This survey looks at holiday/year-end activities that organizations are planning for 2013.

1. SHRM Survey Findings: 2013 Holiday/Year-End Activities
December 4, 2013

2. These survey findings are divided into the following
sections:
End-of-Year/Holiday Parties
End-of-Year Giving
Demographics
SHRM Survey Findings: 2013 Holiday/Year-End Activities ©SHRM 2013
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3. Key Findings
• Do organizations plan to have a 2013 end-of-year/holiday party? About two-thirds (66%) of
organizations will hold a 2013 end-of-year/holiday party for their employees, similar to 2011 and
2012. Smaller organizations (1 to 499 employees) are more likely than larger organizations (500 or
more employees) to have an end-of-year or holiday party open to all employees.
• Will organizations’ end-of-year/holiday parties be held on-site or off-site? Sixty percent of
organizations indicated that their end-of-year/holiday party will be held off-site. Thirty-six percent of
organizations said these parties will be held on-site.
• Do organizations participate in gift exchanges during the end-of-year/holiday season? Nearly
one-half (48%) of organizations do not participate in gift exchanges. The other one-half participate
in a gift exchange within each department (45%), 5%, participate in a companywide exchange, and
2% participate in both departmental and companywide girt exchanges.
• How common is it for organizations to participate in end-of-year charitable
donations/drives? Seventy-eight percent of organizations reported participating in charitable
donations/drives (e.g., Toys for Tots, winter coat drives) during the end-of-year/holiday season.
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4. End-of-Year/Holiday Parties
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5. In 2013, will your organization have an end-of-year/holiday party open to
all employees?
66%
Yes
72%
68%
25%
No, we usually do not have end-of-year or
holiday parties for all employees
No, we used to have end-of-year or holiday parties
for all employees in the past, but we have cut back
due to financial challenges
17%
24%
2013 (n = 748)
2012 (n = 362)
2011 (n = 404)
9%
10%
8%
Note: Respondents who answered “not sure” were excluded from this analysis. Percentages may not equal 100% due to rounding.
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6. In 2013, will your organization have an end-of-year/holiday party open to
all employees?
Comparisons by organization staff size
•
Organizations with 1 to 499 employees are more likely than organizations with 500 or more employees to have an
end-of-year or holiday party open to all employees.
Comparisons by organization staff size
500 to 2,499 employees (58%)
1 to 99 employees (74%)
>
100 to 499 employees (76%)
2,500 to 24,999 employees (50%)
25,000+ (51%)
Comparisons by organization sector
•
Privately owned for-profit organizations are more likely than publicly owned for-profit organizations to have an endof-year or holiday party open to all employees.
Comparisons by organization sector
Privately owned for-profit (75%)
>
Publicly owned for-profit (51%)
Note: Only statistically significant differences are shown.
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7. In 2013, does your organization have a budget for the end-of-year or
holiday party?
No, 16%
Yes, 84%
Note : n = 438. Only respondents whose organizations were sponsoring an end-of-year/holiday party were asked this question. Respondents who
answered “not sure” were excluded from this analysis.
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8. Will this year’s end-of-year/holiday party be held on-site or off-site?
60%
Off-site (our normal practice)
68%
61%
32%
On-site (our normal practice)
23%
24%
2013 (n = 473)
2012 (n = 252)
On-site this year to save costs
Other
4%
7%
9%
2011 (n = 273)
3%
2%
6%
Note: Only respondents whose organizations were sponsoring an end-of-year/holiday party were asked this question. Respondents who answered “not
sure” were excluded from this analysis. Percentages may not equal 100% due to rounding.
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9. When is the end-of-year/holiday party expected to be held?
43%
During nonbusiness hours; we will
NOT close early the day of the party
49%
42%
During business hours
During nonbusiness hours; we
will close early the day of the party
39%
2013 (n = 474)
2012 (n = 247)
15%
12%
Note: Only respondents whose organizations were sponsoring an end-of-year/holiday party were asked this question. Respondents who answered “not
sure” were excluded from this analysis.
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10. How many employees do you expect to attend the end-of-year/holiday
party?
48%
76% to 100% of employees
51%
35%
51% to 75% of employees
29%
2013 (n = 479)
2012 (n = 255)
13%
25% to 50% of employees
Less than 25% of employees
16%
3%
3%
Note: Only respondents whose organizations were sponsoring an end-of-year/holiday party were asked this question. Respondents who answered “not
sure” were excluded from this analysis. Percentages do not equal 100% due to rounding.
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11. Are employees allowed to bring guests to the end-of-year/holiday party?
50%
Yes, but a limited number of guests
53%
45%
No
Yes, as many guests as they would like
42%
2013 (n = 475)
2012 (n = 251)
5%
5%
Note: Only respondents whose organizations were sponsoring an end-of-year/holiday party were asked this question. Respondents who answered “not
sure” were excluded from this analysis.
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12. Are employees expected to pay for any additional guests attending the
end-of-year/holiday party?
81%
No
Yes, for any guests
85%
8%
6%
2013 (n = 257)
2012 (n = 143)
Yes, for more than one guest
Other
3%
6%
8%
3%
Note: Only respondents whose organizations were sponsoring an end-of-year/holiday party were asked this question. Respondents who answered “not
sure” were excluded from this analysis.
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13. Are employees expected to contribute in some way to the end-ofyear/holiday party?
