A work anniversary is always something worth celebrating.
An entire year at a company is no small feat, let alone five, ten, or even more.
With remote work seemingly here to stay, it’s important to find ways to have a meaningful virtual work anniversary for your work-from-home or hybrid employees.
Get Your Free Guide to Celebrating Work Anniversaries
Celebrating a work anniversary is more than just a nice deed—data from CEB (a Washington-based insight and technology company), showed that job-hunting activity rises by 6% around the anniversary of when someone first joins a company, and by 9% on the anniversary of when they first assumed their current position.
A study conducted by Glassdoor determined that for every extra 10 months an employee spends in a role, they grow 1% more likely to leave the company when moving to their next position. Click To TweetBe proactive in keeping your team engaged and happy, improving office culture and helping employee retention. Check out these fifteen ideas for a meaningful virtual work anniversary for your remote employees!
Free bonus: Download a FREE guide to learn How to Celebrate Work Anniversaries at your organization this year! Includes the do’s and don’ts of celebrating your employees’ work anniversaries plus 10 extra celebration ideas to try out yourself.
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See If You QualifyHow to celebrate a work anniversary virtually
Celebrating a work anniversary virtually can initially seem like a challenge. Without an office to congregate in, how can you possibly celebrate?
However, virtual work anniversary celebrations for remote or work-from-home employees can be just as fun and gratifying as an in-person party. Whether you plan a Zoom event, send the perfect gift, or surprise your remote employee with something special, there are tons of great ways to virtually celebrate a work anniversary.
1) Work anniversary gift box
Curating a personalized, specialized box for your remote employees is a thoughtful way to celebrate your remote employee’s work anniversary. You can choose the perfect items to appeal to their wants and needs, like the hottest tech, a tasty snack, or one-of-a-kind branded swag.
Plus, with services like Caroo, giving a work anniversary gift box is easier than ever.
Caroo sends the gift straight to your remote employee, removing any hassle from the process. Caroo even has a work anniversary program that alerts you when important office gifting dates are coming up.
Why remote and work from home employees will love this: A personalized anniversary gift box will give your remote employees some meaningful items that highlight their value to the company.
Try this! Sign-up for Caroo and see what sort of awesome work anniversary gift boxes you can start sending!
2) Gift card or discount for a favorite place
If your remote employee is into fashion, music, tech, rock climbing or anything in-between, you can celebrate their work anniversary with a discount or gift card for their favorite place.
This gift is the perfect middle-ground between personalized and flexible, showing you know what they like while still giving them the choice of how to spend their hard-earned reward.
Why remote and work from home employees will love this: This employee recognition idea allows your remote employee to enjoy their passion or favorite pastime, all thanks to you.
Try this! Consider pairing multiple gift cards to create a potential itinerary—for example, money at their favorite restaurant followed by a free spa package right down the street!
3) E-card from the whole team
Courtesy of GroupGreeting
This may seem old-fashioned, but a card is a classic way to celebrate a work anniversary. However, when your whole team is remote, getting a card signed by everyone on the team may seem like an impossibility (unless you want to use a lot of stamps!).
Thankfully, there are plenty of opportunities for online e-cards. Everyone on the team can add a personal message, video or meme to show appreciation on their coworkers work anniversary.
Why remote and work from home employees will love this: By getting the whole team involved, your remote employee will know how important this work anniversary is to the team.
Try this! Get creative with your card! Design it around the specific team member and add images and GIFs to really personalize it for their special day.
4) Amazon wishlist surprise
Courtesy of Nectar
This virtual work anniversary idea is like a personal wedding registry, allowing your coworker to bookmark items they’d especially love to receive. What is one way to make sure you get your remote employee the perfect gift for their work anniversary?
Let them choose it for you! Sending an Amazon wishlist surprise straight to your remote employee will ensure they receive something they want (while still giving them the thrill of an unexpected gift).
You can even work with a resource like Nectar that integrates directly with Amazon so that the rest of the team can send workaversary messages to them on their big day. Nectar’s rewards and recognition features are a great idea for remote teams looking to bolster their culture of appreciation.
Why remote and work from home employees will love this: A thoughtful employee recognition gift that they’re guaranteed to like? What’s not to love!
