35 networking event ideas for companies, from mixers to client nights
Ideas for cross-team mixers, client nights, conference side events and virtual networking, each with how to run it. Plus a planning checklist and icebreakers that beat “so, what do you do?”
Networking events fail when guests find the two colleagues they already know and stay with them all night. The fix is structure: a format that moves people around, an activity to do together, and someone whose job is introductions. Every idea below does at least one of those, from a cross-team mixer to a business networking event for clients.
Networking formats that beat the open mixer
An open room with drinks rewards the people who already know each other. Structure is what gets the quiet half talking.
1. Speed networking
Timed one-on-ones of three to five minutes, then everyone moves. Nobody gets stuck, and everyone meets the same number of people. Run it online: Speed Networking.
In person or virtual · 45 to 60 minutes
2. Trivia mixer
Build teams of five or six from people who have never met. Arguing over an answer breaks the ice faster than any small talk. How to host a trivia night. Book it hosted: Team Trivia (in person), Blitz-Speed Trivia (in person) or Quiz Showdown!.
In person, virtual or hybrid · 60 minutes
3. Rotating tables with conversation cards
Put three questions on a card at every table. Ring a bell every 15 minutes and have half of each table move on.
In person · 45 to 90 minutes
4. Topic roundtables
Set up six to eight tables, each with a topic and a host who knows it. Guests pick a table for round one, then switch for round two.
In person or virtual · 60 minutes
5. Game show night
A Family Feud-style game with mixed teams. Shouting survey answers together turns a room of strangers into teammates in ten minutes. Book it hosted: Feud Night (in person) or Your Favorite Game Shows!.
In person or virtual · 60 minutes
6. Human bingo
Hand out bingo cards with facts like “has lived in another country.” People have to talk to strangers to fill a line. Make free icebreaker bingo cards.
In person or virtual · 20 minutes
7. Hands-on workshop mixer
Paint, decorate or build something at shared tables. Busy hands take the pressure off, and the conversation starts on its own. Book it hosted: Canvas Painting (in person) or Watercolor Card Decorating (in person).
In person or virtual · 60 minutes
Two ready-made formats: Speed Networking online, or a hosted trivia mixer at your office in 17 US cities.
Internal networking events for cross-team connection
Most people know their own team and almost nobody else. These get sales talking to engineering and new hires talking to everyone.
8. Coffee roulette
Pair two random people from different teams every two weeks for a 20-minute coffee. A Slack pairing app or a shared spreadsheet does the matching.
In person or virtual · 20 minutes
9. Mystery lunch tables
Once a month, assign lunch seats so every table mixes departments and levels. Put one easy question on each table. Virtual lunch ideas for remote teams.
In person · 45 minutes
10. Department open house
Each team hosts 30 minutes: what they do, a quick demo and snacks. People finally learn who to ask for what.
In person or virtual · 30 minutes per team
11. New hire meet-and-greet
Every quarter, bring new hires together with one volunteer from each team for short rotating chats. Everyone leaves with names to message. New hire onboarding activities.
In person or virtual · 45 minutes
12. Teach me in 10
Five employees each teach something in ten minutes, work or not: spreadsheet tricks, bread baking, chess openings. Questions turn into conversations.
In person or virtual · 60 minutes
13. Mentoring circles
Groups of four to six from different teams and levels meet monthly with one senior host and a single topic.
In person or virtual · 45 minutes a month
14. Cross-team game night
Mix the teams on purpose, then play for an hour after work. Keep the teams for a month and they become a network. Book it hosted: Feud Night (in person) or Trivia with a Twist!.
In person or virtual · 60 minutes
15. Volunteer day in mixed crews
Split volunteers into crews that mix departments. Working side by side for a few hours does more than a month of mixers.
In person · Half a day
Business networking events for clients and partners
Your guests came to meet each other as much as you. Introduce them, then get out of the way.
16. Client appreciation night with one activity
Replace the speeches with a hosted game or a tasting, and seat each client next to someone from your team they haven't met. Client events we run. Book it hosted: Feud Night (in person) or Team Trivia (in person).
In person or virtual · 90 minutes
17. Customer roundtable dinner
Invite 8 to 12 customers with one shared problem and let them compare notes. Your executive hosts and listens. No pitch.
In person · 2 hours
18. Virtual tasting for remote clients
Ship a wine or coffee tasting kit to each guest's door, then taste together on a call with an expert. Order about 3 weeks ahead. Book it hosted: Wine Tasting or Coffee Tasting.
Virtual · 60 minutes
19. Matchmade partner mixer
Ask guests in advance who they want to meet, then make three real introductions for each person on the night.
In person · 90 minutes
20. Client workshop
Teach something useful: a session from your own experts or a hosted skill workshop. People network more easily after learning together. Hosted lunch and learn workshops.
In person or virtual · 60 minutes
21. Advisory board social
After the formal session, keep your customer advisory board for an evening with no agenda. That's where the honest feedback comes out.
In person · 2 hours
22. Co-hosted event with a partner company
Split the guest list with a partner who serves the same customers. Both audiences meet people they wouldn't have met at your event alone.
