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Holiday Parties in the COVID-19 Era

COVID Holiday 3

Pandemic-friendly company holiday party ideas

by Frani McDermott, Editorial Intern

With the holiday season already upon us, businesses are looking for new, safe ways to bring some festive cheer to their employees. While hosting a traditional holiday party may be out of the question during the pandemic, there are still plenty of fun, safe ideas that will ensure a memorable celebration – all it takes is putting on your jingle bell thinking cap!

And after this challenging year, we all could use a reason to celebrate. 

Other than the obvious social-distancing requirements that are hindering normal holiday gatherings, there is one other obstacle that companies are facing: Zoom fatigue. It’s real. So, if you want to get your employees logged on to yet another call in order to have your holiday event, you’ve got to have some fresh activities ready to go. Check out some of these fun, COVID-19 approved ideas for your company’s holiday gathering! 

    • Virtual Escape Room – A virtual escape room is a perfect holiday activity for your remote team! Together you will solve riddles and complete puzzles all within a fixed amount of time in order to “escape the room.” Works for large or small groups. Check out this holiday-themed escape room or look here for a variety of themes and difficulty-levels.

    • (Virtual) Cooking Party – Learning a festive recipe with your co-workers is a fun and engaging way to celebrate the holidays! This idea is great for a small team if you’re still itching to get together (safely) in person. This list of the 10 best cooking classes in Iowa has several local options for you to explore. Interested in trying a class virtually? Ask about those opportunities, too.

    • Virtual Murder Mystery – Co-workers turn detectives! At a virtual murder mystery party, participants act out a murder story and must figure out which character is the killer. Lucky for you, there’s plenty of these put together online already for you to choose from – check out this list for ideas.

    • Deliver care packages to employees’ doorsteps –  If the Zoom fatigue is too much and you’re looking for easier ways to spread the holiday cheer, delivering baked goods or gift cards is another way to show your appreciation during this time of uncertainty. This is a win-win, as not only is it a simple holiday gift, but you can also support local businesses in the community! For example, Athene recently purchased $26,000 in gift cards to West Des Moines restaurants. Read about their actions here.

    • Save time, give money – It may make the most sense to take no chances and skip the big parties this year. Rather than spend money on a traditional holiday event, donate your holiday party budget to a nonprofit organization that is important to your community. Learn how you can give back to local non-profit organizations to keep our community #WDMstrong.

As you can see, there are many creative ways to celebrate the holidays this year! Now is more important than ever to celebrate the accomplishments of your employees in whatever ways you can. No matter what you decide, just make sure you’re doing it with everyone’s health and safety in mind.

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