Giving meaningful holiday gifts to your workforce is a powerful and memorable way of showing employees that you appreciate them. And what better occasion than Christmas to show regard to your employees? However, picking the perfect gift can be a little challenging as you need to carefully consider what you give. 

So how do you find employee holiday gifts they actually want? While tangible presents can make the Christmas merrier, it’s the gift of love, support, empathy and care that lasts forever. In an exclusive conversation with experts Uma Kasturi Yeleswarapu, Sachi Bhargava, Karan Singh Chauhan, and Dr Shikha Goyal, we came up with gifts that your employees actually want this Christmas.

Skilling programs

Learning doesn’t come across as a benefit, but it is an intangible experience differentiator. Sachi Bhargava, Global Lead Total Rewards, EYGDS, revealed how her organisation supports the employees by investing in a host of skilling programs, avenues, and opportunities to enhance their personal and professional development.

“Programs focused on technical, leadership, business, and soft skills, milestone and mentoring programs; and various live and virtual learning initiatives are perfect gifts that will help employees evolve at every step of their career,” she said. 

Flexibility

Give your employees the gift of flexibility in their work schedule this Christmas. This will help them to balance their professional as well as personal life “and not feel stressed especially during this time of yuletide spirit. It also allows agile working practices,” suggested Karan Singh Chauhan, General Manager - Corporate Communication & Alliance, Qdesq.   

Mindfulness packs

Talents are looking towards organisations that care about employee wellbeing. Just writing in the document about different well-being programs will not serve the purpose as employees are super smart to sense reality. 

“Employers can present Mindfulness Packs as a gesture of gift to their employees by including unique meditation sessions, providing free subscriptions of wellness software, giving relaxation care packages, yoga and spa gift box. Creating and sustaining a culture of working towards employee’s mental health and well-being is the biggest gift an employee expects from their managers,” Dr Shikha Goyal, Associate Professor, Human Resources, Mittal School of Business, Lovely Professional University told People Matters. 

Power of choice

Employees will love to get gifts for their hard work and the smart work they do for the accomplishment of the goals of the organisation. One of the ways to present that gift is Power of Choice, suggested Dr Goyal, and added, “This power can be described in terms of choosing their working time, working style, and working pattern.” 

An extra day of leave 

A day off in the holiday month would allow the workforce to relax and have that much-needed family time. “While the employees give away significant hours of their lives towards building your organisation, an extra holiday will be the perfect gift that will not only allow them to focus back on their holistic wellness but will also give them a happy family time,” recommended Uma Kasturi Yeleswarapu, Manager, People Experience at Progress.