I was at an event recently where the program was scripted out for the emcees and a couple of the other speakers. From what I could tell, it was verbatim scripting. The “scripted” attempts at humor fell pretty flat. Seems likely because it was scripted. Humor should sound natural.
It’s not unusual for organizations to have a script to ensure certain information gets conveyed. I get it. My suggestion is to bullet point as much as possible and avoid word-by-word scripting; allow your emcee and other participants to ad lib. The recent event I reference is a good example of how a script hurt the delivery of information. And in turn, probably hurt the organization’s goal for the event. I was distracted by the attempts at humor, so I didn’t really hear what they wanted me to hear.
One thing I do when I emcee is to go through the script and make language changes that seem natural to my voice. If you have a speaking role at your next event, try to do that before game day. If you play a minor role and are not the emcee, what about a small notecard with bullet points outlining what you’ll cover versus every word spelled out on sheets? Take a leap of faith and try this the next time you’re asked to be part of a program.