How To Plan Your Employee Birthday Cards In Advance

Keeping track of your employee birthday cards can be so simple. I have found that by ordering birthday cards for my employees at the beginning of the year, I can obtain the best discounts for the year. The Gallery Collection has a large array of cards that are of high quality paper stock, embossed in an array of foil and colors and large in size. I order the classic seal fast envelopes (self-sealing) which are made with a pearlized lining adding a classy touch to the card and allowing for a quick closure.

Birthday Whimsy Greeting Card

I’ve kept a spreadsheet log of my employees birthdays for many years, listed by months and days, in order not to miss any special dates. Every year, I choose a new design with a different greeting, not to repeat the prior year. I love seeing the faces of my dedicated group of employees, knowing that I have made an impact on their very special day of the year. Ordering a box of cards not only saves time and money, but assures me to remember the people that make me successful. Next time your order cards for your employees, check out the Gallery Collection!

 

Gallery Collection Charitable Donations – Brooke’s Blossoming Hope for Childhood Cancer Foundation

As part of The Gallery Collection’s charitable donation program, we made a donation of 1,000 holiday cards to Brooke’s Blossoming Hope for Childhood Cancer Foundation. The mission of Brooke’s Blossoming Hope is unique in the two-fold concept of helping children with cancer directly by providing them hand crafted headwear during the difficulties of hair loss, but also by raising awareness of the need to both find and fund cures for pediatric cancer.

Brooke's Blossoming Hope

Until her diagnosis with cancer in November 2010, Brooke Hester was a regular happy, healthy little girl. Her battle with Stage IV Neuroblastoma cancer has led her down the path of hope to find cures, and Blossoming Hope now exists to make a bigger difference for other children globally fighting all kinds of pediatric cancer.

The wonderful people at Brooke’s Blossoming Hope for Childhood Cancer Foundation were kind enough to send us some of the beautiful hand crafted headwear they create. One can imagine the joy a feathery flower can give a child who is fighting such a courageous battle. We’ll be sure to share our beautiful gift!

For more information about Brooke’s Blossoming Hope for Childhood Cancer Foundation, and how you can help, please visit their website at http://www.brookesblossoms.org/Brookes_Blossoming_Hope/Hope.html.

What Should I Write In Employee Happy Anniversary Cards?

As a senior HR manager, I highly recommend acknowledging each employee’s anniversary with a simple gesture. In fact boosting employee loyalty and strengthening morale can often be obtained with a personal card, letter or phone call. I prefer to send cards, and one of the most common questions I get from my colleagues is “What should I write on employee Happy Anniversary cards?” The answer will vary, of course, from company to company, and from employee to employee. But my experience has shown me that a few sincere words from management will often do the trick.

Corporate Happy Anniversary Card

In these modern times, employees generally need more than their paycheck. The feeling of being appreciated is extremely crucial to job success and commitment. Some organizations choose to acknowledge every anniversary, while others prefer to recognize “significant anniversaries” like 1 year, 5 years, 10 years, etc. Personal recognition can be obtained with sending an elegant card and some words of appreciation. Choose your cards thoughtfully, keeping professionalism in mind. Then, including phrases like “Thank you for your hard work and dedication” and “We appreciate your being part of our success” or any genuine expression of thanks can be worth more to an employee than an expensive gift.

Why You Should Be Sending Out Personalized Birthday Cards

One day I was feeling very low; everything felt like it was not going right. I was away from my family. My parents were in different state. I was not satisfied with my work life. Due to hectic work life, I was not able to get together with my friends and somewhere deep inside I was feeling frustrated by the same old daily routine of waking up, going to the office, coming back, having dinner and then sleep. As it is rightly said that sometimes it’s better to hold on instead of giving up and mourning, I started my day with the usual stuff like checking my mail box, surfing the net, etc. To my astonishment, when I checked my mail box, I saw an extraordinary envelope sealed with a lovely sticker over it. I was very much surprised when I saw personalized birthday cards from my childhood friend.

Woman Reading Birthday Card

I was totally surprised and very much excited to see my birthday card. That moment I realized,  “Oh, my birthday is in 2 days!” I got very  emotional seeing a birthday card from my best friend with a couple of quotes describing me and our childhood days. I could actually feel the closeness and deep friendship by continuously looking at my birthday card. I forgot all the hectic work life and tensions. It was lovely to have a personalized birthday card from one of my best buddies!

