Outdoor events can benefit office

For Stephen Cronin, summertime is the best time of year to host a corporate outing, especially at a baseball park.

As the president of TWOBOLT, a Pawtucket-based marketing agency, Cronin has been hosting corporate outings for his employees and their families at the Pawtucket Red Sox’s McCoy Stadium since 2003.

“Food always tastes better in the summertime at a baseball park. You can get out [of the office] and just be outside whether you’re in the seats or the BBQ area. It’s a much nicer experience,” he said.

Cronin, who said he uses these events to thank each employee and get to know them on a more personal level, averages as many as 15 visits in the team’s April to September season.

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Just as with summer’s baseball, Rhode Island offers many seasonal options that take advantage of the weather and the Ocean State’s heritage for corporate outings.

A new nautical opportunity for corporate outings is the Newport-based SSV Oliver Hazard Perry, the state’s official sailing-education vessel.

The ship was completed in June, but Oliver Hazard Perry Rhode Island has not yet scheduled a corporate outing, explained Jessica Wurzbacher, the nonprofit’s executive director, focusing instead on summer camps. But it is looking to break into the market this season.

Since the beginning of the ship’s construction eight years ago, the company has raised $16 million from local businesses and “corporate team-building [programs] seemed like a natural fit,” said Wurzbacher.

Due to its Coast Guard certification, OHPRI does not take any passengers, instead, explained Wurzbacher, all participants, professional or trainee, are considered crew.

“It’s a team-building program, but the team building and developing happens naturally” over the course of the voyage, said Wurzbacher of the planned two and three-day itineraries offered for corporations.

The skill development desired from corporate outings doesn’t happen in one day, she explained. “Not a lot of people have sailed a three-masted ship before.”

A Rhode Island summer is not complete without experiencing Newport from the water, said 12 Meter Charters’ co-owner Eli Massar – a second nautical option for corporate outings.

“It’s pretty simple. Which is more motivating, a PowerPoint slide describing motivation or a day learning to sail or race a 70-foot classic race boat in the sailing capital of the U.S.?” said Massar.

To the company, which was recently named a 2016 Certificate of Excellence holder by TripAdvisor and received a 2106 Best of Newport County award for top yacht charter company, corporate outings are integral.

“The company is built around corporate and private charters; corporate charters [in particular] give us an opportunity to [meet] the New England community,” Massar said.

He estimated a little more than half of 12 Meter Charters’ business is corporate charters and said it often prioritizes midweek bookings for local companies, saving weekend hours for tourists.

Kevin Hegarty, the other co-owner, added that the experience is tailored to what the business requests.

“We cater to the crowd we have onboard. We’re well-experienced captains and we know how to control these race horses. If they want a leisurely wine cruise, we can give them that, or if they want a race we can do that too,” he said.

Just as expectations for workforce development on the high seas have changed, so too have the options on dry land. So while the PawSox are celebrating McCoy Stadium’s 75th anniversary this year, corporate customers see greater opportunities than in years past, even as the team leverages event success for further revenue streams.

Julie Hershkowitz, manager of sponsorship services, said the team started hosting corporate outings as a reward for sponsorship from local businesses, but after seeing how popular the offering became it was then marketed on a regional scale across New England.

While Hershkowitz couldn’t give an approximation of how many corporate events have been hosted at the ballpark, she explained that within the season the team hosts 72 home games and there are five areas in the stadium that can cater to business functions for up to 1,100 people.

During one of the team’s frequent Fireworks Spectaculars, Hershkowitz said, there are often 30 to 35 businesses in attendance.

In addition, corporate outings have not only increased the team’s sales but have also led to new funding avenues.

“It helps us bring in new corporate partners, because someone will come in for a game or a BBQ, see what we have to offer and want to be involved on a corporate or sponsor level,” she said. •

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