‘Tis the season to show your employees gratitude for everything they do. But it’s a busy time and coming up with ideas while you’re working hard to close the year out strong can be a challenge. We’ve compiled a list of 10 holiday-themed activities at a variety of price points to help you.
Holiday Party Themes
1: A Christmas Story. Close the office down a little early and watch this classic film as a group. You can serve food and drinks inspired by the film like “Chinese turkey,” meatloaf, mashed potatoes, red cabbage, Coke (in glass bottles), root beer floats, and fudge pops. Popcorn always works, too. But no BB guns allowed.
2: Holiday Ball. This will likely require an away-from-work venue – which you will need to book well in advance. It also requires a caterer and entertainment. You can hire a DJ, a band, or just use prerecorded music. Again, it all depends on your budget. Selecting a holiday event committee can help you create an event that appeals to employees at all levels and who may have different backgrounds and cultures.
3: Ugly Sweater Party: Who doesn’t like a good ugly sweater party? It’s easy to host, generates some laughs, and gets everyone in the holiday spirit. Even better, it doesn’t take too much effort which is why it tends to be a fan favorite.
4: Christmas Character Party: Ask employees to come dressed as holiday characters – like Scrooge, Santa, a Nutcracker, Frosty, Kevin (from Home Alone), or another favorite. Vote on the best recreation and give out gift cards to winners.
5: Other Party Theme Options: Other films and TV shows to consider for viewing and/or party or event inspiration are White Christmas, Elf, Polar Express, Scrooge, Christmas Vacation, A Charlie Brown Christmas, Home Alone, Nightmare Before Christmas, or Frosty the Snowman. Pinterest has hundreds of possibilities.
More Ways to Celebrate
6: Trivia: Bring some brain power into the mix with holiday trivia. Bring in food like pizza or sandwiches for a minimal expense or maybe even eggnog to really make it festive.
7: White Elephant Gifting: This one is always fun! Everyone can bring a funny and quirky gift to swap with each other. You can establish a $10 or $20 limit and encourage them to choose something clever.
8: After-Work Happy Hour: Set a date and time for a post-work activity outside the office. You can also tie your outing in with another idea like karaoke, trivia, or an ugly sweater competition.
9: Playful Year-End Awards: You can recognize employees and have some fun with a year-end awards show. Create playful awards that mark a special contribution by your staff. Try to have an award for all. To get the creative juices flowing, Thanks.com lists 200 funny award names you might consider.
10 more ideas: As we said, there are countless ways to show your staff appreciation during the holiday season. Here are several others ideas:
- Board game afternoon break
- Food truck at lunch
- BBQ lunch (catered or potluck)
- Raffle for fun prizes
- Lottery scratchers
- Bowling outing
- Cookie baking competition
- Sporting event tickets (you can purchase discounted tickets through Cal Perks; if you’re an employer offering CaliforniaChoice benefits to your employees, log in to your account for details)
- Pretzels, Popcorn, and Pizza
- Movie tickets (discounted movie tickets are also available through Cal Perks)
For other ideas, read 54 Fun & Festive Corporate Holiday Party Ideas in 2023 by Roaming Hunger, which bills itself as a culinary community builder. Whatever you choose to do, make it fun!
You may also want to read an article from Employee Benefit News on potential risks to avoid in planning your holiday parties.
Whatever type of celebration or reward you choose, the focus should be on thanking employees for their contributions to a successful year (or helping your organization make it through a challenging year, if that applies). Your employee benefits broker may have additional suggestions. If you don’t have a broker, we make it easy to find one.
