Employee appreciation week ideas and virtual events

Employee appreciation week ideas that give people time together, not just a gift card: a hosted gratitude game, a live magic show or a kit workshop shipped to every home. The next Employee Appreciation Day is Friday, March 5, 2027.

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Hosted games book 2 weeks ahead, kits 3 weeks ยท For remote, hybrid and office teams

Sugar cookies iced with thank-you messages, from a virtual Cookie Decorating class

Why a hosted appreciation event works

Perks say thanks once. An hour together is the part of employee appreciation week people remember and talk about after.

  • Time together, not another gift card

    A gift card gets spent alone. An hour of play gives people what busy weeks take away: time with each other, laughing at the same thing.

  • Everyone is in the same room

    Remote, hybrid and office staff join one call, and kits land at every door. Teams split across time zones can have a hosted game run as two sessions.

  • Nobody on your team has to run it

    The host plans the rounds, runs the breakout rooms and keeps the energy up, so the organizer gets thanked too instead of working the event.

  • You hear how it landed

    A short pulse survey goes out automatically after every event to participants with an email, and AI summaries show you what people said.

The survey comes from KraftyLab Intelligence: respondents answer in the browser with no account. See how Meta and Cisco Meraki run their events with us.

Virtual employee appreciation events

8 hosted employee appreciation activities a company can run for its people, each about an hour with a live host. Prices are live and include the host.

Rather send a gift, or add one to the event? See employee appreciation gifts. More formats in virtual game shows, virtual magic shows and team building kits. Not sure which fits? Tell us about your team.

Employee Appreciation Day and employee appreciation week

Employee Appreciation Day is the first Friday in March: next on Friday, March 5, 2027. There is no official employee or staff appreciation week, but many companies celebrate the whole Monday to Friday that ends on the day.

Upcoming dates

Employee Appreciation Day 2027
Fri, Mar 5
Employee Appreciation Day 2028
Fri, Mar 3
Employee Appreciation Day 2029
Fri, Mar 2
Book kit workshops for Mar 5 by
Fri, Feb 12
Book hosted games for Mar 5 by
Fri, Feb 19

There is time for any event on this page, kits included.

A sample employee appreciation week plan

One line a day, one hosted event on the day itself.

  1. Mon, Mar 1Kickoff noteThe CEO or team lead opens the week with three specific wins and the names behind them.
  2. Tue, Mar 2Peer shout-outsOpen a thread where anyone thanks a colleague in one sentence. Leaders post first.
  3. Wed, Mar 3Meeting-free afternoonNo internal meetings after 1 pm, so people get real work time back.
  4. Thu, Mar 4Manager notesEvery manager sends each person on the team one specific thank-you, in writing.
  5. Fri, Mar 5The hosted eventGratitude Games & Grins or a kit workshop for everyone at 1 pm Eastern (10 am Pacific), then close early.

15 employee appreciation ideas beyond the event

Staff appreciation ideas for the rest of the week and the rest of the year. Most cost little or nothing.

  1. 1Thank the unseen rolesName the people in IT, facilities, payroll and support who keep things running, in the company channel.
  2. 2Skip-level notesSenior leaders write one specific thank-you to someone two levels down.
  3. 3Stay interviewsAsk each person what keeps them here and what would make the job better. Act on one answer.
  4. 4Career conversationsManagers book 20 minutes per person about their goals, not the current project.
  5. 5A learning hourEveryone gets an hour on company time for a course, book or talk of their choice.
  6. 6Fix one daily annoyanceReplace the slow laptop, the wobbly chair or the clunky form people keep mentioning.
  7. 7A floating day offOne extra day off for everyone, to use any time in the next three months.
  8. 8A donation in their nameEach person picks a charity, and the company gives a set amount to it on their behalf.
  9. 9A team volunteer half-dayPaid time to volunteer together, in person or online. Virtual volunteer opportunities.
  10. 10What we shipped this yearEach team gets one all-hands slide showing what it delivered and who did it.
  11. 11A coffee cart morningA coffee cart in the office for one morning, and a coffee credit for remote staff.
  12. 12A home office upgradeA budget for one piece of kit remote staff will use daily: a headset, a lamp, a chair.
  13. 13A team playlistEveryone adds one song, and the playlist runs before every call that week.
  14. 14Ask how they like to be thankedA two-question survey before the week tells you who wants the spotlight and who wants a quiet note. Send it with KraftyLab Intelligence.
  15. 15Retire a pointless meetingAsk which recurring meeting wastes the most time, and drop it for good.

