Holiday Party Planning

Yes it’s that time of the year--the annual event to celebrate the Holidays. Has it become an “obligatory” event for your employees?

We have run Human Resources as employees and consultants for large and small companies over a few decades and the “general reaction” to attending a company sponsored Holiday event has sometimes surprised me. Maybe we’ve not gotten the real truth BUT more often than not, the employees seem not to want the traditional party or celebration event. Reasons cited have included not wanting to spend money on dress clothing, babysitters, and other costs associated with attending events as well as employee desire to spend time off away from work in other ways.

We are not advocating not hosting a celebration but the importance of really exploring options and understanding what your employees want from an event. Be open and listen. We have the good fortune to work with a number of creative companies and through the years have watched as they have tried a number of approaches to this annual dilemma. Here’s a few of the more well received Holiday ideas.

1) A gift card to each employee with the option of donating the card to a choice of charities.
2) Hosting a Holiday celebration for/with a non-profit group who otherwise would not have the funds to do so.
3) A simple two hour window at work with light catering, comical gift exchanges limited to $1.00.
4) A company donation to an organization selected by employees in the amount normally spent for a party.
5) An extra hour off to allow employee Holiday shopping and/or family time.
6) Renting a skating rink or bowling alley and opening it to children’s organizations as a present for the kids.
7) Delay the celebration to another less busy time in the year.

Celebrations are important to companies and their employees but be certain as an employer you are deriving the best value for the dollars spent.

Just a thought……….