How to Celebrate an Employee's Birthday

An employee's birthday is a great time to give everyone a break and to make that employee feel special. It's also a time to be frugal and consistent. Here are some ways to celebrate office birthdays without breaking anyone's heart or budget.

Keep It Simple

Remember that you have to make an equally big production for everyone's birthday, so keep it simple. Regardless of budget, it's downright cruel to make one person feel more important than another in the office. Whatever you decide to do for the office birthdays, be consistent.

This rule does not apply to friends/co-workers; however, you must do your gifts, cards, or other birthday related fun, privately. Just because you did it outside of the office, doesn't mean you are excluded from celebrating within the office, but why would you want to?

Delegation

There should always be one person in the office that will gather and display birthdays for office personnel. They should be displayed in a common area like a cafeteria, or break room, or meeting room. That same person should be in charge of securing decorations, food, and a card. Many offices will collect cards for all occasions throughout the year for this very instance. If this hasn't been done, you may want to consider it, especially for any surprises that may arise. Of course, any card should be signed by all of those who are pertinent to the occasion and it never hurts to write something endearing.

Many companies will spring for an entire cake for several birthdays per month. This may be necessary for large companies; however, I enjoy making the celebration personal. If your company is small enough or departmentalized, you might be able to purchase cake slices, pie slices, or their favorite treat. This way, you keep cost down, but you spoil the birthday boy/girl.

Surprise

The element of surprise will be shattered once your crew becomes permanent, but in the mean time, you'll have a lot of fun, and your employees will feel special. Always try to surprise them. If you're able to, gather the office workers away from the employee with the birthday. Light a candle, and walk to the person's desk or cubicle singing "Happy Birthday". This song is somewhat of a formality, and some actually hate being made a fuss over, but it's still a staple and you must do it.

There's always room for creativity. If you have an office clown, think of a good joke to play on the lucky employee. Being the subject of a joke is a form of flattery; just make sure they have a sense of humor. If you know something within reason would really make this person feel great, do it! The purpose of a birthday is to have one day where everything goes right. One day to feel special. One day to forget about your troubles and have fun. Your duty is to be the ambassador.