The full lists: Employee Appreciation Day ideas and employee recognition ideas. Writing the notes? Borrow from our thank you messages for coworkers and employee appreciation quotes.

Hybrid and in-office appreciation events

Half the team in the office, half at home? Two setups work.

  1. 1One virtual event for everyone. Remote staff join from home, and the office joins together on one screen where the group can see and hear the host.
  2. 2An in-person game at the office, plus a virtual session. A host runs Feud Night, Team Trivia, Music Bingo or Blitz Speed Trivia at your office in 17 US cities, and remote staff get their own hosted game on Zoom.

Our in-person painting workshops, Canvas Painting and Watercolor Card Decorating, run in 30 cities. See every in-person city and our hybrid team building setup checklist.

Teams across time zones

Pick 1 pm Eastern, which is 10 am Pacific, for US teams. When one slot can't fit everyone's workday, a hosted game can run as two sessions, one for each half of the team. Kits ship worldwide, with an add-on outside the continental US. More in remote team building.

Booking lead times

Plan back from your date. For Employee Appreciation Day on Friday, March 5, 2027, book kits by Feb 12 and hosted games by Feb 19.

How far ahead to book each kind of appreciation event
Hosted games and the magic show2 weeksNothing ships. Send the date, a headcount and your video link, or use ours.
Kit workshops in the US3 weeksContinental US shipping is included. You collect home addresses before the kits ship.
Kits to addresses outside the USAbout 5 weeksInternational addresses need 3 to 4 weeks of shipping. Canada, other countries, Alaska, Hawaii and US territories ship for an add-on fee.
Custom or branded work4 weeksCustom questions, branded backgrounds or packaging.
Employee appreciation gifts2 to 6 weeksBranded or 100+ gift orders 4 to 6 weeks ahead; smaller unbranded orders about 2 to 3 weeks.

How booking works

  1. 1Send your date and headcount. You get a full event plan within 24 hours.
  2. 2Pay a 50% deposit to lock in the date.
  3. 3Finalize the headcount and send invites. For kits, collect shipping addresses.
  4. 4On the day, your host joins and leads the experience.

Get a free quote with your date and headcount.

Employee appreciation event questions

When is Employee Appreciation Day?

The first Friday in March, so the next one is Friday, March 5, 2027. Bob Nelson, a founding member of Recognition Professionals International, started it in 1995. It is a workplace observance, not a public holiday.

When is employee appreciation week?

There is no official week. Many companies celebrate the Monday to Friday that ends on Employee Appreciation Day, which next time runs Mar 1 to Mar 5, 2027. Others pick whichever week fits their calendar.

What are good staff appreciation day ideas?

Specific thank-yous from leaders, peer shout-outs, stay interviews, a learning hour, a floating day off and one hosted event the whole company joins. For more, see our 25 Employee Appreciation Day ideas and 45 employee recognition ideas.

What are good virtual employee appreciation ideas?

A hosted game built around gratitude, a live magic show, or a kit workshop shipped to every home, like candle making or cookie decorating. Around it, run a peer shout-out thread, written manager notes and a meeting-free afternoon, all of which work on any video and chat tool.

How much does a virtual employee appreciation event cost?

Hosted games like Gratitude Games & Grins cost $39 a person for a group of 25 ($975 package). Kit workshops start at $68 a person plus a $379 base fee, kit and continental US shipping included. You see the full price before you book, and a 50% deposit holds the date.

How far ahead should we book?

About 2 weeks for hosted games and 3 weeks for kit workshops, so the kits can ship; about 5 weeks with addresses outside the US, and 4 weeks for custom or branded work. For Friday, March 5, 2027, book kits by Feb 12 and games by Feb 19.

Can remote and in-office staff join the same event?

Yes. Run one virtual event for everyone, with the office on a shared screen, or an in-person game at your office plus a virtual session for remote staff. When one time slot can't fit everyone's workday, hosted games can run as two sessions.

Which video platforms do you use?

Zoom by default; Microsoft Teams, Google Meet or Webex on request. Kit workshops and the magic show run the same way.

More appreciation ideas

Plan an appreciation event

Send us your date and headcount. You get a full event plan within 24 hours.

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