It’s the season for giving. Your employees are a valuable component of your business and the holidays are the perfect time to give back to them and show your appreciation. Weather you plan an office party, volunteer to help work a fundraiser or give them all a holiday bonus, the main thing is that you show your appreciation and gratitude for their hard work throughout the year. Below are some, non-bonus related, ideas to help get your office celebrations started:

Contests

Having an office contest during the holidays can spark some friendly competition among co-works and even encourage creativity and team building. You can do things like an ugly sweater, office decorating contest, best homemade ornament or even best holiday treat.

Secret Santa Gift Exchange

To keep with the spirit of giving, workplaces often organize a gift exchange between employees. I’m sure everyone is familiar with the Secret Santa concept but for those that aren’t it is an arrangement in which a group of friends or colleagues exchange Christmas presents anonymously, each member of the group being assigned another member for whom to provide a small gift, typically no more than a set amount.

Here at Artizen Staffing headquarters we do a small gift each week for the first three weeks in the month of December and then one bigger gift for the last week. Plus, we raise the stakes a bit by seeing who can be the most stealth. In other words, we try to sneak our gifts onto our Secret Santa’s desk without getting caught by another employee or, of course, your Secret Santa.

This activity is inclusive and gets everyone in the office involved and excited over the element of surprise.

Decorating Party

Decorating the office for the holidays can be a dauting task, especially if you have a bigger place with multiple floors. Instead of taking the task on solo, take a half day and invite your employees to participate. Hanging wreaths, decorating Christmas Trees and putting up garland can be a great way to initiate some team collaboration. Adding this little touch to the workplace will put employees in the spirit and warm up the office environment for clients and customers. You can even initiate a pot luck and play holiday music to keep the vibe more festive.

Holiday Party

This is probably one of the most common ways to celebrate the holidays amongst the office. After all, who doesn’t enjoy music, dancing, food and the holiday spirit!  Organizing a special holiday party creates excitement, engagement and anticipation among workers. Try to plan early and send out several dates to ensure that most people are likely to attend. Weather you choose to do a formal agenda event or a simple potluck at the office, your employees will appreciate the chance to celebrate the holidays together.

Keep Diversity Top of Mind

The holiday season is a great opportunity for employees to bond outside the office setting. They can also be a source of conflict for HR managers. Diversity, whether it involves religion or how individuals choose to celebrate the holidays, should be celebrated along with the holidays so that everyone feels welcome. Check out this article by the Society for Human Resource Management that talks about diversity in the workplace over the holidays and how to ensure the holiday season doesn’t lead to hurt feelings, discomfort or religious discrimination.

No matter which way you choose to celebrate the holidays at the office, your recognition will mean a great deal to your employees. HAPPY HOLIDAYS!