The workplace is not immune to the fun and some businesses make it a practice to pull the leg of employees, the press, consumers and the general citizenry. Clearly, in offices across the land many small instances of tom foolery are also occurring.

A quick check of my personal file reveals several pranks. In my prank book, timing is everything so often my workplace hijinks occurred when the opportunity presented, not on a particular day such as April Fool’s Day. For others, a ruse on April first is like clock work. Google is a prime example.

Google used April 1, 2008 to launch Gmail Custom Time, promising that you will never be late again in an email response with the ability to pre- and post date emails. It also added a “Google Wake-up Kit” to its Google Calendar. Also, every featured video on YouTube was rickrolled. Try it.

Online IT magazine InfoWorld got in on the fun and published an article about Google acquiring the US Government. NBC’s TV comedy The Office’s website looks like it was was hijacked by the Racine branch of Dunder Mifflin. Nestle SA (VTX:NESN) announced changing the name of the ButterFinger to the Finger including a press release on BusinessWire. Good stuff.

If a prank does not immediately come to mind, check out these photos of “what to do when your co-worker is gone on vacation.

  
Or if you are looking for a more complete record of the fun had by business on April Fools Day 2008, check out wikipedia which lists an ever-growing cadre of foolery.

Not a joke, lenders continue to report billions of dollars of losses due to sub-prime lending.