Opening remarks: 12 sample scripts and 10 closing remarks to match
Ready-to-read welcome speeches for work events, each with a copy button and brackets for your details. Plus the closings, clean opening lines and a run of show.
Good opening remarks take about a minute and do five jobs: welcome people, say why they're there, show what's coming, cover the logistics and hand off. Below are 12 sample opening remarks for the events most companies run, from an all-hands to a webinar, each about 120 words (under a minute aloud) with [brackets] for your names and details. Then 10 closing remarks to match, ten clean opening lines that get a smile and a one-page emcee run of show.
12 sample opening remarks for work events
Read one aloud once before the event, change anything that doesn't sound like you and fill in the brackets.
Jump to: All-hands meetingCompany partyHoliday partyOffsite or retreatConference or summitTeam building eventTraining or workshopTown hallAwards nightClient eventWebinarNew year kickoff
All-hands meeting
A quarterly or monthly company meeting with an agenda and Q&A.
Opening remarks · About 120 wordsGood morning, everyone, and welcome to our [quarter] all-hands. Thank you to everyone in the room and everyone joining online. We're here for one hour to do three things: look back at what we got done last quarter, look ahead at what matters next, and answer your questions. Every question is welcome in the Q&A, so start thinking now. Here's the plan. [Name] will walk through the numbers, [name] will share the roadmap, and we'll finish with thirty minutes of open questions. If you're online, drop questions in the chat at any time, and [name] will make sure they get asked. One quick note: we're recording this for colleagues in other time zones. With that, let's start with [name].
Company party
A summer party, an anniversary or an end-of-quarter celebration.
Opening remarks · About 110 wordsHi, everyone, and welcome! If I could have your attention for one minute, I promise to give it back with interest. Tonight is simple: we're here to celebrate a good year and the people who made it. No slides, no metrics, no action items. The only goal tonight is to spend time with the people you usually only see in meetings. A few things to know. Food is [where], dessert is [where], and [activity] starts at [time]. If you need anything, find [name], who is wearing the [color] shirt. Before I hand over to [name], a big thank-you to [organizers] for putting this together. Now please, enjoy your evening.
Holiday party
The end-of-year party, in the office, at a venue or on a video call.
Opening remarks · About 120 wordsGood evening, everyone, and happy holidays! Thank you for being here, and a special welcome to the guests who joined us tonight. Whatever you celebrate this season, tonight is about one thing: thanking each other for a year of work. It's been a [busy, big, unusual] year, and this team handled it with skill and a lot of patience. You've earned a night off. Here's how the evening goes. Dinner is served at [time], the [game, gift exchange, photo booth] starts at [time], and we'll wrap up around [time]. Remote teammates, your gifts ship on [date]. Huge thanks to [names] for organizing. And now, the most important announcement of the night: the dessert table is open.
Offsite or retreat
Day one of a leadership offsite, a team retreat or a planning session away from the office.
Opening remarks · About 110 wordsGood morning, and welcome to [location]. Thank you for traveling, rearranging your weeks and leaving your inboxes behind for a couple of days. We're here because some conversations don't fit into a thirty-minute video call. Over the next [two days], we're going to [main goal]. By the end, I'd like every one of us to leave with the same picture of where we're going. A few ground rules: laptops closed unless we need them, phones away during sessions, and every idea is welcome in this room. The agenda is on your table, and there's a break every ninety minutes. [Name] is our facilitator, and I'll hand over to them now.
Conference or summit
The welcome on the main stage before the first speaker.
Opening remarks · About 120 wordsGood morning, and welcome to [event name]! Whether you flew in this morning, drove across town or are joining us online, thank you for being here. This year's theme is [theme], and over the next [two days] you'll hear from [number] speakers who do that work every day. My only request: talk to the people around you. The person in the next seat may be the most useful conversation you have all week. A few housekeeping notes. Wi-Fi details are on your badge, sessions are recorded and shared afterward, and [the app or the printed schedule] shows every room and time. If you need help, look for the people in [color] lanyards. Now, it's my pleasure to introduce our first speaker, [name].
Team building event
Before a hosted game, a workshop or an activity, in person or on a video call.
