Holiday Gift Ideas for Happier Employees

Everybody loves gifts, your employees included. When given during the holidays, they’re a nice little touch that motivates employees before the new year. But what impact do corporate gifts genuinely have on your employer brand and organizational culture?

Holiday gifts are an excellent excuse to organize a corporate holiday party with thematic team-building activities. Gift exchanges can take place during the event for an added dimension of cheer. Secret Santas activities can also be part of the dynamic, and everyone can enjoy opening presents and discussing in a good atmosphere.

Of course, these team-building activities are crucial to employee motivation and retention! As such, they are essential for a welcoming and positive work environment.

While employee recognition programs cannot rely solely on gifts and holiday cheer, no one can deny that they are the cherry on top of your appreciation cake.

When benefits, bonus paid time off, appreciation gestures and feedback culture have all been settled in your company, corporate holiday gifts will round up your recognition strategy quite nicely!

Now that you know the perks corporate gifts bring to your organization, it’s time to discover which gift ideas will make your employees happy. We have asked employers and managers to give examples of successful corporate gifts within their companies, and their answers are pretty enlightening!

Who doesn’t appreciate a personalized gift? They show that you know and care about your employees individually:

One gift that made everyone’s day better was a personalized coffee mug showcasing the employee’s hobby. I remember I received a mug with a cartoon version of me cozying on a couch and reading a book, whereas colleagues of mine had drawings about cycling, candle collecting, watching TV, or playing football. It was a very thoughtful gift and the mugs were definitely well-made.

If I were to give any tip regarding employee gift-giving, it would be to brainstorm ideas well before time and come up with something less obvious. Think out of the box and put some effort into researching the right gift. The employees will immediately notice a gift that wasn’t given much thought. – Karolina Kijowska, Head of People at PhotoAiD

Did you know that you can add comments on your employees’ files in your Folks HR platform? That’s a helpful way to remember your coworkers’ hobbies and which gifts they might like!

Additionally, one great way to show your appreciation for your employees is through corporate recognition awards and engraved gifts such as those from Able Recognition. Employees will definitely appreciate the thought that goes into such gifts and will be sure to remember them for years to come.

Why not offer food baskets as gifts that employees can share with their family and friends? These gifts are great conversation starters as everyone can share what they enjoyed most from their gift baskets. Be mindful of food restrictions, and sprinkle on a bit of uniqueness and imagination!

We have bought reusable water bottles (chilly’s water bottles) with our logo engraved on it. They were fantastic, our team and clients still have them on their desks every day. A gift which is used regularly, in eyesight everyday, and most importantly has a nice sustainability angle too. – Jo Taylor, Managing Director of Let’s Talk Talent

Sustainability and usefulness are essential aspects to consider when picking out your gifts. Furthermore, adding your company’s logo to the present is a nice little touch!

In that sense, Renderforest provides an online suite of creative tools for making attractive videos, animations, logo maker, mockups, websites, and business name generator. The platform is easy to use and employs advanced features, making it possible for people and companies to produce high-quality content without significant design or technical knowledge. Additionally, Renderforest offers various customizable graphics and templates that users can use to create unique content in minutes.

For the holidays, you can also offer thematic activity coupons so your employees can experience memorable moments with their family and friends. Winter cabin stays, tickets to hockey games or the skating rink, cooking and tasting activities… There’s plenty to choose from! This kind of gift promotes quality moments with loved ones and provides a well-deserved break to your employees.

One corporate gift that has been particularly successful in our company is noise-canceling headphones. More than half of our workforce operates remotely, and in many instances, they find themselves working in noisy environments such as coffee shops. Even those who work from home know the challenges of finding a quiet place inside one’s home when there are other members of the household present, especially if there are kids or pets around. Gifting our remote employees noise-canceling headphones allows them to focus on cognitive-intense tasks much easier wherever they are, enhancing their productivity and improving their experience of working remotely. 

To date, noise-canceling headphones continue to be the most requested corporate gift amongst our employees, followed by our branded daily planners. – Lisa Richards, CEO and Creator of the Candida Diet

Identifying your employees’ current needs and preparing gifts accordingly is a great way to show appreciation while improving their daily lives.

These examples show that personalized gifts are always more successful than generic ones. In that sense, dividing gift-giving by teams to better understand what employees might like is a great idea.

If you don’t have time to customize corporate gifts, another option is to buy presents that can be shared with family and friends.

Outside of the holiday season, more practical gifts that facilitate day-to-day work are also appreciated and always useful.

Gifts are an essential component of an employee recognition program that is efficient, thoughtful and impactful. Gift-giving in corporate settings allows for the development of real connections within the workplace that not only help employees feel supported but also boosts their retention and commitment to the company. 

We give our employees highly personalized office supplies and gadgets as a way of appreciating them and making sure they feel valued. For instance, last year, we gifted each employee with an Outlet Tower that allows them to charge their cameras and other devices at the same time. This way all their devices are charged at all times and ready to be used. 

This year, we are planning to give each of them a Moon Pod so that they can relax even as they edit pictures and film, and communicate with clients and the rest of the team. Moon Pods also provide ergonomic support, which will help minimize back problems amongst our staff for the long term. – Andrew Cussens, Owner of FilmFolk

In short, avoid uninspired presents and think outside the box, and remember that a cheap but meaningful gift is often more appreciated than a costly but soulless alternative!