Retirement Gifts for a Boss or Coworker: When a Desk Gift Fits
Retirement gifts are hard because the person is leaving the place where most work gifts make sense. A desk set for someone who will never sit at an office desk again misses the point. A desk gift for someone who is moving their working life into a study at home can be exactly right. The first job is to tell which retirement you are buying for.
When a desk gift fits a retirement
| A desk gift fits when the retiree… | Choose something else when the retiree… |
|---|---|
| will consult, teach, write or sit on boards | has said they never want to see a desk again |
| has a study or a desk at home | is downsizing or moving soon |
| is known for an orderly office | plans to travel for the first year |
| would value their name and title as a keepsake | disliked ceremony about titles |
If you are not sure, ask someone close to them. A partner or a long-time assistant usually knows what the first year will look like.
The nameplate as a keepsake
For many people the desk nameplate is the one object that said who they were at work. A new one, made for the end of a career, is a keepsake with a use. The plate takes a name of up to 32 characters and an optional title line of up to 36, in letters, numbers, spaces and a few punctuation marks, hyphens among them. The text is printed on a metal plate, not engraved, and produced exactly as typed.
Three ways to word it:
- The title they retired with. "Margaret O'Neill" with "Principal, Retired", or "Fire Chief, Retired" as the title line.
- An honorary title, if one was granted. "Professor Emeritus" is a title the institution gives; print it only if it was.
- Years of service. The title line can carry the first and last year with a hyphen between them. Check both years with HR, not from memory.
A personalized desk name plate can be ordered on its own, which suits a retirement well: it is personal, and it does not presume a desk of any size.
Retirement gifts for a boss
A retiring manager is usually thanked by a whole department, so the gift can be larger than anything the same people would give in an ordinary year. The usual worry about gifts going up the reporting line is smaller at a retirement, but your organization's gift policy still applies, so check it before you collect. If you know the retiree has a wide desk at home and still handles paper, two sets in the executive desk sets collection are worth a look; otherwise see the smaller choices below.
- The Star 14-Piece Desk Set ($400) includes a picture frame, a desk clock and a personalized nameplate base with two pens, along with a two-tier document tray, a calendar holder and the larger desk pad, 15.0 × 22.8 in (38 × 58 cm). A frame is a fitting piece for a retirement: the team can put its own photograph in it.
- The Prestige 14-Piece Desk Set with Clock ($500) is wood veneer with faux leather components, with a large desk clock and an A5 notepad holder. Veneer is a thin layer of real wood on the surface, not solid wood.
Clock batteries, paper and calendar sheets are not included with any set. For choosing between sizes and colors for a manager's office, see gifts for your boss.
Retirement gifts for a coworker
For a peer, think smaller and more personal.
- A nameplate alone, worded as above.
- A set on the smaller pad. The Vesta 11-Piece Desk Set with Nameplate ($125) is wood and faux leather, in black, with a pen cup, a memo holder, a business card holder, a paperclip holder, a phone stand, a nameplate base with a ballpoint pen and three coasters.
- A color that is theirs. Thirty years in an office usually leaves a known favorite. If nobody can name one, choose black or brown.
Choosing for a desk at home
A study desk is often shallower than an office desk and shares its surface with a lamp, a printer or a stack of books. Every set in compact desk sets uses the smaller pad, 13.4 × 18.9 in (34 × 48 cm). An executive set on the larger pad asks for a wide desk and a reason to handle paper. Our guide to home office desk accessories shows how a small set sits beside a laptop.
Organizing the gift
- Start from the party date and work back. Allow time to collect, to decide and for delivery. The shipping policy gives current delivery estimates; they are estimates, not delivery dates.
- Collect quietly. Voluntary amounts, sent to one person, with the card signed by everyone.
- Agree on the wording in writing. Send the exact name and title line to two colleagues to proofread before you order.
- Proofread before checkout. Read the text once more in the bag. If a mistake surfaces after ordering, write to us through the contact page right away. We can change the text until the order has shipped; after that it cannot be changed.
Retirement gift questions
Is a desk set a strange gift for someone who is retiring?
Only if they are leaving desks behind. For someone who will keep working in some form, or who writes and reads at a desk at home, it is a practical one.
Can the plate say "Retired"?
Yes. "Retired" uses only allowed characters, so it can follow the title as long as the line stays within 36 characters.
What if we do not know their plans?
Give the nameplate on its own. It does not presume a desk of any size, and it means the same thing wherever it ends up.
