How to Celebrate a Coworker's Birthday

A coworker's birthday can be an occasion to strengthen a business relationship.
Use the following steps to have fun celebrating your coworker's birthday while building team spirit.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

1. 
    
   business relationship

   Set Up a Birthday Calendar
   
   Set up a birthday calendar for your team with the day and month of your coworkers' birthdays marked for each person on the team. Skip the year of birth as not everyone will be comfortable with revealing their exact age. Celebrating all the birthdays will add a personal touch to your work environmnent and give every one something to look forward to.

2. 
    
   business relationship

   Purchase Birthday Cards for Colleagues Beforehand
   
   Purchase a box of birthday cards that can be used in a professional environment. When someone's birthday pops up on your calendar you can pick out one of the cards and pass it around for the entire team to sign. A thoughtful group card can mean a lot to someone on their birthday.

3. 
    
   business relationship

   Assign One Person to Birthday Cake
   
   If someone on the team is willing to volunteer for birthday cake duty, assign them to be in charge of either baking the cake or purchasing the cake. Have this person bring in plastic forks, paper plates and a knife as well. Decide on a cake budget and make sure that everyone chips in money toward the cake and any additional items. Rotate responsibilities regularly to avoid over burdening one person.

4. 
    
   business relationship

   Decide on a Birthday Venue
   
   Can you have a potluck party in a conference room at work? That can be a fun way to try new dishes and celebrate on a budget. If not, pick a restaurant that the birthday person would enjoy and that fits into your team's budget. You can choose to share the costs of the birthday person's lunch as a team. Check to see if the restaurant gives a free birthday meal, song or dessert. Make your reservations far enough in advance.

5. 
    
   business relationship

   Do Something Fun and Silly to Your Coworker's Cube
   
   Get together with a couple of members on your team to decorate your coworker's cube with streamers, balloons, a birthday poster or other decorative items you have on hand. Make sure that you do this before your coworker gets in to work.

6. 
    
   business relationship

   Have a Party!
   
   Get together at the chosen venue and have a party! If your team is close, you could choose to go around and have a gentle birthday roast for your coworker. If that would be too uncomfortable, use this occasion to find out how everyone is doing both personally and professionally.

Resources

• Resource for Dealing With Coworker Sabotage
• Resource for Creating a Professional Development Plan
• Tips for Conducting Effective Online Meetings
• Click here for Author's Profile

[mioles]

on 8/21/2009 Getting the box of cards ahead of time is a great idea. At my last job we were always running out at the last minute to buy the cards. Great ideas

[ladym33]

on 8/20/2009 I used to be in charge of birthdays back when I worked outside of the home, you advice is write on. The company usually would pay for the cake, I just had to order it and pick it up and get re-imbursed. But for a short while business slowed down and they were not able to buy the cakes for a while so we worked up a list where different people took turns buying or making a cake for the birthday people that month. Then I just had to remind them that it was their turn.