With end-of-year deadlines colliding with festive distractions, employee engagement can often take a little hit during the holiday season. Don’t let stress overwhelm your workforce, and be sure to use this season to show appreciation to your employees and boost morale within your teams.
Prioritizing recognition, simple appreciation gestures and promoting work-life balance will go a long way in helping employees appreciate where they work and will strengthen their loyalty as we head into the new year.
6 Tips to Boost Employee Engagement During the Holiday Season
Here are six tips to help you improve employee engagement during the holidays.
Tip #1: Promote work-life balance
Between family gatherings, travel and holiday commitments, this can be a distracting time for your employees. You can support your coworkers by being flexible with their schedules during this time and make sure workload is manageable, so everyone is meeting deadlines accordingly.
Encouraging employees to use their earned PTO shows you care about their overall well-being. Taking time off helps employees recharge and reduce stress so they can be fully engaged when they return to work. Make an effort to coordinate time off so that you have coverage to get work done and allow employees to enjoy time with loved ones.
Tip #2: Foster a festive atmosphere
Keep things fun this season by creating a more festive environment with simple decorations, holiday music and informal holiday-themed gatherings if time permits. You can also consider surprise treats such as gift cards for lunch or even extra breaks for hot cocoa.
Creating a fun environment, especially during the holidays, will boost morale and help employees feel fully engaged at work.
Tip #3: Show appreciation
The holidays are the perfect time to show your team how much you value their hard work and that you appreciate all they bring to the table.
Recognition goes a long way in boosting long-term loyalty. Appreciation can be shown in many ways – simple shoutouts at meetings, a special gesture with a personalized card, or bonuses and other monetary gifts, if budget allows.
Tip #4: Organize team bonding activities
Get the team together and organize some fun activities! You can organize a team lunch, holiday themed outing, or and ugly sweater contest!
For a virtual setting, consider a holiday-themed online activity to bring on the festive spirit. All these events will strengthen bonds and create a fun environment.
Tip #5: Encourage giving back
The holidays are also a great time to volunteer! Get the team together for volunteer opportunities such as spending time at a food bank or taking the initiative to organize a food or toy drive.
Volunteering together is a great way to give back to the community and makes you feel good, right in time for the festive season. Offering paid time off to volunteer shows that your company cares about the community and creates a sense of pride among the employees.
Tip #6: Provide learning opportunities
To keep employees motivated during the holidays and beyond, ensure you offer growth opportunities to foster continuous learning and engagement. The end of the year is a time for personal reflection, so your employees may be looking at how they can grow in their careers and set goals for the new year.
Workshops, guest speakers and providing access to online education courses are great ways to show your commitment to your employees’ career growth.
