Is it okay to throw a baby shower at the office? Of course it is, but you need to be very careful and precise with what is planned because of the location and the time constraints involved. There are rules on office baby shower etiquette that must be followed to a “T.”
First of all, there are certain people that must not host the baby shower, and the office manager and supervisor are among them. It doesn't matter that the company is a small one and the staff and management are close. What matters is that there may be a certain sense of favoritism and that is not right in the workplace. However, the management could, and possibly should, contribute to this little celebration.
While a surprise baby shower is possible, it's always best if the guest of honor knows what is going on, if only for the work schedule's sake. It would really cause a lot of stress if the mommy or daddy-to-be had to cancel the baby shower because it conflicted with their schedule!
Which brings us to the next question: is it okay to have an office baby shower for the daddy-to-be? Yes, it is. It's also a lot of fun if you could invite his wife to the office to share in the celebration with you.
When should the office baby shower be? Choose a time where everyone is free, preferably around lunchtime or after office hours. This also means that the time which you have for celebration is really short, so you must cut out anything extraneous, like long-winded games.
Hold the office baby shower in a convenient place for everyone. This usually means booking the board room in advance or reserving several tables at the cafeteria. Do this as far in advance as possible so you will be able to find an alternative place if, for example, there will be an emergency meeting scheduled in the board room.
The cafeteria is always a good spot, since you may not need to worry about providing hot food if you host it there. That will ease the baby shower budget as well, since everyone will be bringing their own food and you just need to provide something special like a dessert or baby shower cake.
Don't do too much on the decorating side, either. Have a few balloons out over the cake and maybe a few paper decorations adding to the festivities. Use your co-ed baby shower favors to make the area more festive. The more things you don't have to fix up after the celebration, the better.
And since the office baby shower is held at the office, be considerate when choosing a gift for the parent! It's hard to lug home a large gift when you're commuting so choose a simple gift like a gift basket or a gift certificate. And of course, ask permission from your boss first!