Opening remarks · About 110 wordsHi, everyone, and welcome! For the next [hour], there are no deadlines, no status updates and no right answers, just a bit of friendly competition. We're doing this because we spend most of our time together solving work problems, and it's good to see how we solve the fun ones. You'll be on mixed teams, so you'll probably meet someone you've only ever seen in a tiny video square. [Host's name] will run the game and explain the rules. All you need to do is play along and keep it kind. Cameras on if you can, and [name] will post the team assignments in the chat. Ready? Let's hand it over to [host's name].
Training or workshop
The first two minutes of a training session, a workshop or a lunch and learn.
Opening remarks · About 120 wordsGood morning, and welcome to [workshop name]. Thanks for carving out [time] from a busy week. By the end of today, you'll be able to [outcome one] and [outcome two], and you'll leave with [a template, a checklist, a plan] you can use right away. This is a working session, not a lecture, so expect to try things, get them wrong and try again. A few quick logistics. We'll take a ten-minute break at [time], the materials are at [location or link], and questions are welcome at any point. If something isn't clear to you, someone else is probably wondering the same thing. To start, turn to the person next to you and share one thing you hope to get out of today.
Town hall
A company town hall, especially after big news or a change.
Opening remarks · About 110 wordsGood afternoon, everyone, and thank you for joining today's town hall. I know there's been a lot of news lately, and the point of today is simple: to share what we know, be honest about what we don't, and answer your questions. I'll speak for about ten minutes, then [name] will cover [topic], and we'll spend the rest of the time on your questions. You can ask out loud, in the chat or anonymously through [tool or link]. We'll answer as many as we can today and post written answers to the rest by [day]. If we can't answer something yet, we'll say so rather than guess. Let's get started.
Awards night
An annual awards dinner or a recognition ceremony.
Opening remarks · About 110 wordsGood evening, everyone, and welcome to the [year] [company] awards! Look around the room for a second. Every person here had a hand in this year's results, so tonight is a celebration for all of us. We have [number] awards to give out, and every winner was nominated by their colleagues, which makes each one mean a little more. I'll keep my part short, because the stories you're about to hear are much better than anything I could say. Dinner is served first, and the awards start at [time]. Please hold your applause until the end of each category. Kidding. Applaud as loudly as you like. Let's begin with our first award: [award name].
Client event
A customer dinner, an appreciation evening or a partner event.
Opening remarks · About 110 wordsGood evening, and welcome. On behalf of everyone at [company], thank you for joining us tonight. Many of you have worked with us for years, and some of you we're meeting in person for the first time. We're glad you're all here. Tonight isn't a sales pitch. It's a thank-you. You trust us with [your work, your events, your customers], and we don't take that lightly. In a few minutes, [name] will share a short update on what we've been building and why. After that, the rest of the evening is yours. Our team is here to listen, so please tell us what's working and what isn't. Thank you again, and enjoy the evening.
Webinar
A public webinar or a large internal session on Zoom, Teams or Google Meet.
Opening remarks · About 110 wordsHi, everyone, and welcome to [webinar title]. We'll give people another minute to join, so while we wait, tell us in the chat where you're joining from today. Thanks for being here. I'm [name], [role] at [company], and I'll be your host. Over the next [45] minutes, [speaker] will walk you through [topic], and we'll save the last fifteen minutes for your questions. A few quick notes: everyone is muted, so please use the Q&A box for questions and the chat for everything else. The session is recorded, and we'll email the recording and the slides to everyone who registered. I can see the chat filling up, so let's start. Over to you, [speaker].
New year kickoff
The first company or sales meeting of the year.
Opening remarks · About 110 wordsGood morning, everyone, and happy new year! Welcome to our [year] kickoff. Whether you rested over the break or spent it answering family tech support questions, it's good to have everyone back. Today is about setting direction. Over the next [two hours], we'll look at what we learned last year, share the three priorities for this year and talk about what each team will own. You'll leave knowing where we're headed and how your work fits in. The agenda is [in your inbox, on the screen]. We'll take a short break at [time], and there's time for questions at the end. And yes, there will be coffee. To kick us off, here's [name].
How to structure opening remarks
Every script above follows the same five parts. Use them to write your own for any event.
- Welcome. Say hello to everyone, in the room and online, and thank them for coming. One or two sentences.
- Why we're here. The purpose of the event in one sentence: to celebrate the year, to plan next quarter, to learn one skill.
