Open the drawers for 25 ways to spark joy, gratitude and engagement this holiday season!
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24
Appreciation Advent Emails
Send a daily email shoutout to one employee, highlighting their accomplishments.
The Big
Thank You
End the season with a heartfelt, company-wide thank you message from leadership.
Year-End Appreciation Bash
Throw a celebration with food, music, and informal shoutouts. Include a recognition moment where leaders thank the group.
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22
Treats
for Teams
Send a coffee, snack, or treat box to remote and in-office teams as a surprise recognition moment.
Return Home
21
Ornament of the Day
Each day, feature an employee’s name on a virtual or physical ornament along with a quick note about why they’re being recognized.
20
Holiday Values Countdown
Each day, highlight one of your core values and recognize an employee who lived it out this year with a short story or example.
19
Year-End Award Show
Host a fun ceremony with lighthearted awards. Make it fun by celebrating fun peer-nominated superlatives like ‘Best Teammate.’
18
Gratitude Garland
Provide festive paper strips where employees can write thank-you messages to coworkers. Link them together to create a garland that grows throughout the season.
17
Recognition Scavenger Hunt
Hide physical “holiday tokens” throughout your workplace with each one linking to a recognition action or message from leadership.
16
Cheers with Cheers
Encourage employees to use your recognition platform (like Inspirus Connects!) to send shoutouts or points-based recognition.
15
Team Shoutout Carousel
Use your internal newsletter or Slack to spotlight a new team each day, celebrating what they’ve achieved this year.
14
Winter
Wellness Day
Recognize your team by encouraging rest and self-care with a bonus wellness day or extended break.
13
Holiday Kudos Bingo
For a fun activity, create a bingo card filled with recognition actions (like “send a thank-you” or “shout out a teammate”) and reward completed rows.
12
Joy Jar
Invite employees to submit what brings them joy at work; read a few submissions out loud each day.
11
Surprise and Delight Gift Drop
Randomly select employees each day to receive a small gift card, treat or token of appreciation to spread holiday cheer.
10
Manager’s Holiday Message
Ask managers to record a short video or write a personal holiday message recognizing their team's accomplishments.
9
End-of-Year Highlights Reel
Create a short video or slideshow featuring team wins, standout moments and shoutouts from across the company.
8
Recognition Tree
Set up a tree where each ornament is a note of appreciation from one employee to another.
7
“You Made My Year” Wall
Give employees the chance to write a short note recognizing someone who had a positive impact on their year and post them anonymously in a common space or online.
6
Recognition Raffle
Each time someone gives a kudos or shoutout during the week, their name goes into a raffle. End the week with a prize drawing and a few fun callouts.
5
Gift of Time
Let employees leave a little early or start late one day as a reward for great performance.
4
Secret Snowflake Shoutouts
Pair employees up anonymously to exchange kind words, kudos or holiday wishes throughout the week.
3
12 Days of Recognition Challenge
Encourage managers to recognize a different team member each day for 12 days leading up to the holidays.
2
Personalized Holiday eCard
Send each employee a branded holiday eCard with a heartfelt message tailored to their individual contributions.
1
Season of Thanks Board
Create a virtual or in-office board where employees can share short messages of gratitude for teammates and leaders.
