It’s the time of year when HR does an eyeroll and dons the ‘Fun Police’ hat as we plan the corporate Christmas parties. What does a corporate ‘do’ look like in 2023? Ideas welcome. How do we limit the likelihood of grievances the week afterwards?? I once tried to limit alcohol at an AGM by making literal Beer Tokens. Did it work? No. Senior managers turned into teenagers and got pre-loaded in the hotel room beforehand. Off their faces by 7.15pm. Violence ensued. (Though it makes a good case study in my training sessions these days!) If alcohol isn’t everyone’s cuppa (think health, faith, generation, sheer weariness of drunk colleagues) and is a fine corporate line of liability, what can we do? Awards ceremonies. Create a personalised Award for each member of your team based on their ‘superskill’ that they have demonstrated in 2023. A certificate will be kept and treasured. For hybrid teams? Send everyone a small hamper in the post, do the awards ceremony, and then ask a kind soul to run a very-quickly-badly-behaved quiz. This was my department’s 2020 Covid-limited ‘do’ and I swear it was one of the best I’ve been to. Thanks to those who helped – you know who you are! 💚 Give departments a budget per head and let them decide. Go karting always a popular competitive craic. An interdepartmental social?? Who would you link with? If any department? Is this a terrible idea? Family days at work, including a kids’ panto if possible. This was always a winner at one of my previous employers. The ‘Everything New Day’. The team decide what they have never done before and have a go. A generous client of ours runs ‘The 12 Days of Christmas’ where there’s a stella prize given away in a free company-wide raffle. Everyone gets a ticket everyday and someone always wins. Good food always works. I love tapas. It’s sociable, caters for all tastes and preferences, and it keeps on comin’ to the table. By the end of the meal, I am a stomach with a limb at each corner. A community volunteering day for something local that needs a hand? Everyone walks away with a warm ‘spirit of the season’ glow – followed by food (are you spotting a theme yet?) So what are you planning this year??
I might need to steal the '12 Days of Christmas' idea and claim it as my own!
Talent and Diversity Manager for Persimmon Homes
9moThis is a very interesting post Sarah Hughes and something I’ve been considering for a while. Your comment about the “fun police” made me chuckle as it IS something I’ve heard in the past (present company excluded). It’s about a balance, it’s great for those who like a drink and a bit of a knees-up, but I increasingly think about what proportion of workplace population it truly appeals to? Maybe the majority?(based on no evidence) but there will be a significant number of people for a very wide number of reasons for whom it doesn’t appeal. So… I don’t have the answer, but I think the Fun Police should be planning their next operation in order to ensure as many people as possible have fun, not entirely based on alcohol. In basic terms… does the spirit of Christmas not apply to people who chose or are forced to avoid alcohol? Do we care about these people? If we don’t, what does that say about us and an organisational culture?