Beyond the family celebrations, the presents and the traditional food, Christmas reminds us that solidarity, generosity and empathy are values we should cultivate all the year round.
At work, this is a time of year that offers companies the opportunity to focus on these values, and if they are nurtured, they can become a very powerful tool for creating cohesion and leadership.
Indeed, the president and founder of the World Economic Forum, Klaus Schwab, believes that companies must “be governed not only by financial and economic rules, but also by values. It is the management staff and employees who are responsible for the true culture of the company, which must give priority to morals and integrity over all else.”
Values to work on at Christmas
It is true. Sometimes we are exhausted by the time Christmas comes. Especially at work. This is because for most small and medium-sized enterprises (and large ones as well), the fourth quarter is a tiring and stressful period, given that the financial year has to be closed.
But as Schwab suggests, not everything should be ruled by numbers. Bidding farewell to the year is an ideal time for bringing a human focus to the fore and welcoming the New Year with worthy resolutions. In fact, it represents a great opportunity for companies, since they can work on strengthening relationships between team members, both between the workers themselves and also with clients.
Company celebrations: essential for bringing people closer together
Strange though it may seem, company celebrations offer one of many opportunities to generate inertia that will improve and strengthen bonds between the team and management. Christmas meals with work colleagues are perfect for reinforcing values like camaraderie, sensitivity and empathy in a much more relaxed atmosphere, when there are fewer formalities and everyone is in good spirits.
Furthermore, if we consider the corporate culture to be “the actions” of an organisation, every celebration or commemoration contributes to the creation of experiences that cement a shared identity. Indeed, a company meal (or party) at Christmas is not only a fun and carefree interlude, it is also a game changer with the potential to increase employees’ pride at belonging to the company and generate a much more positive attitude at work.
Reasons for celebrating Christmas in your company
Regardless of whether it is a lunch, a supper, a party or just some refreshments, celebrating Christmas at work can help to improve communication and workflows in the future. These are the 3 values to focus on at this time of year and at special events:
1. Appreciation: recognise the work done by staff and colleagues and thank them for it.
2. Empathy: creation of emotional attachments and team building. Development of teams and emotional ties: staff can get to know each other better in an enjoyable, fun environment.
3. Honesty: appraisals and evaluations have to be honest. In a more relaxed atmosphere, such as during a supper, for example, conversation flows more easily, and this offers the opportunity to learn how improvements can be made in the future and how the office can become a better place to work in.Corporate Social Responsibility
Besides the Christmas celebrations or activities that can be organised to cultivate the aforementioned values, many companies also plan solidarity initiatives in the month of December.
The numerous companies that say their employees are their principal asset must align their values with those they apply when identifying talent. According to the Coordenadas Institute of Governance and Applied Economics, Spanish companies are at the forefront in the field of Social Responsibility and Sustainability. It makes no difference whether the company is small, medium or large. During the first two decades of the 21st century, social commitment has become one of the key values of Spanish companies.
Some of the abovementioned initiatives take the form of corporate voluntary work. This work promotes solidarity, and in the process, relationships are forged between the company and the community; people work in a team, with the accent on cooperation, leadership and communication. Knowing that the company you work for is committed to these types of projects fosters a stronger sense of belonging and a high degree of involvement in the company, since the worker can identify with the corporate philosophy.
In short, creating solidarity programmes, driving donations, cooperating with NGOs, encouraging voluntary work and helping people who are in some way more vulnerable, be they inside or outside the company, are actions that will make the team feel their work goes beyond simply creating profit and that through their initiatives they can make a positive contribution to society.
Rosclar’s values
“You’ll never work alone”. At Rosclar, we tell our clients they will never be on their own, because over and above our professional commitment, we believe in values such as cooperation, trust, responsibility, teamwork and solidarity. This is our added value, and we try to put it into practice 365 days a year.