Try this! Start a work anniversary thread so that employees can send their warm wishes to your coworker throughout the big day!
5) Virtual trivia night
Oh, I know this one! For your Jeopardy-loving, bar trivia-hopping employees, you should celebrate their work anniversary with a virtual trivia night. There are plenty of online trivia games to choose from or you can create your own. Invite everyone onto a Zoom, explain the rules, and then get quizzing. Just make sure to leave a few minutes at the start or end of the event for your team to congratulate their team member for their work-anniversary.
Why remote and work from home employees will love this: A trivia night will boost employee morale and create a sense of community among the team—even if they’ve never met in person!
Try this! If you really want to make trivia night special, work with a professional virtual trivia company like Weve which can add a round themed around the team member you’re celebrating. Get ready for the Carl speed round!
6) Milestone Slack channel
Slack is a fantastic collaboration and communication software that can help keep your team on-task and on the same page. Slack is also a useful tool for creating a culture of appreciation. For example, you can make a dedicated Slack channel to celebrate employee milestones and accomplishments!
On work anniversaries, birthdays, or after significant office achievements, your milestone Slack channel will be the perfect place to show your appreciation and pass a thoughtful message, funny image, or nice memory.
Why remote and work from home employees will love this: Since they’re not in the office, it‘s easy for remote employees to feel isolated from their team. The milestone Slack channel is a way to keep everyone feeling interconnected while generating a positive work environment and coworker camaraderie.
Try this! Don’t wait for the rest of your team to use the milestone Slack channel—actively participate and lead by example.
7) Redeemable reward points
If you’re registered with one of the many great employee incentive programs or softwares available (or have been running your own), redeemable reward points are a smart way to mark a work anniversary for your remote employee. With reward points programs, you can send a thoughtful message to the coworker in question along with some redeemable points. They can use these points on anything in your incentive program’s software, like unique swag, useful gadgets, or a great experience.
Why remote and work from home employees will love this: Redeemable reward points put the power in your team members hands, allowing them to use their work anniversary to treat themselves however they want, wherever they want.
Try this! Use employee appreciation services like Bonusly or Kazoo to run your redeemable reward points programs for you!
8) Virtual anniversary party
Just because you’re all remote doesn’t mean you can’t host a little get-together. Virtual anniversary parties hosted on video platforms like Zoom or Google Meet are a stellar way to allow your team to celebrate each other’s accomplishments and enjoy a little quality time outside of the structure of work.
The more you can plan, the better the party will be—having some games or events planned will really help your anniversary party. Or, give it a theme! A Gatsby 20s party or a mullet-fueled 80s party will get the whole team involved.
Why remote and work from home employees will love this: Even over Zoom, an anniversary party in an employee’s honor will be a meaningful moment and a great opportunity for team bonding.
Try this! To make the most of the party, send your employees care packages full of great snacks and drinks to help them party from the couch!
9) A special experience
Courtesy of Blueboard
While getting the whole team together virtually to celebrate a work anniversary is thoughtful, sometimes the best move is to give the employee in question a special experience they won’t forget. As a years of service reward, send your team members on a memorable experience. Whether its a weekend trip, a surf lesson, a cooking class, or another idea, you can give your remote employee an experience they won’t soon forget.
Why remote and work from home employees will love this: A special experience will get your remote employee out of their home office and into the world.
Try this! Give them a few extra tickets so they can bring family, loved ones, and friends from the office.
Pro-Tip: The experience experts at Blueboard offer a full catalog of activities that are perfect for companies to gift to other employees. A few our our favorites include…
10) Workspace upgrade
A work anniversary is a perfect opportunity for your team members to refresh their work space and get ready for another year. Help your coworker upgrade their home office by gifting them an online gift card reward. Encourage them to get that new office chair they’ve been eyeing or to officially upgrade their office plant game.
Why remote and work from home employees will love this: With this gift, your remote employee will be able to kick off their next year at the company with a rejuvenated office and a positive outlook.
Try this! Get some firsthand feedback from your employees regarding ways they could potentially improve their workspace. Sometimes that extra monitor, better computer mouse, or the right tool can really help overall productivity, efficiency, and employee satisfaction.
