Christmas can be a difficult time for management if productivity levels drop. Perhaps you have some targets to meet before the end of the year, a big project which needs continued focus or simply need productivity to continue in order to keep a great customer experience.

Not only is Christmas laden with bank holidays and annual leave, employees are at more risk of losing focus on their work objectives if they have lots of personal commitments. This doesn’t have to be a negative story – why not just embrace it?

If your organisation is able to pay bonuses to staff, Christmas is a fantastic time to do this. Did you know that in Norway, the tax system allows for employees to pay only half tax in November (equalled out by higher tax spread across the year), meaning that employees get a larger pay packet just before Christmas? We probably can’t convince the UK government to follow suit, but we could introduce our own incentive schemes which benefit staff around Christmas time, or in the dreaded January.

Why not hold back some of the years incentive budget to allow for a larger incentive in the Winter months? With achievable targets, this could give employees the extra boost of productivity needed to get through Christmas, or serve as a really nice morale boost in the long month of January when money is a little tight.

The Winter months are a fantastic time to invest in some team building activities, particularly in January when the excitement of Christmas is over. Christmas brings with it parties, over-indulgence, lots of holiday and often, a more relaxed atmosphere at work. By comparison, this can make January seem very underwhelming and long. Why not get ahead and embark on a fun, morale-boosting team building day to kick-start the new year?

Our team building days are completely bespoke to our clients needs; some just want a day of team bonding and fun, others want activities which are in-line with business objectives and meet certain goals. Whatever you want to achieve from a team building day – we can help!

Whilst we understand that work has got to be done, it makes sense to work with your team rather than against them. If you’re finding that concentration levels are low in the run-up to Christmas, why not embrace this and allow for a bit of fun in exchange for some dedicated productivity for the rest of the day?

This could be something as simple as playing Christmas music, arranging a team secret santa or organising a team advent calendar where daily incentives can be won. If employees feel like they are allowed to enjoy the festive season, they are more likely to feel motivated to work hard for the team goals.

Now is a really good time to plan ahead for January and keep your team motivated when they return in the New Year. Whether its a team building day, a new project or time to introduce an organisational change, Richard at Brightstone can help! Get in touch now!