Expanding on the Traditional Company Holiday Party for Better Employee Engagement

November 2022 — By T.J. Duane

By all accounts, it would appear that the world is starting to shift back to “normal” now that we’re two years post-pandemic. Masks are no longer mandated, offices have reopened, and the traditional end of year celebration is making a roaring comeback.

Non Plus Ultra, an event planning company that hosted Meta’s infamous 2019 Game of Thrones bash, reported working on parties this year with nearly 2,500 to 3,000 people in attendance. Although the number is down from their pre-COVID-19 parties, which consisted of approximately 5,000 to 6,000 guests, the climbing numbers show that many are eager to ditch the virtual and embrace the personal. And what better time to serve that new need than now?

End of year celebrations are always a great excuse to bring everyone together for some no-work fun. Top-level execs are looking for reasons to get workers back in the office. Long-time employees are looking to reconnect with old teammates, and new employees are looking to find their footing. With these desires at the forefront of employee engagement strategies, many businesses are looking for new ways to elevate the typical company holiday party and move their company out of the restricted, distanced covid-era culture. After all, organizations with engaged employees perform better across the board. Studies have proven that those companies with the best employee engagement metrics, also outpace their competition in categories like profitability, productivity, and customer satisfaction.

Branch Metrics, a tech company hailed as the leader in mobile linking and measurement, understood this well. For their end of year celebration, they set out to create an experience that was more engaging than a standard company holiday party. The organization had grown more than 60% over the course of the year, so many people didn’t know much about the majority of their colleagues.

Branch Metrics wanted to give their employees something that encouraged real community engagement. And with studies showing that 3 out of every 4 employees feel company parties boost overall morale, an expanded end of year celebration felt like the right way to go.

How The Party Started…

Every year, Branch Metrics throws its typical end of year celebration. Like most companies, their initiatives are always planned around celebrating their teams and highlighting any exceptionally hard-working employees. However, these types of initiatives require a lot of administrative work. They wanted to go the extra mile to bring employees together without creating additional tasks for busy managers or the HR department. Instead, BrightCrowd’s online digital memory book was the perfect solution.

“Brightcrowd is an amazing tool for re-connecting people in an existing community, but it’s also helpful in creating a sense of community among people with shared interests who may never have met before.” - Mike Molinet, COO, Branch Metrics

Together, BrightCrowd worked with Branch Metrics execs to ensure that the book would accomplish their ultimate goal of helping their team share their personal highlights, favorite memories, and photos from the year. The book gave participants a private online space away from social media to be their authentic selves with their fellow employees.

When used as a complimentary initiative to their holiday party, it created a more intimate, festive, and memorable experience. Every participant included a page about themselves where they shared life updates, photos, memories, accomplishments from the year, and more. One that honored their hard work and the relationships they’ve built with each other. With a 61% participation rate, it’s safe to say this was a smashing success for the organization.

…and Kept Going

Unlike an end of year celebration, BrightCrowd’s online digital memory book, doesn’t end when the DJ plays “Closing Time.” the party never stops. It only gets better.

The community book Branch Metrics created, for example, is now archived as an online yearbook for the participants. Something all participants can look back on with fondness as a snapshot in time filled with genuine and authentic memories. After the holiday party, it continues to be a resource to build deep connections with employees they wish to remain in contact with or get to know better!

Elevate the Party – Connect Throughout the Year

With the world moving out of the early-pandemic worries, company holiday parties and end of year celebrations are key. And by using BrightCrowd’s digital yearbooks, you can not only expand and elevate the end of year experience, but you can also help boost your employee engagement metrics and company culture.

When you partner with BrightCrowd, your employees can reignite old connections and nurture new ones that last well beyond the party and into the future. Now that’s something to celebrate.

Are you interested in learning more about how BrightCrowd’s digital yearbooks can complement your company initiatives like holiday parties without any additional effort? Schedule a demo to learn more.

T.J. Duane