A couple companies I do work with recently had going away parties for retiring employees. In one case, a new employee had already been hired to fill this person’s position. It made me think that perhaps the going away party is only effective if we also celebrate the arrival of someone new to that role.
So much effort is put into recognizing someone who is leaving a company; if the same effort could be put in to welcome a new member of the organization, imagine how much more welcome they would feel to be on board.
Certainly, the extravagance that may go into recognizing someone who has given years of their life to the organizations will dwarf what is done for their replacement, but a welcoming party where the entire staff is invited can certainly provide an appropriate way for the replacement to come in and feel welcome as well.