do, you should send out a mass email to all employees and find out who is planning on coming and who is not.  This way you can plan for food and beverages and what not.  If you do not want to have to hire a caterer, then ask everyone to bring a dish or some chips and soda.  This will give you more money within the budget which will allow you to do other things.
 
Some tend to think that planning a corporate party can be a bit of a bummer or a task that nobody really wants to do and avoids.  If you are the one who has been chosen to plan a corporate function, do not stress too much, as long as you have these simple tips to follow, you are going to be in excellent shape!  Know your budget and plan ahead before you start making any concrete plans. 

Once you have a set plan in order, then you can start spending and start getting everything all set up and ready to go.  Just remember that this does not have to be a nerve wrecking experience, just take a deep breath, grab a notebook and start writing some ideas down and go from there. 

Once you get the ball rolling with your corporate function, you are on the road to being a hit and a corporate planning marvel!