15 Christmas Gift Ideas for Corporate Managers

Hard-working employees deserve to be recognized at Christmas.

A lower-level team member will receive something from their boss, or from senior leadership, to show that their efforts are appreciated. It can also go the other way, with employees celebrating their manager with a small token of their appreciation.

But how do you make the right choice? Don't worry, we've got you covered.

In this article, we cover:

Before we get started with ideas, let's cover the basics. While it can be anything, gifts for managers usually fall into two categories:

• Those given from employees to their bosses, and 
• Those handed out by the organization to its senior management

In the former category, when a junior team member is looking to give their boss a gift, it’s important to make sure that the present is both thoughtful and appropriate. The last thing you want is for your boss to feel uncomfortable or offended.

On the latter, if your company is looking to give gifts to managers, then you can and probably should spend a little more. In this case, you will likely want to focus on something that is both memorable and useful. For example, a high-end coffee maker or luxurious business-class travel bag would be great choices.

Depending on the size of the organization and the role of the manager in question, it could even be something much more expensive, like a generous bonus or an all-expenses-paid trip. Even new vehicles have been given as gifts in some cases!

We're not going to get that crazy in our suggestions below.

We'll focus more on gifts being given from employee to boss, and make sure they are relatively inexpensive. Before we jump into the 15 gift ideas though, let's go through a few rules to follow when choosing what to get!

If you are buying for a boss, you'll need to consider the following things:

• Consider the Relationship — Is your boss a mentor? A friend? A father figure? The answer to this question will help you decide what kind of gift to give. A notepad or an inspirational book is a great gift for a mentor. For a friend though you can get a little more adventurous with things like personalized hot sauce or a mini desk vacuum. 
• Your Budget — It’s important to set a budget for yourself before you start shopping. This will ensure that you don’t overspend, and it will also help narrow down your options. Don’t worry, there are literally thousands of options out there for any budget.
• The Office Environment — Is your office casual or formal? This can affect the type of gift that you give. For example, a more casual office might appreciate a funny mug or desk toy, while a formal office might prefer something like a nice pen set.
• The Person’s Interests — This is probably the most important factor to consider. What are your boss’s hobbies and interests? Do they love to read? Are they into fitness? Knowing this will help you choose a gift that they will use and enjoy.

If, on the other hand,  you are a business looking to reward several managers at the same time, you might want to offer your recipients a choice. 

At Corporategift.com we offer gift collections which you can send your recipients a link to and let them choose from. eGift Collections ensures that everyone can choose something that they will like, and it also takes the pressure off of you to choose the perfect individual gift for each person.

We also offer corporate gifting services that can help you choose and send the perfect gifts to your employees, without any of the hassles of picking something specific out for each one. 

You don't want to just wrap up a tie or slide a gift card under the door. Showing your boss or manager that you put some thought into their Christmas gift will go a long way. 

Here are 15 thoughtful gifts for a boss that will make you stand out — certainly not a bad thing when it comes to impressing the higher-ups:

If it’s just you buying for your boss, you might not need any help. But some companies may want to pre-screen the gifts given between employees and assign budgets to avoid any conflicts.

As an HR representative who has to take care of gifts for multiple managers, or even a company-wide Christmas list, a solution like CG Elite membership can save hours and hours.

As a CG Elite member, you will get access to a corporate gifting dashboard from which you can schedule triggers to automatically send gifts for birthdays, holidays, or new recruits, making sure those important milestones don’t get missed.

You can assign different gift tiers and options so that every entry-level employee doesn’t end up with the Rolex that you’re handing out to senior VPs. And you won’t have to ever collect another mailing address or wonder how many custom-branded shirts of each size you’ve got in stock.

It can even integrate directly into your existing HR management tools so that you don’t have to learn a whole new platform. You can contact us here to request a demo of our tools and see if your order volumes make you eligible for a free membership.

If you take anything away from this article, it's this — gifting doesn't need to be hard!

Just keep your relationship with your manager in mind, think about what they're interested in, and stay within your budget. With those three things considered you're sure to find a gift that's perfect for them and gives you a leg up when the performance evaluation period comes around!