30 Diwali Gift Ideas: Best corporate Diwali gifts that would strengthen professional ties with employees

In this column, Hirav Shah talks about the trending gifts that Corporate Businesses can gift their employees to make them feel special and build a formidable professional association with them

Astro Strategist cum Business Astrologer Hirav Shah, who needs no introduction as he has been making a huge mark across the globe with his immaculate understanding of Business strategies combining them with the power of astrology and creating wonders for Businessmen, Entrepreneurs, Celebrities, and Politicians, etc…anyone who has Huge Potential and wants to make BIG POSITIVE CHANGES in their lives.

Hirav Shah says, “Celebrated every year in the autumn by millions of people, Diwali is one of the most significant festivals in the Indian culture. It is also probably the favourite and most celebrated Indian festival even by non-Indians worldwide. The beautiful festival of light celebrates new beginnings (also known as the Hindu New year) and the triumph of good over evil.”

“It is not only a good gesture but also customary to exchange gifts on Diwali. As Diwali approaches, people from different facets become increasingly indecisive about what to gift their dear ones.”

Hirav Shah adds, “In the business world too, it is important to make your employees feel valued and cared for. You must shower them with gifts and goodies from time to time to nurture stronger and better professional relationships. And the auspicious occasion of Diwali is a great instance for corporate gifting.”

“I understand that the act of choosing the perfect Diwali gift for employees could be really difficult. You want to tick-off all the right boxes and avoid any mistakes. You want to make sure that you give them a meaningful and memorable gift but at the same time maintain the formal code of conduct.”

So here we present a list of 30 Well-thought-out Corporate Diwali Gift Ideas for Employees according to Hirav Shah

1. The Goodness of Assorted Dry Fruits

Another classic and most favourite Diwali gift is a basket of assorted dry fruits. They are not only classic and elegant looking gift options, but they are also full of health benefits. They can be stored easily and are quite easy to transport and distribute, making them pretty suitable as bulk corporate gifts.

2. Holiday Happenings

Diwali is the time for family and friends. Your employees will definitely appreciate it if you give them a little extra time off to celebrate the festival with their dear ones. It is one of the most thoughtful things you can do for them.

3. Cash in Hand or Bonus

Diwali is celebrated along with Laxmi Puja and it is associated with money, prosperity and wealth. Sending bonus cheques to your employees is a great way to ring in the festival.

4. Classic Feng Shui

The heritage of Chinese artwork, Feng Shui is believed to capture auspicious luck and happiness through beautiful and artistic figures. They are commonly found in Indian households and they make for great corporate gift ideas. Some of the most common feng shui elements are Tortoise, three-legged frog, lucky bamboo, laughing buddha, chimes etc.

5. Surprise Grab Bag

A little thought goes a long way. If you want to make your employees feel a little extra special, here’s a great idea for you. You can make the whole gift-giving fun by curating a few combinations of gift hampers for your employees. The hamper can have items such as movie tickets, gift vouchers, office essentials, phone covers, water bottles etc. You can then ask your employees to randomly choose a surprise grab bag.

6. Desk Essentials Combo

Your people spend a huge amount of their time in the workplace. Getting new, unique and elegant-looking office essentials on Diwali will definitely improve the vibe of the workplace. Essentials can include Digital organizers, engraved metal pens, professional notebooks, reporters. You can easily compile these items and gift them as a Diwali gift hamper.

7. Bonsai Tree

Who wouldn’t like Bonsai trees? They are beautiful, cute and are a great addition to any indoor garden. Some good trees for bonsai include Juniper, pines, spruces, cedars, magnolia, elms and oaks. Having a bonsai or any plant on the desk would give your employees a feeling of freshness and help them keep up a good mood at work.

8. Metallic Home Décor Gift Hampers

It is a common Indian custom to give metallic gift items on Diwali. Metallic decor items, copper idols of deity, silver glasses, brass or silver bowls, silver spoons etc make excellent Diwali gifts.

