A workplace advent calendar opens a door or sets a challenge every day of December until Christmas. Well designed, it gives the whole team a daily moment that gets people moving, at head office and in the field. This article covers the possible formats, 24 ideas for daily doors and a method for organising one.
Contents
Why run an advent calendar at work
In December, projects slow down and annual leave scatters the team. A short daily ritual gives people a reason to come together every day until Christmas.
Connection between colleagues also weighs on the decision to stay. According to the United Heroes x OpinionWay 2026 HR Barometer, a survey of employees in France, 55% of employees say the bond with their colleagues and the team atmosphere would keep them in their job when faced with an identical competing offer. Only 24% name commitment to the company's project. A calendar open to everyone, field teams and remote sites included, builds exactly this bond.
The possible formats, with their strengths and limits
There are several ways to run a workplace advent calendar. The right choice depends on the size of your team, the number of sites and the time you have to prepare it.
The physical calendar. A cabinet or wall display with 24 doors, set up at head office or in each office. It is simple and very visible, but it only reaches the people who are on site. Field teams, remote sites and home workers are often left out in practice.
The content calendar. One digital door per day: a message, a tip or a short quiz sent by email or on the intranet. It is easy to produce and open to everyone, but it is often passive, because people read or watch without really doing anything.
The digital, interactive calendar. A door that asks for an action: a quiz with an answer, a mini challenge or an activity to complete. It reaches everyone at the same moment, whatever the site, and produces measurable participation, at the cost of some tooling and upfront preparation.
The charity calendar. Each day completed unlocks a donation, a collection or an action for a cause. It gives the project meaning, but it works better when a charity partnership is already in place.
The sport and well-being calendar. Each day suggests a short physical activity, a breathing break or a well-being habit. It builds on a health momentum that already exists in the company, but it can feel disconnected if nothing happens the rest of the year.
The most engaging formats often combine several of these: a digital and interactive base, a few charity doors, a few well-being doors and a few surprises.
24 ideas for daily doors or challenges
To keep 24 days varied, here are ideas that mix movement, rest, recognition, giving back and play.
- A walking or cycling challenge of the day, done at your own pace.
- A quiz on Christmas customs around the world.
- A thank-you message to send to a colleague of your choice.
- One minute of guided breathing before a meeting.
- A winter-themed photo challenge, shared internally.
- A collection of toys or warm clothes for a local charity.
- A quiz on the company's history or values.
- A five-minute stretch or active break at your desk.
- A Christmas film or book recommendation, shared with the team.
- A challenge to take the stairs instead of the lift all day.
- An anonymous kind note left for a colleague, in the spirit of Secret Santa.
- A collaborative playlist where everyone adds one track.
- A charity donation unlocked by the day's participation.
- A quiz on eco-friendly winter habits.
- A daily steps challenge to compare as a team, without too much competition.
- A virtual coffee break for remote teams.
- A contest for the best-decorated workspace.
- A gesture of gratitude towards someone outside your immediate team.
- A quiz on safety or good practice in your trade.
- A short stretching or yoga session over video call.
- A recycling or sorting challenge, documented with a photo.
- A video message of season's greetings, recorded for another department.
- A light look back at the year in three words, to share.
- One last surprise door, revealed on the day.
Organising your advent calendar, step by step
Start preparing in November
An advent calendar takes about a month to prepare before launch. You need time to choose the format, write the 24 pieces of content, line up the prizes and prepare the communication. Starting in the first week of December rarely leaves enough time to do it well.
Set the prizes and the rules
As soon as a calendar gives out prizes, written rules are needed. They should state the dates, the list of prizes, the conditions for taking part and how winners are chosen. If winners are picked by a prize draw or any random mechanism, have the rules checked by your legal team before launching. For the prizes themselves, our article on 8 ideas for end-of-year gifts to reward your employees offers concrete suggestions.
Communicate clearly and regularly
A calendar that launches in silence runs out of steam quickly. A launch message, a reminder halfway through and a push in the final days are enough to keep attention, by email, on the intranet or through your usual internal channels.
Include colleagues who do not celebrate Christmas
An advent calendar remains a tradition of Christian origin. For it to bring people together, it is better to present it as a shared end-of-year ritual rather than a religious celebration, and to make sure no door requires a personal attachment to Christmas to take part fully.
Do not forget field teams and shift workers
This is often the weak point of traditional calendars. A door that assumes you are in the office that day leaves out people on shift patterns, on call or at a site with no access to the head office intranet. A format that works from a smartphone, at a time of each person's choosing during the day, solves a good part of this.
Measure participation
An advent calendar is only worth what it engages across the whole team, not just the people closest to the organisers. Tracking daily participation, and not only the number of prizes given out, shows whether the programme reached the whole company and lets you adjust the next edition.
How United Heroes supports an advent calendar
United Heroes offers an Advent Calendar challenge designed so that participation stays measurable across the whole company, field teams included. Every day of December until Christmas, each employee aims for 24 points, the equivalent of 24 minutes of physical activity. All activities count, except daily steps, and everyone picks the one that suits them.
Each day, the employee finds out straight away whether they have won a prize, which keeps the anticipation going through the month. Daily notifications and game mechanics sustain engagement over time. We also recommend creating a dedicated private group, where participants share photos, messages and the day's small wins. This is often what turns an individual challenge into a shared moment.
Prizes stay in the company's hands, with a dedicated budget to plan in advance. A communication kit comes with the challenge, with visuals, ready-to-send emails for employees and messages for internal channels. This format answers the broader goal of well-being and quality of work life.
Frequently asked questions
Do you need a big budget to run a workplace advent calendar?
No. A content calendar or a simple digital format costs little to produce. The budget depends mostly on the prizes you choose, from a symbolic gesture to more substantial rewards.
How do you include colleagues who do not celebrate Christmas?
Present the calendar as a shared end-of-year ritual rather than a religious celebration, and make sure no door assumes a personal attachment to Christmas to take part fully.
How do you get field teams or shift workers to take part?
Choose a format that works from a smartphone, at a time each person picks during their day, rather than a physical calendar at head office or an activity that requires being present at a fixed time.
Do you need written rules if the calendar gives out prizes?
Yes. As soon as there are prizes and a way of choosing winners, written rules are needed, with the dates, the list of prizes and the conditions for taking part. Have your legal team check them if the programme includes a prize draw or any random mechanism.
When should you start preparing an advent calendar?
At the start of November. That leaves time to choose the format, prepare the 24 pieces of content, set the prizes and plan the communication before the launch on 1 December.
How do you know whether the advent calendar worked?
By tracking daily participation across the whole company, not only the number of prizes given out. A good sign is steady participation among field teams and remote sites, not just at head office.
Take it further
To build a calendar that lasts, explore how we approach team cohesion, with other challenge formats you can run all year, and read our article on end-of-year gift ideas to reward your employees to plan your prizes. For other formats to run in December, see our end-of-year activities at work.
Product Marketing Manager at United Heroes