11) A sweet treat
While elaborate game nights and extravagant gifts are all well-and-good, sometimes there’s no beating a tasty surprise. Hit your remote worker right in the sweet tooth with a delicious candy or baked good. While there’s a time and place for a healthy office snacks, let your employee enjoy some dessert on their big work anniversary.
Why remote and work from home employees will love this: It’s candy and cakes sent right to their front door—there’s not much that needs explaining.
Try this! Use Caroo to streamline your snack gifting while sending a high-quality treat.
12) A letter from themselves
Who better to congratulate you on a job well done than… you? Let us explain: you have your employee write a letter to themselves on their first day of work. Then, on their one year anniversary, it arrives in the mail! This letter to themselves is a great way to celebrate an employee milestone because it will remind your team member how far they’re come.
Why remote and work from home employees will love this: A self-addressed letter on a work anniversary is an opportunity for your remote employee to reflect on their past year, while also giving them a nostalgic blast when they remember writing the letter.
Try this! Don’t just send the letter—add a premium gift or other treat to make their work anniversary more meaningful.
13) Virtual escape room or murder mystery
Escape rooms and murder mystery parties are a one-of-a-kind way to get your remote team working together, thinking critically, and having fun. While escape rooms originated in-person, these unique team-building activities are also available online! Whether you want to hire a company to run the event or plan your own, a virtual escape room or murder mystery will motivate your team and be a celebration to remember.
Why remote and work from home employees will love this: Escape rooms and murder mysteries are a memorable activity that will turn your remote employee’s work anniversary into a special occasion.
Try this! If you’re creating your own game, center the theme or central plot around the coworker you’re celebrating! For those looking for a curated experience, check out:
14) Virtual world tour
Stroll the streets of Paris, float above the pyramids, cruise the Amalfi coast, or sail along Hạ Long Bay… all during a special virtual work celebration. With a virtual world tour, you can use Google Earth, YouTube, and other popular online tools to bring your team on a global adventure. Whether this is a comforting travel log or a globe-trotting scavenger hunt, a virtual world tour is a way to get your whole team united and enjoying a unique team activity.
Why remote and work from home employees will love this: Remote employees can get sick of the sight of their home office. With a virtual world tour, they’ll have a chance to see something new while celebrating their personal work achievements.
Try this! Cap off your world tour by giving your remote employee a special gift they can use on their next vacation. Who knows, they might even choose to visit somewhere they saw on their virtual tour.
Pro – Tip: Check out some of these jet-setting virtual event ideas to travel the world via Zoom…
15) Beautiful bouquet
Flowers and a tasty treat have been a classic gift for decades (if not centuries). Just because we’re in the digital age doesn’t mean this isn’t still an awesome way to celebrate a work anniversary and recognize the hard work of your remote employee. With a well-chosen flower bouquet and some yummy cake pops, your remote worker will be able to liven up their home office and enjoy a celebratory dessert.
Why remote and work from home employees will love this: Flowers and cake pops are a tasteful (and tasty) gift that any remote employee can appreciate.
Try this! Find out their favorite type of flower to really personalize this anniversary gift. Adding a handwritten note is also a nice touch.
People Also Ask These Questions About Virtual Work Anniversary Ideas
Q: What is a virtual work anniversary?
- A virtual work anniversary is a way to celebrate the anniversary of one of your employee’s tenures at your company or business. A virtual work anniversary is best for remote employees who cannot celebrate in the office.
Q: How do I find unique virtual work anniversary ideas?
- We’ve listed fifteen unique virtual work anniversary ideas for you to peruse above. Or, you can come up with some of your own based on your team member’s interests and your business’ core values.
Q: How do you celebrate work anniversaries for remote employees?
- There are plenty of ways to celebrate work anniversaries for remote employees, like sending gift baskets or planning a virtual party. We‘ve listed fifteen great options above for celebrating a remote employees’ work anniversary.
Q: What are some ways to celebrate work anniversaries virtually?
- You can celebrate a work anniversary virtually by planning a Zoom party, hosting an online game night, or sending your remote employee a meaningful gift. For more ideas, we’ve listed 15 meaningful virtual work anniversary ideas above.