- What's coming. The shape of the agenda: who speaks, what happens and roughly when. Not every slot, just enough to orient people.
- Logistics. Only what people need right now: where the food is, when the break is, how to ask questions, whether it's recorded.
- Hand-off. Introduce the next speaker or start the first activity. End on their name, so the applause has somewhere to go.
How long? Aim for 60 to 90 seconds. Time yourself reading the script aloud, and if it runs long, move the logistics to a slide or the chat. Opening remarks that run five minutes feel like a speech nobody asked for.
Opening remarks for a short meeting: skip straight to a 20-second version.
Welcome, everyone, and thanks for making time. We're here to [purpose], and we'll be done by [time]. [Name], over to you.
How to open a virtual event
On Zoom, Teams or Google Meet, the first minute matters even more: people decide fast whether to keep the window in front.
- Give it a minute. People join late on video. Open with a chat question (“Where are you joining from?”) so early arrivals have something to do, and start the real remarks one or two minutes in.
- Name the tools once. Tell people where questions go (chat, the Q&A box or a raised hand) and whether they should stay muted. Say it once at the start, not every ten minutes.
- Ask for a reaction in the first minute. A thumbs-up, a one-word answer in the chat or a show of hands on camera. It tells people this isn't a broadcast.
- Say when it ends. Online attention is shorter, and people relax once they know the end time and when the break is.
- Mention the recording. If you're recording, say so before anyone speaks, and say where the recording will be shared.
- Keep cameras optional. Invite cameras on, never demand them. Some people are in a shared space or on a weak connection.
10 clean opening lines that get a smile
Opening speech jokes that work at the office: each one is about the speaker or the event, never about someone in the room. Use one, right after the welcome.
10 closing remarks samples to match
Closing remarks are shorter: thank people, give one takeaway, say what's next. Each sample of closing remarks pairs with an opening above.
All-hands or kickoff
After the last question, before people drop off the call.
Closing remarks · About 80 wordsThat's all the time we have. Thank you for the questions, especially the hard ones. They're the reason we do this. If you remember one thing from today, make it this: [one takeaway]. The slides and the recording will be in [location] by [day], and we'll answer any questions we didn't get to there too. Thank you to [names] for putting today together. Our next [all-hands] is on [date]. Have a great rest of your day.
Company or holiday party
Near the end of the evening, while most people are still there.
Closing remarks · About 80 wordsCan I steal one more minute? Thank you all for coming tonight. A party is only as good as the people at it, and this one was great. A special thank-you to [names], who planned every detail, and to [venue or caterer] for looking after us so well. The night isn't over: [activity or dessert] runs until [time]. Please get home safely, and we'll see you [after the break or on Monday]. Enjoy the rest of your night, everyone.
Offsite or retreat
The last session of the last day.
Closing remarks · About 80 wordsWe made it. Thank you all for [two days] of honest conversations, hard questions and a lot of sticky notes. Here's what we're taking home: [decision one], [decision two] and [decision three]. Each one has an owner, and [name] will send a summary by [day] so nothing gets lost on the way home. A big thank-you to [facilitator] and to [organizer] for making this happen. Safe travels, everyone, and see you back at work on [day].
Conference or summit
From the main stage after the final session.
Closing remarks · About 90 wordsAnd that brings [event name] to a close. Thank you to our speakers for sharing their work, to our sponsors for making this possible and to every one of you for showing up and joining in. Before you go: the session recordings will be online by [date], and a short survey is in your inbox. Please fill it out. We read every answer. We hope you leave with a few new ideas and a few new contacts. Safe travels, and we hope to see you next year.
Team building event
When the host hands the floor back to you.
Closing remarks · About 60 wordsThat's the game! Congratulations to [winning team], and an honorable mention to [team] for the most creative answer of the day. Thank you, [host's name], for running it, and thank you all for playing along. My one takeaway: we're good at this when we talk to each other, so let's keep doing that back at work. Have a great rest of your day, everyone.
Training or workshop
The last two minutes, before the feedback form.
Closing remarks · About 80 wordsWe're at time. Thank you for your energy and your questions today. Before you go, write down one thing you'll try this week. Just one. That's the difference between a good workshop and a useful one. The slides, the template and the recording are at [location]. If questions come up next week, reach out to [name]. And please take two minutes for the feedback form. It helps us make the next session better. Thanks, everyone.
