You know your employees work hard every day, but in the bustle of business you may not always get a minute to stop and thank them. Employee Appreciation Day, observed on the first Friday in March every year, gives you a chance to recognize and reward them in a big way.
We’ll help you get your planning started.
First, understand your employees’ preferences
You know your employees well, but you still can’t read their minds and you don’t want your gestures of appreciation to fall flat. Send out a survey to see what kinds of ideas resonate with everyone. This blog post on ways to show employee appreciation has some tips on crafting an effective survey for this purpose.
Ideas for employee appreciation
Once you know what your employees would appreciate, you can start brainstorming. Here are a few ideas to get you started that include both in-person activities and ways to recognize remote-only employees.
Shoutouts
The most direct way to let your employees know you appreciate them is to tell them – and tell them why. For some employees, this might be the most meaningful way you can recognize them.
Write personal notes of appreciation to each team member. Add a special touch by hand writing them on company stationery. If you’re looking for tips to write a thoughtful note, our post on how to pen the perfect thank you note for your boss has some advice and samples that are applicable for writing appreciation notes to your staff as well. As for remote-only employees, be sure to mail their notes a few days before Employee Appreciation Day so they won’t feel left out on the day.
Give team members the opportunity to show their appreciation for each other as well. Consider putting an “Appreciation Box” on every team member’s desk and encourage everyone to write short notes to their coworkers and drop them in their boxes. This can be accomplished virtually as well, with employees sending their messages to remote-only employees through email or chat. Make it extra special by starting off each box (or email thread) with your note or a note from another company leader.
Gifts
A small gift is another way to let employees know you thought of them. Choose something general enough that most people will like or find useful.
Think something like a company branded tote bag with a few goodies inside, maybe specialty chocolates and a coffee gift card. Or step it up with a company branded complete gift set. Either way, don’t forget to mail your gifts out to fully-remote employees a few days ahead of time.
Food & games
Whether you cater lunch or provide an array of snacks and drinks, free food puts everyone in a good mood. Add some games and décor and you can make it an employee appreciation party.
When it comes to the games, a good workplace party game is one that isn’t too complicated and gives everyone a chance to play. Office Bingo and Jeopardy fit this bill and this bingo card generator and jeopardy template can help. You might want to have some standby board games available as well, such as Jenga and Connect 4, so employees can break off into smaller groups and play at their own pace.
Be sure to include any remote-only employees in the fun. Send them a gift card to get lunch and video call them in for the games or just to say hi.
Field trip
What better way to reward your team than a day away from the office? Take them out for a fun team bonding activity. Many activities will feature a virtual component for fully-remote employees as well.
Consider something out-of-the-box, like an improv class. Many theaters that offer improv classes are used to hosting corporate teams and there are even improv classes designed specifically for company offsites. It’s a fun activity that doubles as a great way to improve workplace soft skills such as collaboration and confidence. These classes can even be hosted virtually by an instructor.
A few other ideas:
- Pickleball
- Escape room
- Painting party
- Volunteer project
- Scavenger hunt
Bonus if the activity relates to your business in some way. For example, the owner of a design agency might set up a visit to a silk screen shop for their team to see how the process is done and gain inspiration.
The most important thing is to choose an activity you think your team will enjoy – and even better if there’s a virtual component fully-remote employees can partake in.
Create something that will last all year long
Take Employee Appreciation Day as an opportunity to unveil a new area within your workplace. Dedicate a new lounge or quiet space for employees to use any time. For any fully-remote employees, consider letting them pick out a new desk chair, filing cabinet, or something else that would enhance their space. At Quill we have a full selection of furniture and furniture specialists to help you create the perfect work environment.
Choose one or choose all
How you celebrate Employee Appreciation Day is up to you – and you don’t have to choose just one way. Make the most of this important day to show your staff just how much you value them.
Keep up with more business tips and resources on the Quill Blog.