How To Throw The Most Festive Party For Remote Employees
More and more companies promote remote work as their employees are drawn to the flexibility, freedom, and increased productivity it provides. Despite these perks, keeping remote employees connected can be challenging. Especially when you want to celebrate a festive occasion, such as Christmas, together. If you are in this position, fret not, for we have the best and most festive remote team-building activities for your online office party. These 7 ideas will entertain your employees and help them learn more about each other.
7 Remote Team-Building Activities For Your Virtual Office Party
1. Planning Your Virtual Holiday Party
Throwing a virtual party might be more time-consuming—and also fun—than one might think. You need to keep in mind at all times what you're trying to achieve so that you pick the right activities for it. In our case, the ultimate goal is team building and bringing together employees who rarely, if ever, interact with each other face-to-face. Therefore, the steps you take before the gathering must set the tone for a warm and inviting event. So, attach a festive digital invitation to your web conference link to add a more personal note. Remember to ask your employees to wear a festive outfit and their most brilliant smile.
2. Lay Down The Christmas Feast
No holiday party is complete without delicious treats and drinks. And just because you're not physically in the same place, that doesn't mean you and your team can't enjoy a Christmas feast together. All you have to do is send them a hamper filled with goodies before the day of the gathering. You will certainly find a delivery app for that, regardless of the city your employees are located in. Putting in the effort to include everyone in the holiday feast will create a sense of unity and motivate your employees to participate with an open mind.
3. Share Favorite Holiday Traditions And Memories
It's not uncommon for remote employees to solely interact with members of their own team or department. This can make a virtual Christmas party a little awkward, as many of the participants won't have interacted with each other for anything other than work-related matters. For this reason, it's important to utilize an icebreaker activity, such as asking everyone to share a favorite holiday memory or tradition that's specific to their city, family, or religion. This way, you will get everyone talking and sharing things about themselves, thus helping the team bond.
4. Play Festive Games
Another way to achieve team building for your remote employees is to encourage them to collaborate while playing fun games. Create a few groups depending on the number of participants, and make sure to team up people who don't interact much on a regular basis. Then, these teams can compete with each other in festive quiz games or charades. If everyone is up for it, you can even sign up for a virtual escape room that will be the ultimate test of how well your employees can collaborate to solve riddles and reach the exit.
5. Get Your Hands Dirty
If you're looking for a more creative remote team-building activity, you can get your hands dirty by hosting a gingerbread house-building competition. Just make sure to send everyone a little kit with the essentials beforehand so that everyone works with the same materials. Other choices would include decorating gingerbread cookies or painting ornaments to reflect each one's personal taste. Your employees will have so much fun showing their creations to each other and comparing the results.
6. Organize A Virtual Secret Santa
Did you think Secret Santa can only be done in person? Well, think again, because you can definitely organize a virtual Secret Santa ceremony. All you have to do is set a budget, gather a list of people's interests, and randomly pick the Secret Santa pairs. Then, prompt everyone to choose a gift that can be given online, e.g., concert or theater tickets, a gift card, etc. This way, the gift-giving process becomes available to all employees regardless of their location, thus boosting their morale and strengthening their relationships.
7. Create A Time Capsule
This is a brilliant remote team-building activity that your team will appreciate in years to come. Creating a time capsule will get everyone to reflect on the year that is coming to an end and set new goals for the future. Specifically, for this activity, you ask all employees to send you a message, prediction, or goal for the next year that can be either personal or professional. Then, save them in the time capsule (which can be something as simple as an online document). When next year's holiday celebration comes, you can read the messages together and see if goals were achieved or predictions came true.
Conclusion
Christmas gatherings are a great way to end the year on a positive and fun note. They bring employees together and put them in the right mood for the break ahead. This might be a little more challenging when the majority of your workforce is remote, but certainly not impossible. Follow the tips we shared in this article for the most fun remote team-building activities, and throw a virtual Christmas gathering your employees will be talking about for months.
