Work Christmas Party: Ideas to Strengthen your Company Culture

Fernanda Pinto Godoy

27.10.2023

The festive season is again upon us, and it is time to celebrate Christmas together once again! Whether you're a party planning pro or just looking for some merry inspiration, this blog is your go-to destination for all things work Christmas parties. Let's unwrap the joy of office celebrations together!

Showing appreciation for your employees while encouraging teamwork is always going to be an excellent reason to host a Christmas party and there are plenty of ways to get creative and inject some real holiday spirit into it. Take advantage of these festivities to bring your company's culture alive. Having a culture that aligns with personal values, drives, and needs can be incredibly motivating and can help your organisation thrive.

Spread holiday cheer so everyone can feel more engaged with your organisation and energised at work. Encouraging employee engagement can lead to better performance, lower burnout and a higher retention rate. So don't forget to have fun and bring everyone together! Bridge the gap between virtual and physical interactions and make a Christmas party to remember with the following ideas.

Team building activities for Christmas Fun

Secret Santa

This is probably one of the most popular holiday team building activities of the season. Here is a mini guide on how to celebrate a hybrid or virtual Secret Santa:

Use an online Secret Santa name generator: there are many websites that can make this process easy like Elfster
Set a budget and pick a date for everyone to exchange their gifts
Order gifts online or slip them under the office Christmas tree
Exchange gifts virtually or at your Christmas party. Guessing the identity of your Secret Santa can be so much fun!

Christmas Playlist

Who wants to feel jolly and bright? Creating a Christmas playlist with your team might be one of the most enjoyable activities this season. Create a collaborative playlist and ask your team to include their favorite songs to play in the office or while working remotely.

If you need some inspiration you can hear our very own Great Place to Work® Christmas Playlist on Spotify.

Volunteer or Support a Charity

Volunteering or getting involved in charity activities during Christmas is one of the most meaningful celebrations you can have with your team. Promote a culture of kindness and gratitude and share the love with those who need it the most. With the shift to remote working, virtual volunteering has become more and more commonplace. Employees can now successfully volunteer their skills, services, and time from the comfort of their homes via virtual volunteering.

Susan Mullhall from Woodies shared with us her work as a virtual volunteer with ChildLine and how it has impacted her to be a better listener and more empathetic individual. On Tuesdays, she spends a couple of hours online listening to, empowering, and supporting young people, providing a safe space for them to express themselves.

Christmas Jumper Competition and Holiday Trivia

'Tis the season to be jolly ... and to pull out those Christmas jumpers. Whether your Christmas party is face-to-face or virtual, you can easily wear a knitted jumper or an extravagant embellished one to enter the competition to win the best Christmas jumper contest. We can guarantee you that it is going to be great fun!

Now time for Holiday Trivia. During this competition, teams pool their knowledge and the best of themselves to work together to answer as many festive questions as possible. Here is a mini guide on how to do it:

Prepare a series of Christmas-themed questions before you play the game
Divide the players into teams and ask each group to come up with a fun and festive team name
To facilitate the game, you can use a mobile app like Kahoot so each person can buzz their answers from the convenience of their phones.
Keep score as you read the questions
Name the winners and award prizes at the end of the game
Have fun!

Your achievements deserve a celebration

A Christmas party is also an excellent opportunity to celebrate important achievements and to remind employees why they enjoy working for your organisation. Taking the time and effort to recognise everyone's contribution in a festive spirit goes a long way to making people feel genuinely appreciated.

Why not incorporate little reminders of your Great organisational culture into your party by using your Great Place To Work logo throughout the office or on goodies like cupcakes? This is the perfect time for Great Place to Work-Certified™ organisations to showcase their certification and the great culture they have built together with their team. Check out our blog on 7 Ways to Celebrate your Great Place to Work Certification™ for more!

Check out more resources on how to strengthen your company culture:

About Great Place to Work®

Great Place to Work® is the global authority on workplace culture. We help organizations quantify their culture and produce better business results by creating a high-trust work experience for all employees. We recognise Great Place to Work-Certified™ companies and the Best Workplaces™ in more than 60 countries.

To join the thousands of companies that have committed to building high-trust company cultures that help them attract, retain and take care of their people, contact us about getting Certified today.

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