Town hall
After the last question.
Closing remarks · About 70 wordsThank you for your questions today, and for asking them so directly. We'll post answers to the ones we didn't get to by [day]. I know not everything we shared today was easy to hear. My door is open, and so is [anonymous form or channel], if you want to talk more. The next town hall is on [date]. Until then, thank you for the work you do every day.
Awards night
After the last award is handed out.
Closing remarks · About 70 wordsLet's have one more round of applause for all of tonight's winners and everyone who was nominated. What struck me most tonight is how many of these stories were about helping someone else. That's the part of this company I'm proudest of. Thank you to [names] for organizing the evening and to everyone who sent in a nomination. Enjoy the rest of the night, and congratulations again.
Client event
Before guests start to leave.
Closing remarks · About 70 wordsBefore you head out, one last thank-you. Spending an evening with us, instead of at home or catching up on email, means a lot, and so does your business. If something came up tonight that we should follow up on, [name] from your account team will be in touch this week. And if there's anything we can do better, please tell us. Get home safely, and thank you again for being with us.
Webinar
At the end of the Q&A.
Closing remarks · About 70 wordsWe're right at time, so let's wrap up. Thank you to [speaker] for a great session and to all of you for the questions. You'll get the recording and the slides by email within [24 hours]. If you'd like to go deeper, [next step: book a call, read the guide or join the next session]. Thanks again for spending part of your day with us, and see you next time.
How to give closing remarks
Five steps, about two minutes in total.
- Signal the end. “That's all the time we have” or “Before you head out” tells people to listen for one more minute.
- Thank people by name. The organizers, the speakers and the person who set up the room. Names are the part people remember.
- Give one takeaway. One sentence on what you hope people do or remember. Not a summary of every session.
- Say what's next. Where the slides and recording live, when the survey arrives, the date of the next event.
- End on time, with a clear last line. Your last closing remark can be as simple as “Have a great rest of your day” or “Get home safely.” Then stop talking, even if there are thirty seconds left.
An emcee run of show for a company event
A two-hour company event on one page, with the opening and closing remarks in their place. Stretch the middle for a longer event. Building the meeting itself? Start with a team meeting agenda.
Before · Tech check (Emcee, AV)
Mic, slides and video call link tested. Printed run of show for every speaker.
0:00 · Doors open (Emcee)
Music on, emcee greets people at the door or in the chat.
0:10 · Opening remarks (Emcee)
60 to 90 seconds: welcome, why we're here, agenda, logistics, hand-off.
0:12 · Leader welcome (Executive)
Three minutes. One story, one thank-you.
0:15 · Main segment (Host or presenters)
Awards, a hosted game or the main talks. 40 minutes.
0:55 · Break and food (Emcee)
Announce the exact return time before people stand up.
1:15 · Second segment (Host or presenters)
Shorter than the first: 25 to 30 minutes.
1:45 · Closing remarks (Emcee or leader)
Two minutes: thank-yous by name, one takeaway, what's next. The rest of the slot absorbs applause and overruns.
1:50 · Social time (Everyone)
Music back on. The room or call stays open for 10 minutes.
Five habits of a calm emcee
- Check how to pronounce every name you'll say, and write it phonetically on your card.
- Have a two-minute filler ready (a quick poll or a show of hands) in case a speaker runs late.
- Agree a signal with the AV person for “wrap up” and “we're running long.”
- Keep the run of show on paper. Phones die and screens freeze.
- Introduce each speaker in two sentences: who they are and why they're speaking.
Planning the rest of the event? See our all-hands meeting ideas, office holiday party ideas, corporate event ideas and how to plan a company retreat.
Hand the middle of the event to a host
Want someone to run the main segment for you? You give the opening remarks, then hand over to a live host who runs an hour of games for the whole room or call. Our guide to corporate event entertainment compares the options. For a team that presents often, the Speak Up! Public Speaking Workshop is a hands-on hour on structuring a message, delivering it with confidence and handling nerves, for presenting in person or on video.
A speaking workshop and a hosted game show, on Zoom by default (Teams, Google Meet or Webex on request). Book about 2 weeks ahead, or get a free quote.
