I worked - very briefly - for a company who had a nice way of dealing with birthdays, and as it was mine in the short time I was there, I experienced it first hand.
Your dob is noted in your personnel file and is flagged up in the Chief Exec's office. You were then sent a birthday card which they (joint chiefs!) had signed, and inside the card were some vouchers for a main UK clothes store. I think it was £20 worth, but can't remember now.
This was a nice touch, and perhaps a little more discreet way of doing things. The card was timed to arrive at your desk on the day (or I guess, the day closest if it fell on a weekend) and you could display the card, or not, and simply put the vouchers away in your purse to spend at a later date. The trick with the vouchers would be to choose the right place. In the UK the shop chosen also sells great food so it's almost a no brainer. That's the type of thing you need for this.
This might be a way to go so that there's a quiet acknowledgement of the birthday, which the birthday recipient can then acknowledge publicly or not, as they so choose.
Jackie, Peer Moderator
www.iqps.org