In person or virtual · 90 minutes
Conference side events
The best conversations at a conference happen off the show floor. A small, well-run side event beats a big booth party.
23. Invite-only breakfast
Book a private room for 20 to 30 guests before day two starts. Mornings are when people are least booked and most awake.
In person · 60 minutes
24. Trivia night near the venue
A hosted trivia night gives guests a reason to pick your event over the open bar next door. Mix teams at the door. Book it hosted: Team Trivia (in person) or Blitz-Speed Trivia (in person).
In person · 60 to 90 minutes
25. Table-host dinner
Give each table a host from your team whose only job is to introduce the guests to each other in the first ten minutes.
In person · 2 hours
26. Morning walk or run
A 5K walk or run before sessions start costs almost nothing and draws people who skip the evening parties.
In person · 45 minutes
27. Speaker meet-and-greet
Invite 15 guests to meet one of the conference speakers in a side room after their talk. Small numbers keep it a real conversation.
In person · 30 to 45 minutes
28. Booth happy hour with a hook
Run a short game or a contest at your booth at the end of the day. A reason to stay beats a free drink.
In person · 60 minutes
Virtual networking event ideas
Online, nobody drifts over to a new group, so you have to make the introductions for them. Small rooms and short rounds.
29. Virtual speed networking
A short welcome video explains the format, then a networking platform matches people into private three-minute one-on-ones, round after round. Book it: Speed Networking.
Virtual · 45 minutes
30. Breakout rounds with prompts
Rooms of three or four for eight minutes, one prompt per round, then reshuffle. Four rounds and everyone has met a dozen people.
Virtual · 40 minutes
31. Hosted virtual trivia mixer
A live host runs the game while mixed teams confer in breakout rooms. It works on Zoom by default, and on Teams, Google Meet or Webex on request. Virtual trivia. Book it hosted: Trivia with a Twist! or Quiz Showdown!.
Virtual · 60 minutes
32. Show-and-tell hunt
Players race to find objects at home, then share the story behind them. People learn more about each other than in any intro round. Book it hosted: Team Discovery Challenge.
Virtual · 60 minutes
33. Virtual coffee chats
Pair people across offices for 15 minutes on camera. Suggest one question so the chat doesn't stall at the weather.
Virtual · 15 minutes
34. Expert AMA with small-group follow-ups
A 20-minute ask-me-anything with an expert, then breakout rooms where guests discuss what they heard.
Virtual · 45 minutes
35. Kit workshop for a cross-company cohort
Ship the same kit to every guest and make something together on camera. The chat fills up while hands are busy. Team building kits. Book it hosted: Candle Making.
Virtual · 60 minutes
Hosted online mixers, with live prices. Book about 2 weeks ahead.
How to plan a networking event
Six steps, in order. The last one is the one most planners skip.
- Pick one goal. New hires meeting other teams, clients meeting each other, partners meeting your product people. One goal decides the guest list and the format.
- Mix the guest list on purpose. Invite across teams, levels and companies. At a client event, keep your own staff to about a third of the room so guests meet guests.
- Choose a structured format. Speed rounds, a trivia mixer or roundtables. Leave open mingling for the last 20 minutes, when people already have someone to talk to.
- Keep it short. 60 to 90 minutes in person, 45 to 60 online. A midweek breakfast or early evening avoids the Monday rush and the Friday exits.
- Book early. Hosted virtual games need about 2 weeks, kit workshops about 3 weeks (3 to 4 for international guests) and custom content about 4 weeks.
- Follow up within two days. Send a thank-you, the attendee list if guests agreed to share it, and the introductions you promised.
Want someone to run it for you? We host trivia, game shows and workshops at your office in 17 US cities (see in-person events) and online for remote guests. For a bigger crowd, see activities for large groups or get a free quote with a plan back within 24 hours.
Networking icebreakers and conversation starters
Open with a question about what someone is doing, not what they are. These work with coworkers and strangers alike.
- What are you working on right now that you're excited about?
- What brought you here today?
- What's the best thing you've learned this year?
- What does a good week at work look like for you?
- How did you end up in your line of work?
- What's one tool or habit that saves you hours?
- Which talk or session are you most looking forward to?
- What's a problem your team is trying to solve this quarter?
- Who here should I meet?
- What would you be doing if you weren't in this job?
- What's the most useful advice you got early in your career?
- What's something people outside your field get wrong about it?
- Read anything good lately, work or not?
- What's the best event like this you've been to, and why?
- What are you doing after this?
Three quick icebreaker games for a room
- Two-minute intros. Name, role and one thing nobody would guess about you. Keep a timer visible and move on when it rings.
- Find three things in common. Pairs have three minutes to find three things they share that aren't about work. Then swap partners.
- Ask for help. Everyone writes one thing they need help with on their name tag. It gives strangers an easy first question.
For a crowd of 50 or more, see our large group icebreakers. For smaller rooms, pick from our icebreaker questions or the corporate event ideas list.
