How to Throw A Virtual Holiday Party Employees Will Want to Attend

• Corporate holiday parties during the pandemic looked a little different; with a predominantly remote workforce, companies held virtual holiday parties.  
• Believe it or not, online holiday work parties can actually be fun — if they’re done right. 
• Phoenix Porcelli, VP of Sales for Convene, told Allwork.Space what organizations can do to throw an inviting and exciting holiday party, including adding experiential elements.

Corporate holiday parties during the pandemic looked a little different. With a newly remote workforce, many companies held virtual holiday parties that, to put it kindly, may have been lacking.   

The need for virtual events remains as the world of work continues to evolve, but they don’t have to be miserable events that are worse than your typical weekly Zoom meetings. Believe it or not, online holiday work parties can actually be fun — if they’re done right.   

Here are some ideas for holiday parties that might actually get employees to join in: 

• Happy hour: Depending on the type of organization, host a virtual happy hour for your staff is a great idea.  
• Gift exchange: A virtual gift exchange is still as fun as an in-person gift exchange — workers just get to open gifts from the comfort of their own home instead. 
• Ugly sweater fashion show: It’s hard to beat a good ugly sweater party.  
• Trivia game: Trivia is fun for people across age groups and demographics. Healthy competition between employees is good!  

Phoenix Porcelli, VP of Sales for Convene, told Allwork.Space what else organizations can do to throw an inviting and exciting holiday party.  

Allwork.Space: What is the value of a corporate holiday party? 

Phoenix Porcelli: Corporate holiday parties are a time for teams to come together, celebrate the great work they’ve done all year, and revel in the company of one another in a more relaxed and enjoyable atmosphere.   

With something like 70% of companies adopting a hybrid work style, spending time together in person is more valuable than ever for building a strong company culture. Companies are opting to use smaller, more intimate and unique experiences, or a collaborative activity, to mark the end of an unpredictable year, instead of the traditional full office celebration. We are also seeing more team and regional celebrations.  

Allwork.Space: How can a coworking space or other company host a holiday party that people will actually want to attend? Both virtually and in-person?   

Phoenix Porcelli: Meetings and events are our bread and butter at Convene, and we specialize in creating premium, hospitality-driven experiences for all of our guests.   

After years apart, this holiday season our clients are looking forward to bringing people back together to celebrate — and they’re looking to create an elevated event. We’re seeing a 100% increase in demand for holiday parties over last year, and a 70% increase compared to pre-pandemic levels.     

This year, companies are looking to include experiential elements like jugglers, holiday cocktail classes, or festive cooking lessons as part of their event offerings.  

For employees that are now distributed regionally, this year holiday parties are trending smaller or are more intimate, team-based events instead of the big company-wide blowouts previously hosted.