4 Virtual Office Celebration Ideas During COVID-19

The year 2020 is coming to a close and typically this is the season where many of us and our employees celebrate various holidays and show gratitude for the family, friends, and other joys of this life. The question is exactly how do we do that during a pandemic and not lose the sense of connection while still maintaining everyone’s safety?

Here are a few ideas to host an engaged celebration:

1. Zoom-giving

Instead of your average virtual meeting or happy hour, consider using this time to take the funds you might have spent on holiday parties and potlucks to do a live charity raffle. Place each employee’s name in a hat/bucket/whatever is handy and the employee whose name is pulled gets to pick their charity of choice for a donation from the company. By engaging the employees in the process and the selection, you demonstrate that what matters to your employees also matters to you.

2. E-card

We have all had a crash course in technology courtesy of COVID-19. An upside to this education is we can creatively connect with others. Think about recording a Zoom call with your leaders where you reflect on the successes of the year and personally thank your employees for their efforts.

3. Celebrate Employee Hidden Talents

Is your HR manager an amazing cook? Does your financial analyst play guitar? Is your marketing analyst an artist? Highlight one or more of their talents either in a showcase or a virtual class for other employees.

And if all else fails, sometimes the oldies are still goodies…

4. Handwritten note

Instead of a card with the company logo and the leaders’ names scrawled on the bottom, take the time to personally scribe a note to each employee. It may seem old fashioned in this highly connected world, but it is this personal touch that your employees will remember.

About the Author

As Fahrenheit’s Human Capital Management Practice Area Lead, Sara Shelton brings a passion for organizational performance and creating great places to work. She enables clients to achieve their business goals by aligning and maximizing their talent, leadership, and culture. She influences with integrity and credibility, treasuring her role as consultant, advisor, and trusted confidante.