If you have employees, you know that birthday celebrations are essential to your office culture. After all, they are an excellent opportunity to give your employees a special treat and make them feel valued. Studies show that employees who feel valued can perform better and significantly engage with the company, reducing employee turnover.
However, there’s more to it than just sending birthday cards and cakes. Here are some creative ways to celebrate birthdays at work:
Put Up an Office Birthday Chart
A birthday chart is an excellent idea because it helps people remember their birthdays and encourages them to celebrate. It also lets you track who has been celebrating their birthdays and who hasn’t.
A nice way to do this is by putting up a poster with everyone’s name in the office. You can also use a digital version and post it on your company website so people can quickly look at it from home if they want to.
Create a Birthday Email Chain
In this email, you can include a link to the person’s profile page, so your employees can read up on their birthday buddies. Send this email to all employees in your company, and ask them to send a message or wish happy birthday to the person whose birthday it is.
Throw a Happy Hour Party
A happy hour is a great way to celebrate your employees’ birthdays at work. Get in touch with a local caterer for happy hour catering. If your office is too small to throw an actual party that includes all employees, then book a private room or space for some drinks and food. Make sure to invite the whole team, not just the birthday boy or girl. You don’t want anyone feeling left out.
Also, make sure great music and dancing are going on, if possible, so people have time to get loose after work. The goal here is just to make it fun. You don’t want people getting drunk and sloppy before heading home. Keep things short and sweet.
Personalize Their Birthday Celebration
Your employees’ birthdays are special events for them, so making their celebrations as personal and unique as possible is important.
Make sure you have a personal birthday card for each of your employees. This might seem like an unnecessary expense, but it’s worth it. You can also print out a customized card for a personal touch. You can find many free printable birthday card templates on the internet.
Your employees will feel so loved and appreciated when they receive a personalized card from you on their big day, and it could also be a friendly little reminder for them about why they love working for you in the first place.
Be a Good Listener
When an employee tells you it’s their birthday, don’t just say “Happy Birthday” and move on. Take a moment to ask them how they’re feeling about the day. You can find out what’s going on in their lives and get a better idea of how to celebrate them.
Asking your employees how their day is going and if they need any help with anything will show them that you care about them, making them feel appreciated and respected, making them happy employees.
A study published in the Frontiers Journal shows that happiness at work can effectively influence employees’ performance. Happy employees are more likely to be loyal, innovative, and creative.
It’s also a great way to get to know your employees personally. Find out what their hobbies are, what their family is like, and how their kids are doing at school or work. All of this gives you insight into who they are as people and can help you build better relationships in the office environment.
Give Them Gift Cards
Give them gift cards or certificates for a spa, massage, or lunch for two. This is the perfect way to show you care about your employees’ health and well-being. Many employees feel experience burnout. According to a survey conducted by APA of over 1500 employees in the USA, 79% feel work-related stress.
If your employees are stressed out from work, giving gift cards for spa or massage will help them relax and rejuvenate. This can also be helpful if your team members have been working long hours lately, as it shows that you know how hard they have been working and want to make their lives easier by allowing them to relax.
Give Them a Desk Plant
A plant is an excellent gift for an office birthday. A desk plant or something else alive and growing, like flowers in a vase that they get to keep, will bring joy and good energy into your workplace. It reduces stress and improves air quality, making employees more productive.
It’s an excellent way to bring nature into the office, making it more attractive than if there were no plants around. There are many low-maintenance office plants to consider for gifting to the employees. Low-maintenance plants will make your employees joyful while not wasting too much time.
Send Them Home With Some “Me” Time Supplies
Send them home with some “me” time supplies such as books, essential oils, tea, and candles. These are a great way to ensure they have the tools to relax, unwind and enjoy their day off. It’s also a nice gesture that lets them know you appreciate what they do for your company.
Final Thoughts
A little kindness goes a long way to boost morale, employee engagement, and retention. Showing your employees they matter is one of the best ways to create a happy, engaged workplace.
By going out of your way to celebrate the birthdays of your staff, you’ll be doing just that and showing them how much they mean to you as people. If you don’t have time for all these ideas, plenty more are out there. And remember, it doesn’t have to be expensive or complicated. Sometimes, it can be enough to take time from work and spend it together.
Leave a Reply