It's The Most Wonderful Time of the Year
“I love this time of year! Soon, the decorations will dot the city and it’ll be magical. The holidays are right around the corner and that means party planning time!”, I exclaimed as the HR morning meeting started. I led the HR Department and Marie was the HR Assistant who’d worked for several years. She was an excellent assistant; detail-oriented, hyper-organized, and friendly. She was an integral part of the HR team and I knew I could count on her for anything, especially with planning employee parties.
I’d been working at the hotel for a few short months but hadn’t been there for a holiday season, yet. “Marie, we are going to have a Kids’ Holiday Party like this town has never seen before!”, I exclaimed. I love planning employee events because the employees enjoyed the events so much. It was a time for them to socialize with each other and they got to show off their work to their families, who loved seeing where they spent their day.
“A kids’ holiday party? What do you mean? We just plan the Annual Employee Party in January,” Marie said. “We get to plan TWO parties, now?”
“Marie, this year we’re starting a new tradition and we’ll have the kids’ party. Let’s make a list of what we need to do.”
Planning employee parties in a hotel was a lot of fun, but difficult because we had to find a date that wasn't busy. We didn’t want to reserve a room that would displace revenue. We had to consider how busy the kitchen would be on the day we chose, and we wanted to maximize the number of employees that could attend, although other employees still had to work. And since every kid was invited, it looked like we were planning a party for all ages, from 6 months to 16 years. Here’s the to-do list we made:
Meet with Chef to plan the menu
Call the Sales Team to find a quiet date and book the room
Find a Santa
Buy gifts
Find a great DJ who could get a crowd roaring
Send out invitations and keep track of the RSVPs
Plan activities
What are we missing?
A few days later, we met again. I was in full-blown party-planning mode. We had just over a month to get everything done and I did not like to wait until the last minute. “Chef is planning the menu with lots of fried foods and kid-friendly snacks like hot dogs, pizza, and chicken tenders. The pastry chef is busy creating a beautiful gingerbread house and yummy desserts. Marie, how’s the DJ search coming along?”
“The DJ is booked and is going to bring his sidekicks to lead dances and get the crowd moving. I got recommendations for a magician and left him a message. I sent the balloon artist the contract” Marie said. “So far, 75 kids have RSVPd, so I’ll place the order for their gifts today.”
She showed me the gift boxes that she was planning to order. They reminded me of the cardboard boxes that Happy Meals used to come in. I thought they were perfect and easy for Santa to hand out. Plus, we didn’t have to wrap 75 gifts, PHEW!.
“Now all I have to do is get the arts and crafts supplies. I think we’re in good shape,” Marie finished giving her updates.
“One final thing,” I asked, thinking this was the trickiest piece of the agenda. “Who can we convince to put on a smelly, rented Santa suit and Ho Ho Ho their day away, even if it was for the kids?” We talked about the list of potential Santas. Men with the right physique and the proper amount of jolly. In my past jobs, an intern was always Santa. We didn’t have any interns so we put our heads together to create a list of managers who might be the best choice for Santa, checked it twice, and went our merry ways to cajole someone to play Santa for a day.
The next day Marie stumbled into the office, dropping a bunch of boxes and bags on the floor. “I’ve got the supplies for the arts and crafts table,” she announced. “And I saved a ton of money,” she said proudly, as she opened the parcels and placed white copy paper, neutral-toned markers, and unremarkable ribbon on a nearby table.
“Marie, you’ve certainly gotten a lot of stuff, but I was thinking we would have an arts and crafts table filled with supplies like cotton balls, popsicle sticks, crayons and markers of all colors, paint in every shade, pipe cleaners, glitter, glue, and chaos.
“What would we do with cotton balls and popsicle sticks?” she asked, her brow furrowed.
Marie was pregnant and had been taking parenting classes, I thought she would be all over the creativity train. I guess they only talk about how to give birth in those classes, not how to keep toddlers busy. I laughed when I realized I was not the best at giving detailed instructions and I should have been more specific in what I was thinking for the activity table. We discussed my vision a bit more in depth and Marie left to buy more craft supplies.
Everything was aflutter the day of the party. Cooks ran from the prep table to the stovetop to the pantry and back again and they never ran into each other, preparing the feast. What skill! The party room was beautifully decorated with balloons and streamers. The dance floor eagerly awaited the tapping of little feet while Santa’s throne awaited many happy giggles. The magician, balloon artist, and DJ set up their tables and wares as I checked out the arts and crafts table. Marie had done a good job.
I surveyed the room as employees filed in with their children. The DJ played everything from Raffi to Lady Gaga and threw in some Sinatra for good measure. The dancers, in their Santa Elf costumes that were borderline inappropriately cut for a kids party, energized the crowd and steered people to the dance floor. I heard Ooohs and Ahhhs coming from the corner where the Magician performed. The balloon artist’s creations squeaked as he made another balloon dog. People were enjoying themselves.
And the arts and crafts table? Chaos, utter chaos. Kids were gluing cotton balls to popsicle sticks to create reindeer. Children splattered paint on paper plates (and everywhere else). Parents got into the fun, too, and stretched their imaginations.
All of a sudden, out of nowhere, we heard sleigh bells ring. The room fell silent as the ballroom doors slowly opened and a giant Santa, in his signature red suit, strolled in, lugging his sack full of gifts. He moved to his throne and children’s shrieks filled the air. They clambered to line up to tell Santa what they wanted. Each child sat on his knee and told them their deepest wishes. He took pictures with each one, and his everlasting smile filled the frame. Handing each child their gift, he wished them “Happy Holidays” in a baritone voice.
A few hours later, the party ended. I congratulated Marie on a smashing success and sank into a chair, exhausted. Employees had fun. Their kids had fun. I couldn’t think of a single thing to change. It was perfect. This is why I do what I do. To create a fun workplace.
FUN AT WORK
Those two words don’t usually occur in the same sentence. But they should. We spend a lot of time at work and we should find joy at work. The HR team spent time planning the holiday parties and it took effort from a lot of people to create a great employee event, but having fun at work doesn’t have to cost a lot of money or take a lot of resources. Having fun at work can positively impact both individual employees and the organization as a whole. Here are some key benefits:
Improved Morale
Increased Productivity
Enhanced Creativity and Innovation
Better Team Cohesion
Reduced Stress
Improved Customer Service
Enhanced Employer Brand
Incorporating fun into the workplace doesn't mean sacrificing professionalism or productivity. Instead, it involves creating an environment where employees feel valued, engaged, and happy, leading to a thriving organization. Finding ways to have fun at work helps create a great employee experience.
