How Can I Make Our Monthly Birthday Celebrations More Fun Without Spending Money?

Hey everyone,

I am responsible for organizing the birthday celebration party at the end of every month. My problem is that now it has become very monotonous. I introduce everyone to the birthday people for that month, and then the cake is cut. Everyone eats the cake and goes back to work. What I want is that there should be some activity involved because this is the only time the employees get together in a month. I request you to send me some suggestions that do not involve any cost and take a maximum of half an hour to 45 minutes.

Waiting in anticipation.

PS - It's urgent as I have to conduct it yet again for the month of May, and I'm short of ideas!!

Dear Manish,

A couple of suggestions that we tried out in my company:

1. We also started introducing people who had joined or been transferred in during that period. They have to give a brief introduction about themselves, their family, hobbies, etc.

2. We used to give flowers to the birthday people.

3. Then, we introduced that the flowers would be given by somebody other than the Head of the department to the birthday people; it could even be the new joiner to the organization.

Hope you find this useful.

Warm regards,
Swapna Nair

Hi Manisha,

In one of my earlier organizations (a very large MNC), we used to have one or more employees, mostly the birthday boys or girls, perform either a song, dance, or a small skit, etc. Basically, this is an opportunity to present one's talent and may be very motivating for employees.

In my present organization, which is a very small size (30 employees) and the majority of the staff are below 25 years old, we have a lot of fun activities, including games, some light-hearted teasing, etc., all initiated by employees themselves. This has resulted in a very strong bond being formed among them.

Another suggestion could be to split the birthday celebrations within each department or division or group of, say, 20-30 staff. This way, birthday celebrations would be a more personal experience for those involved.

Hope this is useful.

Hello Manisha,

Couple of Suggestions:

1. First, introduce all the birthday boys and girls, then cut the cake.
2. While having snacks, organize some team-building games where everyone in the company can get to know each other.
3. Arrange for some music; if people are interested, they can dance and enjoy.
4. If you're arranging games, you can give small gifts to the winners to motivate the employees to participate in the events.
5. Check if the company can provide any funds for it. If not, check with the employees if they can contribute some amount, around Rs 50-100, as a contribution to the kitty party. Later, you can utilize that amount to get some gifts for them.

Regards,
Sanchi

What you can do is create a PowerPoint presentation of that person's tenure in your company. You can gather photos from his childhood to present-day and incorporate them into the slideshow. If the person has received any awards from the company, I am sure you will have photos of those as well. You can include them in the slideshow.

Hi Manish, this is Syam Sudar working as an HR. I have a couple of suggestions.

First, you should try to arrange a whiteboard at the entrance of your organization. Write the name of the person who is celebrating their birthday on the board. For example: HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MR. XXXXXXX (XX DEPT). WISHING YOU MANY MORE HAPPY RETURNS OF THE DAY. If we display this information on the board, every employee and employer can easily find it and wish them. This will make the birthday person feel special.

Secondly, provide a wishing card that includes the organization's logo and the signature of the head of the organization. Alternatively, you can give a greeting card that includes well wishes along with the signatures of employees in the respective department. To make it more colorful and attractive, use different colors of shining/gel pens.

Lastly, consider taking snaps during the celebration. capturing these moments can be a great way to create lasting memories.

These suggestions can help enhance the birthday celebration experience in your organization. Thank you.