Birthday Party Ideas for Your Office

Depending on the size of your office your co-worker’s birthdays can happen as often as daily or as infrequently as a few times per year. Regardless of the frequency of the occasion, it’s fun to mark it with festivities. Since I entered the workforce I’ve worked in many offices and have seen all types of celebrations. Here are the top three birthday party ideas for your office:

It's Your Birthday! Card

  1. The Birthday Club – One of the first places I ever worked had a birthday club. Every month, the chairperson of the birthday club collected $2 from each person in the office. On one designated day in the month, the money was split amongst everyone in the office who was celebrating a birthday that month, and those people used their share of the money to purchase food for the birthday celebration. People could buy bagels & cream cheese, cakes, cookies, chips & dip, or ingredients from the supermarket to whip up some homemade specialties. This idea works best with a really large office or large department. The office where I worked had about 40 people who participated in the birthday club.
  2. The “Surprise” Party – Another office where I worked would throw a surprise celebration on or near the birth date of the co-worker who was celebrating a birthday. Before the actual date, an email would go around to everyone except the birthday person and people would coordinate what food and drink to bring. This was always nice but of course it wasn’t much of a surprise because the same thing was done each year for each person’s birthday, so you were always expecting it.
  3. The Admin Assignment – The administrative assistant is responsible for planning an office celebration for the person who is celebrating a birthday. This can be a success or a failure depending on how much of a party person your administrative assistant is. I’ve worked in offices where the admin looks at this as a tedious chore and does the bare minimum (i.e. orders a cake from the company cafeteria and passes around a lined piece of paper for everyone to sign because she forgot to buy a card), but I’ve also seen some really fun ideas. In a smaller office where my sister worked, the admin got to know a few fun things about each person and tailored each party to them in a special way. My sister’s boss was a big Bon Jovi fan, so the admin ordered a cardboard cutout of him and everyone posed next to it for a group picture. They ended up using that picture for their company’s holiday card!

As they say, all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. Since you end up spending a great deal of your time with your co-workers, it’s fun to enjoy a slice of cake with them as you mark another year on the calendar. And don’t forget the business birthday cards! It’s nice to be remembered by the people you spend most of your time with!

Absolute Musts For Meeting Etiquette

When it comes to business meetings, there seems to be some unspoken rules in regards to meeting etiquette. While there is no set of rules etched in stone somewhere in the high halls of some university or ancient library, it can be said that the following guidelines are a general rule of thumb. It boils down to respect, courtesy and professionalism. Generally speaking, it’s all about common sense and basic common courtesy but time and time again, some need to be reminded about proper meeting etiquette. Here’s looking at you, Mike from accounting.

Business Meeting Etiquette

Punctuality – It goes without saying, but if you can’t be there 10-15 minutes early, which is recommended, at least be there on time. There’s nothing worse than embarrassing yourself by missing any of the meeting. Then you’re behind and have no frame of reference for the rest of the meeting and you’ve wasted everyone’s time, including senior management. And don’t think they didn’t notice.

Preparedness – Along with being punctual, if you aren’t prepared, chances are you are wasting everyone’s time yet again. Often, meetings have scheduled time slots and your part is vital in the entire flow of the meeting. Not having your materials or information together can really affect the meeting, not to mention it comes off as unprofessional. Again, you are only hurting yourself here.

Pay Attention – Be attentive during the meeting. Take notes and listen to what everyone is saying. Do not interrupt the speaker. If you have a question, unless it is an open discussion, try to wait it out because your question will most likely be answered by the end of the meeting. Do not fiddle on your phone or check email. It is terribly unprofessional.

Electronics – Unless the use of laptops, tablets or cell phones is vital to the meeting or agreed upon as necessary to take notes, show graphics or slideshows, etc., there is absolutely no reason to be on your device during the proceedings. An emergency call should be the only reason to take a call and even then, excuse yourself and take it out of the room. Keep it turned off or at the least, on vibrate with the volume off.

Conversation – Refrain from having conversation with other people in the middle of the meeting. It is rude and disrespectful of those around you. Save your need to comment or chat until after it is over. Red flag if you even think about putting your hand up to cover your mouth to throw a comment to the person next to you.

Distractions – Electronics are a distraction as it is, but there are still the little quirky things that people do that are inappropriate when it comes to meeting etiquette. Don’t tap your pen or foot or fingers in any manner. Don’t eat a snack or your lunch. Don’t bite your fingernails either. Also, no fidgeting or shuffling papers in a distracting manner either.

Act exactly how you would want others to when you are in the spotlight. Use your brain and common sense. Be professional and courteous to those in the meeting. It can really affect everyone involved and can have an even worse effect on your job. Remember, be professional.

Appropriate Birthday Party Themes for Your Office

Who doesn’t love a good birthday party? However, it’s not always easy to come up with a fun birthday party theme when you’ve got to keep a whole office in mind! Often times, a theme that might seem fantastic to one person can be alienating to someone else. I find the best way to go with appropriate birthday party themes for your office is to choose something that is quirky enough to inspire fun ideas, but broad enough that it allows a bit of room for interpretation.

