As the holiday season approaches, many employees are looking for ways to boost productivity in order to prepare for this busy time. This article shares nine strategies that can help you stay productive during the upcoming holidays.
Starting with Halloween in October and continuing through New Years, the winter months offer a slew of festivities. What does this imply for startups and small businesses? There will undoubtedly be some diversions.
As the holiday season comes into full stride, your team’s productivity may suffer, whether it’s organizing a New Year’s Eve party or purchasing presents for family members.
While it may be tempting to take the hardline Scrooge approach and just state that your staff is expected to maintain their normal concentration despite the social festivities and responsibilities of the holidays, this isn’t always the ideal strategy.
Consider adopting “holiday-friendly” working methods rather than leaving productivity to chance. Here are some more efficient methods to keep your staff motivated than just following expectations and procedures that ignore the need for work-life balance or the extra stress that many individuals experience over the Christmas season.
1. Consider allowing greater flexibility in your working hours.
Your staff may find it difficult to get to work on time each day due to children’s activities and other personal obligations.
If you provide workers the option to change their work hours to accommodate family and social commitments, you’ll reduce their psychological stress, which may be especially high around the holidays.
This does not indicate that your staff may come and go as they want, or that they must work less than their full-time hours. Encourage them to make plans ahead of time and communicate effectively with you and their peers. Use shared calendars (such as Google Calendar) to make it simple for the team to plan ahead for cooperation and meetings. If you already have a flexible working arrangement in place for your team, make sure they’re using tools like Slack to check in on a regular basis, and that you’re taking use of remote-tools like Skype or video conferencing.
Flexible working hours are really a productivity enhancer, according to studies, as long as the job is completed and the shift is filled.
2. Only request overtime labor if it is really required.
Client work sometimes necessitates overtime; this is to be anticipated and respected.
There’s no reason to have workers remain late tonight if a client’s job can be completed tomorrow without causing any tension. Overtime is regarded as a punishment by some over the winter vacations, and it may have an impact on the quality of work completed. Make sure you plan ahead so you can complete your big tasks with adequate breathing space, understanding that you’ll be more likely to run into problems like employees on vacation and sluggish replies from your customers over the holidays.
There may be occasions when overtime is required. If possible, make overtime a perk rather than a requirement for employees who wish to earn a little more money over the holidays. If such flexibility isn’t feasible, do all you can to plan ahead so that your staff is aware of and can prepare for times when they’ll need to accommodate. Please express your gratitude. Even when working overtime is merely a requirement of a certain job. Thank them for their service and let them know how much their efforts are appreciated.
3. Make it illegal to shop for the holidays online during working hours.
Because it is so prevalent in the workplace, this is a very essential method to manage productivity over the winter vacations.
Who wouldn’t be tempted to conduct the majority of their Christmas shopping online, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, to get it out of the way?
Remind your staff of business rules regarding personal activities (such as online shopping) and the use of company property during work hours. Establish a good example if you’re going to set this expectation. Also, don’t go shopping during the workday.
4. Be realistic when it comes to vacation chit-chat.
The holidays are a wonderful time for your employees to bond and share tales about bad vacation experiences or incredible cuisine and locations.
Recognize that workers may be a bit more chatty at this time of year. Even if you’re the boss, you may participate. Just make sure there’s a healthy mix of time spent talking about Aunt Jane’s hideous sweater collection and time spent discussing the client’s portfolio.
In meetings, be respectful of people’s time. Spend no more than fifteen minutes on subjects that aren’t on the agenda; your colleagues will appreciate your consideration for their time. Be proactive in your approach. If your staff can’t seem to hold their enthusiasm in check, organize an in-office lunch potluck, for example, if it seems that they want to interact.
5. Hold meetings with your team to discuss external and internal deliverables.
Meetings aren’t everyone’s favorite thing to do, but they may help everyone remain on the same page over the holidays. For example, rather of leaving production levels to chance, a weekly Monday morning meeting may set the tone for the week. Don’t let it go on too long, and remember to write down (and communicate with your team) what was said so that everyone is on the same page.
During weekly meetings, don’t be afraid to be direct; explain to the team what definitely must be accomplished, and assign members to various project components. If you need to implement a score system to keep everyone on track, go ahead and do so. Check in with yourself halfway through the week to see whether you’ve made any progress. In fact, a year-round project management system such as Basecamp may be very beneficial in this regard. It’s simple to check whether projects are beyond their due date.
You don’t need to micromanage; just let everyone know that you’re committed to keeping the process moving. You’ll know right away if workers start to slack off on their job, and you’ll be able to intervene before catastrophe strikes.
6. Increase the frequency of your company’s social media postings.
Why overlook the fact that everyone on Pinterest, Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram is in holiday mode? Encourage your workers to share photos and comments on your company’s Facebook page since it’s a great time of year to do so.
This gives your company a more human face, and it’s generally enjoyable for employees. It may also bring additional visitors to your blog or website, which can only benefit you in the long term.
7. As a group, assist a charitable organization.
This is the season of giving, so why not volunteer at a women’s shelter, a local food bank, an animal rescue group, or another community-minded organization on a Friday afternoon? Alternatively, as a company, sponsor some local families in need and let staff members to help by choosing and wrapping presents.
It’s also an excellent opportunity to consider employee contributions. Consider sponsoring a charity whose purpose fits with your company’s values by organizing an employee collection and matching it with company money. Giving back feels wonderful, and your employees will enjoy knowing that they work for a business that values community participation.
Allow employees to depart on New Year’s Eve early.
Because New Year’s Eve traffic is usually terrible, surprise your workers by allowing them to leave the workplace early that day. It’s always better to be cautious than sorry, particularly when the weather is an issue.
Besides, they’ve been productive recently as a result of your adherence to our rules, so they certainly deserve a vacation!
9. Have a good time—the holidays only come once a year!
Finally, don’t put off celebrating the holidays. Accept them and utilize this time to try out some new productivity tools and techniques. Flexibility and understanding may go a long way toward fostering goodwill and loyalty throughout the year.
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Frequently Asked Questions
How do you help your employees stay productive around the holidays?
A: I ask my employees not to spend their holiday break with family if they cannot work. We also keep our offices open 24/7 so that no one has to take time off during the holidays.
What is the best way to increase employee productivity?
A: The best way to increase employee productivity is through a competitive advantage. Companies that use a level playing field for employees tend to have the most successful companies.
What strategies can be used to improve productivity?
A: There are many ways to improve productivity. One way is to be more efficient with your time by being able to manage five tasks at once, or even seven if you have the ability. Another way would be making sure that when youre working on a task, its not interrupted with small breaks in between, which can cause significant problems down the line and lead to an overall decrease of productivity.