Last week’s blog covered Holiday Office Celebration Etiquette. This week, we would like to address the different types of Holiday Celebrations your office can throw for your team. Throwing an office party at the end of the year is a great bonding and team building opportunity. But the wrong type of holiday festivities can end the year on a sour note, turning your employees from Cindy Lou Who to the Grinch.

So, as you’re planning and coordinating the big office shindig, here are a few ideas to ensure your event is the hit of Whoville:

Host a Gift Mart

This can be a thoughtful celebration to put on for your employees. Host a craft fair featuring local artists’ groups for some in-office Christmas shopping. Additionally, have a gift wrapping station available for your employees’ purchases, or find a local charity that may put it together for you for a donation. This can be a great way to mitigate the stress of the holiday shopping chaos for your team, and a fun way for them to bond.[1]

Adopt a Charity or a Family

Collect gifts throughout the holiday season for a local toy drive or adopt a family. Then hold a gift wrapping party, complete with music, food, comradery, and a little friendly competition. Get your employees’ gift wrapping skills on point with a professional demonstration, and then give out prizes at the end for Best Wrapped and Most Creatively wrapped gifts.[2]

Go Light-seeing

Invite your team out to see the holiday lights. For example, the Houston Zoo has beautiful light displays throughout the month of December until mid-January. It is a great way to share the spirit of the season with your team and create some bright memories. Holiday lights can spark delight in your team.

Take in a Holiday Show

Another creative way to get your team out of the office is to take them to see a holiday show. It can be something as fancy as the Houston Ballet’s rendition of The Nutcracker or something as traditional as a showing of It’s a Wonderful Life. Treat your team to a fabulous show.

Join in all the Reindeer Games

Take your team out for a low-key arcade event. Find a restaurant and arcade with a variety of games. Most places have a professional planner who will work with you to meet your needs. The relaxing atmosphere with a slightly competitive edge can be a great team-building exercise.

Make sure you cater to your team’s needs. You don’t want to stress your team out, so throw your party fairly early in the season. Tailor your celebration to the personality and demographics of the group. If you have a number of employees with young kids, a party after-hours may be difficult for them to attend. One solution is to hold a kid-friendly or family-themed event. Remember, if you hold the celebration during office hours, reduce your employees’ workload correspondingly. Otherwise, your team will not be enjoying the party, but instead will be worrying about what is piling up on their desks.

[1] http://comedyventriloquist.com/incredible-office-christmas-party-ideas/

[2] http://comedyventriloquist.com/incredible-office-christmas-party-ideas/