As the holiday gifting season dawns upon us, HR managers are hard pressed to find affordable holiday gifts that absolutely everyone will love. Seems easy? It hardly is. In fact, it’s quite the challenge given that about 40% of employees admitted they have either re-gifted or thrown out a corporate gift. 

Added to that is the fact that to retain your top talent, personalization is key. About 81% of employees believe that a personalized gift from a supervisor strengthens their commitment to the company. How do then HR managers try to perform the balancing act between gifting within a budget and pleasing their employees?

This is where corporate gifting startups like US-based Snappy are stepping in. The platform is used by 200+ companies around the world to give personalized, memorable gifts and experiences – everything from yoga sessions to cooking classes, global getaways, hot air balloon rides, Echo Dots, and drones. The startup’s idea is simple-let the unique gifts and fun "unwrapping" process boost morale and create a positive change in employees' attitudes.

In this very direction, Snappy conducted an interesting survey on corporate gifting data in November this year which saw 1,019 respondents participating.  The results from their new employee survey, "All I Want for Christmas is..." are quite a relevation!

The survey aimed to uncover how employees perceive corporate gifts during the holiday season and what they really want from their employers. Insights from the surveys revealed discrepancies between how employers approach holiday gifting and how employees want to be recognized during the holiday season. 

Here are a few key findings from the survey:

When it comes to gifts, employees want flexibility

• More than half (68%) of employees would rather choose their own gift than have their employer choose for them (32%)

• 40 percent of employees admitted they have either regifted, thrown out a corporate gift, or both in the past. 

Recognition is valued 

• Four out of five workers (81%) believe that a personalized note of recognition from a supervisor strengthens commitment to a company

• Nearly half of employees (44%) feel that their value at the company is reflected in the gifts received

Personalization is significant to employees 

• Gifts with little to no personal significance to the employee are interpreted negatively regardless of employers’ positive intentions. 

• Everyday items such as office supplies, food, and visibly low-quality goods are unpopular among the majority of surveyors

Workplace culture is positively impacted by gifts

• Almost unanimously, 96 percent of those surveyed agree that recognition in the workplace leads to a stronger workplace culture

• A majority of those surveyed (37%) have never received any type of gift recognition in the workplace – the remainder have received a gift: once a year (31%), twice a year (16%), three times a year (7%), four times a year (3%) and five or more times a year (6%)

• One in three (29%) employees generally do not feel valued

We also spoke to a couple of gifting startups in India and they reiterated the same view-recognitions through R&R programs is significant.

Arvind Prabhakar, CEO of GyFTR (Vouchagram), an online peer-to-peer gifting platform said, “Nearly 90% of India Inc. employees say they will stick around longer if they feel appreciated for their work, reveals a study by TimesJobs. All companies are the sum total of the human resource they have. Reward and Recognition programs have become an intrinsic part of every companies HR policy. Everyone wants people to give their 100% if not more and R & R Programs go a long way in doing so.”

And then again, with personalization being the name of o the game, companies around the globe are steadily moving away from physical gifts to digital gifts namely gift cards.

“Gift Cards are the preferred choice owing to the ease of tracking invoices, hassle-free procurement, and high level of customization. Providing the employee(s) the freedom to choose his/her own gift with the option of using the card at multiple outlets is making Gift Cards the most trendy gifting choice especially in the corporate scene,” reveals Ashok Kumar Reddy, Founder & CEO, GrabOn, coupons and deals site.

So armed with all these insights, what are you gifting your employees this year? Feel free to drop in your responses in the comments section and Happy Holidays!