90%
No, employees are not expected to contribute
Yes, employees are asked to make a nonmonetary
contribution (e.g., food, decorations)
91%
6%
6%
2013 (n = 485)
2012 (n = 256)
Yes, employees are asked to make a monetary
contribution (e.g., purchase tickets, contribute
money, etc.)
4%
3%
Note: Only respondents whose organizations were sponsoring an end-of-year/holiday party were asked this question. Respondents who answered “not
sure” were excluded from this analysis.
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14. Are prizes given to employees at the end-of-year/holiday party?
45%
Yes, prizes are given to random
employees (e.g., a raffle)
40%
40%
No, prizes are not given to any employees
Yes, prizes are given to all employees
2013 (n = 487)
47%
2012 (n = 258)
15%
14%
Note: Only respondents whose organizations were sponsoring an end-of-year/holiday party were asked this question. Respondents who answered “not
sure” were excluded from this analysis. Percentages may not equal 100% due to rounding.
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15. End-of-Year Giving
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16. Does your organization participate in charitable donations/drives
(e.g., Toys for Tots, winter coat drives) during the end-of-year/holiday
season?
2012
2013
No, 22%
No, 26%
Yes, 74%
Yes, 78%
n=
379
n=
788
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17. Does your organization give nonperformance-based bonuses at the end
of the year to employees?
75%
No
66%
19%
Yes, to all employees
30%
2013 (n = 789)
2012 (n = 376)
*Yes, but only to nonexecutive employees
Yes, but only to excecutive employees
3%
3%
4%
Note: Respondents who answered “not sure” were excluded from this analysis. An asterisk (*) indicates this response option was not available in 2012.
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18. Does your organization give nonperformance-based gifts (e.g., gift
bags, gift cards, ham, turkey) at the end of the year to employees?
No
65%
Yes, to all employees
32%
Yes, but only to nonexecutive employees
2%
Yes, but only to executive employees
1%
Note: n = 792. Respondents who answered “not sure” were excluded from this analysis.
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19. Do employees in your organization participate in gift exchanges during
the end-of-year/holiday season?
No
48%
Yes, within departments
Yes, companywide
Yes, both within departments and companywide
45%
5%
2%
Note: n = 760. Respondents who answered “not sure” were excluded from this analysis.
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20. Organization Demographics
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21. Demographics: Organization Staff Size
1 to 99 employees
22%
100 to 499 employees
33%
500 to 2,499 employees
20%
17%
2,500 to 24,999 employees
25,000 or more employees
8%
n = 805
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22. Demographics: Organization Sector
Privately owned for-profit
49%
Nonprofit
23%
20%
Publicly owned for-profit
Government
8%
n = 745
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23. Demographics: Other
Does your organization have U.S.-based
operations (business units) only, or does
it operate multinationally?
U.S.-based operations only
73%
Multinational operations
27%
n = 814
Is your organization a single-unit organization or
a multi-unit organization?
Single-unit organization: An organization in
which the location and the organization are one
and the same
31%
Multi-unit organization: An organization that has
more than one location
69%
n = 814
For multi-unit organizations, are HR policies and
practices determined by the multi-unit headquarters,
by each work location or by both?
What is the HR department/function for which
you responded throughout this survey?
Corporate (companywide)
66%
Business unit/division
17%
Facility/location
17%
n = 575
Multi-unit headquarters determines HR
policies and practices
49%
Each work location determines HR policies
and practices
5%
A combination of both the work location and
the multi-unit headquarters determines HR
policies and practices
46%
n = 574
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24. Demographics: Organization Industry
Percentage
Manufacturing
20%
Health care and social assistance
16%
Professional, scientific and technical services
14%
Finance and insurance
10%
Educational services
9%
Government agencies
6%
Retail trade
5%
Construction
4%
Information
3%
Transportation and warehousing
3%
Utilities
3%
Note: n = 774. Percentages do not equal 100% due to multiple response options.
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25. Demographics: Organization Industry (continued)
Percentage
Accommodation and food services
3%
Administrative and support and waste management and remediation
3%
Mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction
2%
Real estate, rental and leasing
2%
Wholesale trade
2%
Religious, grantmaking, civic, professional and similar organizations
2%
Repair and maintenance
2%
Arts, entertainment and recreation
2%
Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting
1%
Personal and laundry services
*
Other
9%
Note: n = 774. An asterisk (*) indicates < 1%. Percentages do not equal 100% due to multiple response options.
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26. SHRM Survey Findings: 2013 Holiday/Year-End Activities
Survey Methodology
• Response rate = 20%
• 817 HR professionals from a randomly selected sample of SHRM’s membership participated in this
survey
• Margin of error +/-3%
• Survey fielded October 17-30, 2013
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27. About SHRM Research
For more survey/poll findings, visit shrm.org/surveys
For more information about SHRM’s Customized Research Services,
visit shrm.org/customizedresearch
Follow us on Twitter @SHRM_Research
Project leader:
Rob Boyd, Researcher
Project contributors:
Alexander Alonso, Ph.D., SPHR, vice president, SHRM Research
Evren Esen, manager, Survey Research Center, SHRM Research
Tanya Mulvey, researcher, SHRM Research
Copy editor:
Katya Scanlan, SHRM Knowledge Center
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28. About SHRM
The Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) is the world’s largest
association devoted to human resource management. Representing more than
250,000 members in over 140 countries, the Society serves the needs of HR
professionals and advances the interests of the HR profession. Founded in
1948, SHRM has more than 575 affiliated chapters within the United States and
subsidiary offices in China, India and United Arab Emirates.
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