The chore that refreshes

Back when Eze Castle was a small, independent company, employees were asked to pitch in around the office - watering plants, stocking paper, filling the Coke machine. As the company grew (there are now 250 ConvergEx employees in the Boston office), these Chore Wheel duties, as they were called, were winnowed to four main tasks: sorting mail, distributing The Wall Street Journal, setting up Wednesday morning bagel breakfasts, and - the biggest responsibility - organizing Friday afternoon socials.

These end-of-the-week social hours in the company kitchen have one constant: beer. And once a month, “beer time’’ at Eze (rhymes with “says’’) is transformed into a super-duper social hour known as the 5th Chore Wheel.

For one, the organizing team e-mailed humorous pictures of employees and asked for caption suggestions. “Everyone was just laughing their heads off,’’ said human resources director Cristina Prior. The winners received a total of $200 in prize money.

Another notable hour featured Fun Fact Idol, with three managers playing the roles of “American Idol’’ judges while employees presented bits of trivia. The winner, judged on creativity and delivery, was given the honor of delivering the traditional fun fact at the weekly development meeting - hardly a chore.