For more than two decades, BNA’s Year-End Holiday Practices Survey has offered an annual snapshot of companies’ plans for marking the year’s end and recognizing employees’ contributions at the year end office party. And while celebrations may be on the upswing in 2011, another survey indicates employees are in the “thanks, but no thanks” mindset regarding these festivities—they’d rather see the money go towards tangible gestures, like time off, gift cards, or cash, plain and simple.
For those organizations set on throwing parties, there’s this advice to employees from Nathan Jamail, author of The Playbook Series:
- Use the two drink maximum rule ( if you have low tolerance, then soda is probably a much smarter choice);
- Remember no matter your surroundings, you are still at work;
- Don’t be the last one at the bar, because you probably broke the first and second rules;
- Have fun; and
- Make sure someone else is “That guy or girl!”
Unfortunately, you can bet many employees will be faced with that famous question the next morning—“Hey did you see that guy or girl last night at the company event?” That question can elicit many answers such as, “Oh yeah, everybody did when he got on the microphone and slurred profanity for everybody to hear. Or, “Did you see that girl? She drank so much; she was saying all kinds of inappropriate things to her boss.”
It is possible to enjoy the office holiday party without having regrets the next day. And in this tough employment climate, who really wants to start 2012 searching for a new job?
