Corporate Christmas Rewards Survey | Just Eat for Business

For many employees, the festive period is a time to take a well-earned break, with staff often looking forward to incentives they may receive at the end of the year. But how many enterprises will be offering their workers rewards as a ‘thank-you’ this December?

Just Eat for Business’ Corporate Christmas Rewards study surveyed 200 key decision makers at companies in the UK, to reveal what rewards, activities, and incentives they plan on giving to their employees, as well as how much they’ll spend. 

Christmas Parties 

Despite 2022 being the first year in which businesses are able to go ‘all-out’ when it comes to hosting a festive party, 1 in 10 are not sure they will be planning such an event this year and 7% of businesses also said they definitely won’t be.

However, the majority (81%) said they will be hosting an end-of-year party for staff and almost half (48%) say the party will be bigger this year, compared to previous events held pre-pandemic. One-fifth of key decision makers also said that the party will be held at a better venue, and almost 30% (29%) said that the event will also have more attendees this year.

For businesses not hosting an end-of-year party for staff, budget issues were the main reason for not doing so (57%), followed by a lack of organisation and having a remote workforce (both 14%). 

Staff Bonuses

The survey revealed that over a third (35%) of businesses won’t be providing staff with a bonus this year.

This figure could mean that businesses did not meet sales or revenue targets, as 31% of companies said that they base decisions on whether or not to give staff a bonus or provide them with end-of-year perks is down to the business meeting sales targets. 

However, for some businesses, this is much more down to staff’s personal performance, with 29% of companies basing annual staff bonuses on meeting personal performance goals. 

Other Ways to Give Back 

Our study found that almost half (48%) admit that providing festive perks increases staff morale but 77% of those surveyed also said that the workplace doesn’t organise social events outside of Christmas parties.

Aside from bonuses and Christmas parties, there are many
other ways that businesses can give back to employees to make them feel appreciated as the year comes to an end, especially for those that simply don’t have thousands to spare due to the size of the business.

Our study found that, excluding bonuses, the average business spends between £41-£60 on staff members at Christmas, and this went towards different perks, such as providing catered lunches and organising office events.

Rosie Hyam, People Partner, at Just Eat for Business says that creating a good working atmosphere and ensuring staff members feel appreciated can have a crucial impact on staff morale and even staff retention:

“Incentivising and rewarding staff members can not only play a huge role in maintaining staffing levels, but also helps to create a good working relationship between senior management and staff on all levels when employees know that they are appreciated.

Rewarding staff shouldn’t just be a seasonal event, either, however, for some key decision makers, such as HR managers and people officers, other responsibilities can often mean that it’s not always possible to organise and come up with ideas all year round.

A great way to get around this is to set aside a monthly budget for work activities that encourage staff members to get together and that such events strike a good balance between those that are both work-based and more casual to give staff what feels like more of a break. Some employers also leave this decision in the capable hands of their staff, by providing an open ballot to pitch in ideas on ways to get together.

As not all employees will want to give up their personal time, organising events during working hours, or even during extended lunch breaks can be a good idea. Another survey we recently conducted found that 1 in 10 office workers wish their employer would provide more catered lunch breaks, something that employers could consider as part of regularly rewarding staff.”

Rewards for Fully-Remote Businesses

Proving perks isn’t always easy, especially for those with a workforce who work from home. Our survey found that 14% of businesses are unable to host a Christmas party this year because their employees work fully remotely. 

Consider that despite 50% of workers seeking some kind of hybrid working, social interaction is still key. If you are deciding to gift your employees in some kind of way during the Christmas period, consider a company-wide call in which everyone is involved. Secret santa could be a great way of getting the whole staff portfolio together for an uplifting event, encouraging colleagues to open their gifts together.

If you are a small business, a great way of making sure that staff feel appreciated at the end of the year is to host an employee awards event, in which every member of staff wins a title for being the best employee for a different reason.

Summary

Lastly, we found that 41% of key decision-makers admit that they could do more to incentive their teams, making December a great time for employers to think about different ways in which they can do so and how to improve how they incentivise staff moving forwards.

Remember that rewarding staff shouldn’t just take place at Christmas and can be done in a number of ways for both office-based and remote working staff. For more inspiration, check out some of our corporate catering ideas.