Radio stations have been playing holiday songs for months, but now that we’re nearing the end of the year, the holiday season is officially upon us. For the month of November, we polled people in our Wondering Wednesday series on LinkedIn to learn more about how employees want their organizations to handle the holidays. Annual party? Department lunch? Group outing? Make sure your company is ready for the holiday season this year – we think some of the results might surprise you. 

Say Goodbye to Traditional Holiday Parties

Your company may have already planned this year’s holiday party, but you might want to consider foregoing the party in future years. From our polling results, only 9% of respondents wanted a holiday party; put another way, 91% of respondents want their company to celebrate the holidays with something that is not a holiday party. If you do still hold an annual holiday party, the consensus is clear that this should be held during business hours – workers want to spend their evenings and weekends with their friends and family rather than attending an extra (if not required, often “strongly encouraged”) work event.

So what do employees want? In a word: connection. The number one thing workers reported valuing in the workplace is their colleagues – so employers should consider options that foster these relationships.

Opt for Potluck or Department Lunches

Rather than a large gathering, which can often feel impersonal (particularly for companies with hundreds of employees), workers are increasingly preferring a company-sponsored lunch, whether it’s a company potluck or smaller department lunch. A potluck lunch feels more personal, not only within a team but also company-wide, because it allows people to try their coworkers’ favorite home-cooked or store-bought foods, strike up a conversation about why the dish may be special to them, maybe even exchange recipes (unless, of course, it’s a secret family recipe – but even that is a great conversation starter!). It’s more of a give-and-take opportunity than a more formal, corporate event with catered food and small talk, and a potluck builds on the feeling of sharing and collaboration to increase employee engagement and job satisfaction. The company can provide funds for ingredients or even provide prizes for the most popular dishes.

Department lunches have a similar element of connection. Rather than being company-wide, which could include people you hardly interact with, a department lunch involves only the core group of people you interact with the most – the people you most want and need to build relationships with. These lunches can be a nice way to celebrate the team’s achievements over the past year and to celebrate the coming year with the people you work most closely with. A good rule of thumb is to limit any work talk to opening remarks about the team’s successes and to otherwise encourage workers to get to know each other outside of work roles and responsibilities. Prepared icebreakers can help prevent lulls in the conversation. 

Field Trips

Vying for the top spot in our poll results, another option for an end-of-the-year event is a group activity everyone can do together. This can still feel like a more organized “event,” if that’s what your organization prefers, but without the formality of, say, cocktails and hors d’oeuvres. Some popular ideas include things like bowling or renting out a suite at a professional sports game arena. Some off-the-beaten-path ideas can include ice skating and hot chocolate, a private cooking/baking class, or doing an escape room together. Be sure to focus on things everyone can do, regardless of ability. 

Give (Good) Employee Appreciation Gifts

Finally, when we asked participants what they would like to see companies do more of around the holiday season, the clear winner was staff appreciation gifts. Companies don’t need to do something lavish to show their appreciation to their employees (although reallocating funds otherwise spent on a holiday party is one idea). End-of-year appreciation gifts can be given by individual managers, by departments, or by the company leadership, and they should be higher-quality items that make it clear this is not just a “check the box” gesture (which is the opposite of what you’re aiming for!). 

Some suggestions of gifts employees love are fleece jackets, gift cards to local restaurants, and even portable speakers, while mouse pads, stress balls, and t-shirts are passé. 

Want to participate in the conversation or see the results for yourself? Head on over to the HR Solutions At Work LinkedIn page, where we post a new poll every Wednesday!