9. Sweet-tooth Basket

One cannot have too many sweets for Diwali. Diwali is the time when friends and families come together and having sweets is an integral part of the celebration. From Gulab jamun, Motichoor ke ladoo, Rasgulla, Kaju barfi to Soan Papdi to gujia the range of gift options is just huge. Giving sweets baskets to employees is a great way to add sweetness and joy in their celebrations.

10. On-the-go Electronics

Electronics such as Smartwatches, Fitness Trackers, Portable Bluetooth speakers, headphones, phone adapters, power banks are favourite gift items among millennials and GenZers. A good quality electronics product will be highly appreciated by them.

11. Household Essentials

A very common corporate Diwali gift in India is kitchen essentials and home electronics. You can up your game and give them a piece of modern kitchen gadget such as a coffee machine, hand blender, air fryer, toaster etc. These kinds of gifts are considered auspicious during Diwali and usher goodwill at home.

12. Custom-made Goodies

If you want to go for unique Diwali gifts, the best thing to do is to go for personalized gifts. You can run a quick survey to understand your employees’ likes, dislikes and preferences. Once the results are in you can plan gifts accordingly. Another way to add a personal touch is adding a name tag or engraving your employees’ name in gift items. Keychains, engraved metal pens, photo frames, coffee mugs, etc can make great corporate Diwali gifts for employees.

13. Creative Art Pieces

You can also select beautiful and creative art pieces from a wide range of selections easily available on online gift stores. People love adding new pieces to their homes on Diwali, therefore, it makes a great corporate gift for both employees and clients.

14. The Ethnic Touch

Any Indian festivity feels incomplete without the ethnic attire. As a Diwali gift, you can give your employees a beautiful Indian piece of clothing, maybe a kurta for men and a saree for the women. This will not only be useful and memorable to them but they’ll also take special pride in flaunting it.

15. Aromatic Candle Set

Decorative, scented and colourful set of candles make great gifts for office staff. They are therapeutic and also can help them relieve stress. It will also add a touch of elegance and finesse to their interior.

16. Go Eco-Friendly

This Diwali spread the message of sustainability and recycling by gifting eco-friendly gifts to your employees. Some awesome choices are tote bags, stainless steel water bottles, reusable straws, thermal coffee mugs, post-consumer waste notebooks, desk plants, customized earthen diyas etc. Your environment-conscious employees are going to absolutely love it!

17. Chocolate Delight

Chocolate makes everything better. A chocolate box with a combination of various types of chocolates is an evergreen gifting option. You can have a combination of dark chocolates, imported candies and chocolates, milk chocolates, exotic handmade chocolates etc. You can just never go wrong with it!

18. UV Light Sanitizers

Now that we are battling a global pandemic, the safety of the workforce matters even more. What better option than to send Diwali gifts that ensure their protection.

Ultraviolet light, also known as nature’s own hand sanitizer, is an incredible disinfection tool for cleaning surfaces and objects. UV hand sanitizers are used to kill or inactive microorganisms such as the coronavirus. Giving such gifts for office staff will ensure that your employees can remain safe and protected even inside of their homes.

19. Work from Home Furniture

With work from home being the norm, gifting employees comfortable work from home furniture is a thoughtful way of ensuring that your employees don’t face any hassles and remain productive. A good set of work from home furniture can help your employees stay organized, focused and helps in mitigating posture problems.

20. Gadget Organizer

We, humans, have the tendency to keep losing and misplacing our stuff, especially small gadgets like flash drives, adapters, data cables and more. Therefore, to help your employees keep their necessary electronic amenities in the order you can also think of gifting them with a gadget organizer this Diwali.

21. Digital Photo Frames

Pictures carry a thousand emotions. Everyone wants to preserve their memories and cherish them with their loved ones. As such, opting for digital photo frames would make up as a great Diwali gift for your employees.

