An employee celebrates her coworker's birthday virtually
Talent

6 Creative Ways to Celebrate Employee Birthdays Virtually

As companies around the world transition to remote work, employers are re-evaluating every step of the employee experience. One challenge that is top of mind for many? Maintaining employee morale

Even with all this change and uncertainty, it’s critical to maintain a certain level of normalcy—and celebrate the small wins and employee milestones along the way. One event, in particular, that’s important to celebrate is employee birthdays. And being apart doesn’t mean you and your team can’t do something special to brighten up your colleague’s day. 

While obviously in-office birthday celebrations are easier to coordinate and plan, you can still get crafty to have a just-as-meaningful celebration virtually. Need some inspiration for your remote birthday celebrations? We’ve got you covered. 

Here are six fun ideas to help you celebrate remote birthdays at your company and honor your employees online on their special day.


1. Bring the Party Virtual 

Just because you aren’t physically together doesn’t mean you can’t celebrate together. Get the team together for a virtual happy hour, lunch, coffee break—whatever. Just take a few minutes to sing happy birthday, shoot the breeze, and celebrate your teammate.


2. Share a Video

If you can’t get the team all together at the same time, get everyone to film and share a brief video message that you can edit together and send it to the birthday person!


3. Send Them a Gift

On their special day, look into sending them a nice gift—flowers, a water bottle, a candle, etc. Or you can send them lunch or a sweet treat using food delivery apps like GrubHub, Caviar, and Doordash.


4. Send an eCard

Another way to celebrate your employee’s birthday is to send them an ecard full of best wishes from the team. Get everyone to send you a short message and put them together on a group ecard using a service like Paperless Post.


5. Have Someone Special Join in on The Fun

Nothing says “Happy Birthday” like your favorite celebrity sending you a personal birthday message. Cameo is a celebrity shoutout platform that lets you pay for short, custom videos from your favorite celebrities. Consider surprising your employees with a quick shoutout from their favorite public figure, comedian, singer, or entertainer.


6. Invite Some Real Party Animals

If you can’t think of a specific celebrity that your employee loves, consider getting another kind of special guest to surprise them at your next team meeting. Thanks to a new service, you can pay just $100 to have a goat or llama call into your next virtual meeting!




Even when we’re apart, it’s more important than ever to come together and find cause for celebration. From employee birthday to work anniversaries to small team wins, it’s crucial to recognize and celebrate your employees, their hard work, and their perseverance during these tough times. 

For more helpful ideas on how to increase employee morale, as well as breaking news coverage, check out our COVID-19 Crisis Resource Center

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