Behind the Box is our series of real corporate orders: what the client needed, what went into it, and how it got there.
When a team scatters at the end of the year, the office thank-you has to travel. People assume the hard part is choosing the gift. It almost never is. It's the list.
At the end of the 2021 academic year, UBC's Mechanical Engineering department wanted to thank its staff with a box of assorted cookies delivered to each person's home. The list started at 59 people and grew to 62 as names were added. The homes were spread across six municipalities in Metro Vancouver, and we delivered all 62 boxes in three days.
Every box, one message
Each box carried a tag with the department's message, so it felt like it came from the department and not from a bakery. One staff member needed a gluten-free box, and that's what they got. A list of 62 is exactly where a detail like that gets lost, so we flag it before baking, not at the door.
Three days, one conversation
Sixty-two homes is a lot of driving, and plans change along the way: a name gets added, an address needs checking, someone isn't home. What makes it work is that the client never has to wonder where things stand. Throughout those three days we stayed in touch with the department, so they knew which boxes had landed and which were still on the road.
The box that couldn't go on a doorstep
One recipient turned out to be out of town. Leaving that box on a doorstep would have been the easy choice. But a box of cookies sitting outside for days isn't a thank-you. It's a disappointment that shows up later.
So we did what we always do: we reached out, found out where they would actually be, and delivered the box there instead. This happens on almost every large order. Someone is staying with family, working from somewhere else, or away for a few days. A quick call usually turns that into a new address and a box in the right hands.
That's the part of this job I care about most: the gift isn't delivered until the person actually has it.
“We got great feedback from our employees – everyone enjoyed the cookies.”
— Manager, Student Services, UBC Mechanical Engineering
What made it work
- A list that could grow. Going from 59 to 62 names was no problem, because the list was the single source of truth.
- Dietary needs flagged early, so the gluten-free box went to the right home.
- Constant contact with the client, so nobody in the department had to chase deliveries.
- A plan for the person who isn't home. I'd rather call and redirect a box than leave it to chance.
Where we deliver
We deliver employee gifts to homes and offices across Metro Vancouver, including Vancouver, Burnaby, Richmond, North Vancouver, West Vancouver, New Westminster, Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam, Port Moody, Surrey, Delta, White Rock and Langley.
Thanking a whole department this year? Send your list through our corporate orders page and I'll take it from there.