23. Accessories Combo

Next on this list is the accessories gift hamper. You can make a combo out of certain small yet extremely useful daily accessories items for your employees. It can include office accessories notebooks, cable wires, pen drives, mousepad etc. You can make a combo of formal wear accessories such as Ties, Pocket squares, cufflinks, wallets, watches or clutches and handbags for women.

24. Subsidized Home Maintenance Services

This would probably be one of the best things that anyone would want during a festive season. When Diwali approaches many individuals to get busy renovating or fixing their abode. But since most employees are now working from home and trying to balance their work-life, they might hesitate to do any kind of pre-festive chores. So, to let your employees show your gratitude for working hard in these testing times, you can consider offering them home maintenance services as their Diwali gift.

A Few Virtual Corporate Diwali Gift Ideas for Remote Employees

Going in accordance with the current pandemic situation you might not have your employees around you to celebrate Diwali this year. However, this shouldn’t bar you from gifting them and here are a few virtual Diwali gift suggestions that you can offer your remote employees.

25. Point-based Rewarding

Point-based rewarding is one of the easiest and flexible ways of gifting your employees no matter where they are. In a point-based rewarding system, each employee is part of an employee rewards platform where employer/management can allocate points to their employees as gifts or rewards. The employees can redeem these points and use them to buy goods/services from various e-commerce and in-store brands across different categories like merchandise, travel, lifestyle etc.

26. Gift Cards

Gift cards are a great corporate gift for all seasons. They offer the flexibility of choice to your employees and they can actually use it to buy something they would definitely use. Moreover, with the right vendor, you can effectively plan and execute your corporate Diwali gifting by delivering gift cards directly to your employees’ inbox.

27. Super Subscription

A unique yet extremely useful gift is a free subscription. It can be a magazine, streaming services, courses and special skills etc, there are subscriptions for pretty much any hobby or interest you can think of. Getting a free Netflix subscription for say six months or a Spotify premium account will definitely cheer your employees up!

28. Online Courses

Employees now desire to learn and grow professionally while at work. Most of the job seekers prefer working for organizations who support their employees with learning and development initiatives. Also, the present situation where everyone is confined within their homes have given the employees a perfect opportunity to upskill themselves. Hence, this diwali you can opt for gifting them their preferred online courses which are available on various e-learning platforms like skillshare, udemy, unacademy and more.

29. Access to Online Wellness Platform

The sedentary lifestyle followed by a majority in today’s workforce is adversely affecting their health and wellbeing. This is then complemented by an irregular diet and sleep schedule which is making employees prone to many chronic illnesses.

Moreover, in times like these ensuring employee wellbeing has become a top priority for employers around the globe. Therefore, this year you can introduce them to the world of fitness by providing them access to an online wellness platform as their Diwali gift.

30. E-Books

A good book holds the power to open up your mind and even inspire you to do something great. It helps you improve your vocabulary and learn about things that may come in handy in the real world. So, this Diwali you can also consider giving out some e-books to your employees who love reading as their gift.

Hirav Shah says, “Diwali usually gets everyone excited. Like everybody else, your employees look forward to celebrating the festival with family and friends. As their employer, you should not be left behind! A Diwali gift is a great way for you as a company join in the festive spirit and share your good wishes for their prosperity and wellbeing. In fact, giving a gift has become a tradition that many employees eagerly anticipate. So don’t disappoint them!”

Helps in Building Sense of Belonging:

Employees are a vital part of every company. A culture of belonging in the company helps employees feeling more engaged and happier in their workplace. Gifting something wonderful on a festive occasion gives a boost to this bond. It lifts their spirits and the employees feel as though they really are part of a family which makes them view the relationship more positively.”

Hirav Shah concludes by saying, “Gifts are given on festivals, as rewards and bonuses all add up to greater levels of satisfaction for your employees. The strength and efficiency of your firm depend on the people who work there and the happier they are, the better it will be reflected in their performance. Take some time to understand their needs and aspirations and try to cater to them in your own way. Effort and money spent on your subordinates can only be an investment for which you will reap the benefits in the long run.”