6 Festive Meeting Ideas to Wrap Up with Staff Before the Holidays

It’s the week before the holidays start, and your association’s team is ready to get some much-deserved time off and relax. So, how do you end the year on a high note while wrapping up all unfinished business and transitioning into the holiday spirit? 

With everyone in the mood for holiday festivities, you’ll want to get in on the fun and give your staff something exciting to participate in before they sign off until the new year. And coming up with a festive meeting that also allows you to tie up any loose ends before you exit the office is a great way to start things with your best foot forward in the new year. 

So, how can you create a meeting that’s fun for everyone involved? Let’s take a look at 6 holiday-themed meeting ideas your association can use to both wrap up with your staff and get everyone ready to take some time off.

1. White Elephant

Want a way to get everyone in on the fun and start the meeting on a light note? Consider playing a popular gift swap game. 

White Elephant, known by other names like Yankee Swap, is a gift exchange game that allows everyone to pick, swap, and steal gifts from one another. Everyone contributes a gift (which your association can set guidelines and price limits on) and sets it in a pile. Then, your team picks a number based on the number of people participating. Based on the number you pick, have your team go in order to pick presents. 

Once the first present is selected, everyone has the opportunity to pick a new present or steal a present from someone else, allowing that person to then choose an option. The game continues until the last present is chosen from the pile. White Elephant can be a great way to break the ice when going into a yearly wrap-up meeting, so give it a shot if it appeals to you.

2. Holiday trivia

Is your staff big into trivia? Incorporating the holiday theme into a fun game can make everyone happy during meetings. Pull together a list of questions that relate to the holiday season. You can focus on ideas like snow, traditions, new year celebrations, or anything that coincides with this time of year. 

Think of questions that your staff will have to think hard about to answer! Then, you can split your staff into teams and have them work together to answer each trivia question. While also being a fun meeting idea, this gets your staff to think critically, work as a team, and use deductive skills to get down to the right answer. The best part about this game is that it can have an incentive.

For example, you can create a prize for the winning team, or allow them to leave the office a bit early for the holidays. Giving your staff something to strive towards will help raise the stakes and get people excited about the game! Holiday Trivia is the way to go for any association with a love for competitive fun.

3. Snowman building contest

If your association is one with a flair for creativity, this activity could be the one for you. Going outside into the snow isn’t as appealing as it sounds, and for those that live in southern states, building an actual snowman is pretty much impossible. But, with a few cotton balls, paper plates, and imagination- your association’s staff can build their own “snowmen” to show off at your meetings. 

Assign each staff member their own snowman materials (or again create teams) and allow them to create their own snow character. You can give them free creative reign, or assign them guidelines to hit. For example, you can have your staff create a snowman that exemplifies your association’s beliefs and mission. 

Or, you can have them build a snowman that reflects who they are as a person- helping you all learn more about one another. You can judge each snowman based on your criteria. Think about things like originality, creativity, and craftsmanship. Then, you can give the winning snowmen a prize.

4. Tree decorating

Does your office put up an annual tree for the holidays? Getting everyone involved to set up the decorations could be a great team-building exercise and meeting warm-up activity. Decorating your office for the holidays is a great way to boost team morale and get everyone in the holiday spirit. It can set up an inviting environment for your association's staff, making them feel more at home and help ease any new team members into your organization. So, getting your team in on the fun is a great way to bond. Take out any ornaments, tinsel, garland, and the like you have for your tree, and let your team members decorate accordingly.

Giving them the lead on decorations can make them feel like their input matters, and it can be a great way to allow them to be creative around the office. You can also turn this into a way to initiate group sharing. For example, each time you hang an ornament, you can have a team member answer a question. Some great questions to ask could be, “what do you like most about the holidays?” or, “What are you most grateful for this holiday season?”

5. Photo contest

Want a great way to get content for your association’s social media? Try holding a photo contest. 

For this task, send your association’s staff out in teams. Give them all the same guidelines: To take a photo that envelopes what the holidays mean to your association. For this, you can tell each team to think about your association’s mission, its brand, and the things that matter most. Then, have your staff present each photo at the beginning of your meeting. You can give them time to explain what their photo means, why they took it, and what work went into making it perfect.

There are so many ways this contest can be interpreted, so encourage creativity from your staff! While there can be a winner to this contest, you should save all photos taken and add them to your social media content schedule. This way, you have content to last you through the holiday break.

6. New Year’s resolution share

With the new year on the way, your staff should be prepared to tackle tough tasks and bring more success to your association in the new year. So, what better way to wrap up your year with a resolution roundtable before your last meeting? Sit your association’s staff in a circle and spare 10-15 minutes to go around the room and ask each team member for one resolution that they have for the new year. This can be a personal goal, a work goal, or anything they’d like to share.

However, if you can have your team set work goals for the next year, it could be a great way to boost motivation and give your association a head start towards success. With resolutions on the table, you can move forward with your meeting and leave team members with something to think about over their break. 

Still working remotely? Not a problem! With a little creativity, many of these ideas can be tailored to fit that work-from-home lifestyle we’ve all learned to embrace. 

Wrap-up meetings don’t have to be strictly business. With our ideas, you can put on a fun meeting that gets your staff ready to take on the holidays and come back better than ever!