Christmas party over - phew!

Hi all, 

I don't know whether you have had your Christmas party yet, but we had ours on Tuesday and it all went down really well. It is so lovely to see how getting together boosts everyone's motivation and job satisfaction, and from having regular meetings where staff were telling me all about problems, they are now boasting about the party and how great it was to see everyone; UK staff and international staff.

We had loads of fun, there were a few compromising pictures, some sore heads the day after, but it all just added to us all feeling a bit closer to each other.

We have staff parties twice a year and they are incredibly valuable to us. I have been told by several members of staff that they would much rather have these parties than a money based bonus twice a year.

Have you had your party yet? It can really kick start the new year with lots of positive staff!

Cheers, 

Toril

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  • Can I also add to this growing conversation, it's great to see this dicussion on the number one slot of "This Week's Most Active" on the DPG Community.  We're trending!! :-)

    How very festive!!

    Great shout Toril for getting this one going.

  • We have a staff christmas party every year - nothing to grand. This year it's a lunchtime meal in our own visitor centre on Chesil Beach, with the meal provided by the caterers that share the site with us. We are all looking forward to what is always a great way to finish off the year.

    One HR 'moment' has come out of it though..   Last week one of the staff came in to see me and asked for a 'quiet word please'.. I duly sat her down, shut the door and asked how I could help. 

    She simply came out with 'Well, you are HR. Why isn't there turkey on the menu for the christmas meal?!' 

    Initially, I didn't really know how to respond!  Eventually, through a bit of coaching,  she realised that it was probably a good thing to have the other choices as in two weeks time she would be fed up of turkey anyway!

    HR problem solved, and I even got to practice some coaching.

    Steve

     

    • Hi Steve, 

      That's funny!! As HR you have to take the 'advice hat' on for all sorts!

      I had a member of staff in tears because somebody else had asked to decorate the Christmas trees, a job she loved doing and had done for the last 5 years! 

      HR slogan this year:

      "No issue is too small, I want to help and support all!" He he

  • I'm going to miss our Christmas party this year at work, but I'm sure I'll enjoy all the stories that will follow no doubt!

    We did a secret Santa in our team the other week.  We've never done that before and it went down really well in our team and was a nice little morale booster.

    Sadly, I my secret purchaser didn't get the new flat screen TV, dream holiday tickets or the keys to the car that I'd hoped, but I'm not bitter!  The tie was lovely thanks!

    • Secret Santa is a regular thing in the DPG office. £10 is the limit and it's great fun seeing how creative people can be with their purchases...it's the little things.

      So sorry to hear your new flat screen telly didn't appear :-(

  • I can't wait to don my Ra Ra skirt and get dancing to Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go

    I will off course be suppressing any pictures of said event for reputational purposes ;)

    On a more serious note it is interesting to think that your staff value a Christmas party and an opportunity to have a great time with their colleagues more than a financial reward. I remember working for a large bank that cut the staff employee Christmas allowance from £25 to £10 and the impact on moral was incredible.

    OK you could argue that a £25 allowance was a lot but when you consider that performance related pay and bonuses can be many times that it was incredible to see how much this affected staff moral and how much they actually valued a Christmas outing with their colleagues.

    • Hi Mike,

      I agree! Yes, we spend a lot of money on our do's, but it makes such an impact on staff engagement and the feeling of working in a team. Very beneficial, as performance related pay can be very individual and sometimes de-motivating if not everyone receives what they expect.

      Thank you for your input Mike!

      • It's incredible how big the disconnect is between what motivates us and how performance strategies are delivered. Dan Pink says it best when he says "The is a mismatch between what science knows and what business does". Great video below explaining more

  • Hi Toril

    Aww thats excellent its nice to see that everyones getting closer not too close of course but. Compromising pictures are essential put them in a private area in the office for the staff to have a giggle at we have one of these boards in our break room. Cheers you up if you are having a bad day!

    We are like a big family here anyway so our xmas dos are just fun! We have our DPG xmas do on the 20th which should be a wonderful night! Its a Wham tribute band aswell :)

    Will let you know how we get on!

    Claire

    • Hi Claire-Hazel,

      That sounds like fun! A perfect start to the Christmas holiday!

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