Traditional office parties getting ditched
NEW YORK – Buddy DiFonzo isn’t sure what he’ll buy at his company’s holiday party. That’s right, what he’ll buy – the celebration, a company-sponsored shopping spree, will be at an upscale Dallas mall.
Six employees of consulting firm Idea Harvest will meet at NorthPark Center next week. The bosses will buy lunch, then hand each staffer an envelope with $200 to $300. One requirement: Staffers must spend every penny on themselves.
“This is fantastic for morale and employees look forward to opening those envelopes for weeks,” CEO Mike Solow said.
Many bosses are ditching traditional holiday parties. Instead, they’re sponsoring shopping sprees and cruises to reward staffers and celebrate at the end of the year. Others are holding parties that include a special activity or are doing volunteer events that they say are good for business.
A variety of factors are behind the change, says Leslie Yerkes, president of Catalyst Consulting Group in Cleveland. Younger workers aren’t as interested standard holiday celebrations; the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks made many companies look for events that were meaningful, like volunteer work; and the last recession curtailed spending on over-the-top affairs.
When DiFonzo and his colleagues at Idea Harvest are done shopping, they’ll meet for drinks.
Solow borrowed the shopping spree idea from a previous job, where staffers got lunch, money and time to go shopping. A lot of the fun is in the anticipation, he says.
Lattice Engine’s employees painted while they partied last week at a Boston restaurant. The software company brought in Paint Nite, a service that gives painting lessons at bars and restaurants. About 65 people painted trees on canvas while they drank and ate hors d’oeuvres.
Nautilus used to have lavish parties with employee gifts like big-screen TVs. In 2004, the fitness equipment maker decided to focus less on itself and more on the community, says Wayne Bolio, a senior vice president. So Nautilus began sponsoring an annual shopping trip for children at a Target store near the company’s Vancouver, Wash., headquarters.
More than 40 staffers and about two dozen family members volunteered to help about 50 children pick out gifts.
“When you walk out afterward, you say, ‘I feel good about this and I feel good that the company supports it,”‘ Bolio says.