Lollipop Birthday Card

Here are a couple of fun examples:

TV/Movie Characters – this is a great one because everyone has a favorite TV/movie character (if not a few). There’s so much to choose from as well as a large spectrum of choice in just how elaborately you want to participate. You can go all out with a Darth Vader costume, or just keep it simple with a superhero t-shirt and go as Sheldon Cooper. This theme is also a great one because it gets everyone chatting about their choices!

Colors – if you really want to keep it simple, you can choose a color family (warm colors, or cool colors) or perhaps just a set that works together elegantly (blue and silver) and use that as your theme. You can also do black and white and one bold color to give it a twist, for example: black, white and red. This kind of theme is great because it can be used for both casual and formal work environments.

Don’t forget birthday cards. Personalized birthday cards make everyone feel special!

Saying Goodbye To A Co-Worker

How do you say goodbye to a co-worker? It’s not an easy task. Especially if you have worked with them, side by side, for many years. It takes a lot of thought and planning on your part. Should you have a party? Do you go to dinner? Or do you just have a little send off with a cake and balloons?

Saying Goodbye

If you are in a big office a large office party may not be the answer. Especially considering that unless it is an executive or someone who you deal with on a daily basis, most people will not know who it is that is leaving. You may want to get the advice of other co-workers and see if they would all prefer to go out for dinner or drinks. If it’s a smaller office and things aren’t too hectic, you may want to have a little office party. This way everyone is able to be there and give their well wishes.

If you have an office with only a few employees, both are acceptable. How about an office party that flows into a dinner farewell? Of course with a smaller office, people tend to bond a little more. So saying goodbye to a co-worker may need some Kleenex. Whether they are moving far away, or just leaving their position. Either way, it’s never easy saying goodbye to a co-worker.

 

Gallery Collection Charitable Donations – Ronald McDonald House of Long Branch & New Brunswick

The Gallery Collection was extremely proud to be able to donate 100 holiday cards to both the Ronald McDonald House of Long Branch and the Ronald McDonald House of New Brunswick, both located in New Jersey.

The goal of the Ronald McDonald House is to provide a true “home away from home” for families of seriously ill children receiving care at medical facilities near the Long Branch and New Brunswick houses. They also offer Family Rooms and a Hospitality Suite in the pediatric units of four hospitals in Monmouth and Middlesex County.

Shimmering Forest Holiday Card

The Ronald McDonald House understands how important it is for families to be together when a child is facing a health crisis. From a private room to a fully equipped kitchen and laundry facilities, families have access to all the comforts of home. They also have the support and friendship of other families. Families often get to know one another and share advice on the challenges of having a sick child.

The holiday cards that were donated to both of the houses were sent to supporters and donors as a way of thanking them for the help they have given throughout the year to such a wonderful and important place.

For more information about the Ronald McDonald Houses of Long Branch and New Brunswick, and how you can help, please visit their website at http://www.rmh-cnj.org/

The Benefits Of Shopping For Birthday Cards Online

My deadline for ordering our annual assortment of Birthday cards is fast approaching. There are so many phone calls I have to make to order cards and gifts for Bosses and associates. And every year it seems like most customer representatives are less than helpful, even standoffish, which does not make my task any easier. I am dreading the time it is going to take to explain what I want, how I want it, and what my company budget is. Well, after making a few calls, my fears became reality. My third call was to a card company. I told them what I was looking for, the quantity, and what I wanted to be printed. I received my confirmation. It was all wrong. So I called back. I received a second confirmation, wrong again. The rep on the other end of the phone wasn’t very helpful. I cancelled my order, and started a search for a new company on Google.
I searched, and found The Gallery Collection. I called and was pleasantly surprised.

Royal Blue Birthday Card

The customer service reps there were very helpful. They told me that I could samples of the cards I was considering, then I could order by phone, or I could place my order online. The steps were easy to follow. But if I needed any help at all, call back and they would be happy to help. I even got an extension to call back. After I received my samples, I went online, put in my card design number, put the quantity, greeting, custom imprint etc. And I could even add my company’s logo. I could choose colors for the print in the cards and on the envelopes. Some of the benefits of shopping for Birthday cards online are, you’re not rushed, you can choose everything you want, you don’t have to be put on hold for questions. There is no pressure. And there is always a chat button if you are stuck. Well after I placed my order, I called The Gallery Collection back just to make sure I did everything right, and to my surprise, was greeted by a very nice person who assured me that everything looked ok and that if there were any questions, they would call me.

What a wonderful experience I had. I will be doing all my shopping for Birthday cards online, and my All Occasion cards too. And only with The Gallery Collection, who made it such a pleasure to shop with.