The holiday season is nearly here! It’s the time of year that’s usually full of excitement and cheer, with everyone looking forward to spending some quality time with their loved ones and relaxing over the winter break. However, most people tend to work right up until the last few days before Christmas, and it’s important to keep your employees motivated during this time. To keep the festive cheer high and your staff happy, here are some things you can do at work to keep things fun.
Competitions
This is a great way to bring festive cheer into your office as well as encouraging productivity. Organize motivational competitions between your teams and offer some amazing prizes they can enjoy over the winter break. Food and drink hampers are always popular, or vouchers for those looking to purchase last-minute gifts or who want to treat themselves to something nice. Novelty festive prizes would also work well and help people get into the spirit of Christmas.
Secret Santa
A lot of workplaces tend to run Secret Santa gift schemes as it’s a great way to make sure everyone gets something special without having to break the bank. Set a budget that everyone is comfortable with ($20-$30 is a good sweet spot), and draw names out of a Santa hat at the beginning of December. This gives people plenty of time to think about what they should get their chosen employee and enough time to buy and wrap it. Swap gifts on the last day of work before you all go on winter break, or the last day everyone will be at the office if people have booked time off before you officially close for the holidays.
Charity Fundraiser
The holiday season is a fantastic opportunity for your business to give back, and organizing a festive charity fundraiser or collecting donations from your staff is a great way to do this. You could host a lunch or dinner event if you have the budget to do so where all proceeds go to charity or place a donation box somewhere in the office throughout December. You could also encourage people to take part in holiday-giving schemes with charities like The American Red Cross.
Allow People To Decorate Their Desks
Some offices are strict on how employees can arrange their desks, especially during the festive period. While there must be nothing that could be considered a fire hazard or could cause issues, letting your employees decorate their desks during December will help boost morale and will certainly spread the festive cheer through the office.
Treat Them To Festive Food
On the last day of work, or in the last week, treat the office to a catered lunch that includes some festive treats. Not only is this a great way to show them how much you appreciate their hard work, but it will put people in a good, productive mood as they get ready for the holidays.
Don’t be known as Scrooge this holiday season; let your employees enjoy the festivities with these suggestions.
