Some organisations report a drop in productivity during the summer months. For some, this is purely anecdotal but it does seem that there is some evidence for this phenomenon. A study by the Captivate Network in the USA in 2012 found that workplace productivity between the months of June and August drops by 20%, attendance decreases by 19%, workers are 45% more distracted, and project turnaround times increase by 13%.

Another survey by UK management consultancy firm Korn Ferry in July 2019 found that “nearly half (46 %) of workers admit that their personal productivity drops during the summer months.
Over three quarters (78%) hold the opinion that their colleagues are less productive during the summer period. A quarter (25%) admitted to skipping work so they could enjoy the sunny weather.”

This is a significant amount of productivity loss for any organisation to have to manage. In this blog post we look at some of the reasons for the drop in productivity in the summer, and how you can mitigate against it.

The weather – It seems obvious but the nice weather can have a significant effect on the productivity of your staff. Warm weather can lead to earlier finishes, longer lunches and increased socialising among team members. Of course, that last point may not always be a bad thing. However, FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out), can cause employees to clock watch until that moment they can get out in the sunshine (or to a pub!).

The temperature wars – Being too hot or too cold can affect people’s productivity. When it’s hot and humid, the brain slows and people lose concentration. So what happens…? Crank the AC. That leads to some members of staff getting too cold, they also lose their concentration and make mistakes.

Annual Leave – Perhaps another obvious one but people take more of their annual leave during the summer months. This means that positions are unfilled and others have to pick up the slack. As a manager, you’ve also probably noticed that people tend to mentally check out a few days before they go on holiday, and it may take them a couple of days to get back up to speed. Suddenly, a 2 week summer holiday becomes closer to 3 in lost productivity… which is further compounded when one employee comes back, and another takes their leave.

Be Flexible – One of the biggest things you can do to increase staff productivity is allow them to be flexible in their approach to work. Whether this means offering flexible working hours, allowing staff to work remotely, permitting longer lunch breaks, or just letting them take an extra 15 mins here and there, allowing your staff a flexible approach to their work can stop them feeling like they’re missing out on the good weather or working during periods that don’t fit their schedule.

Increase team activities – Employees that are stressed and burned out are less likely to be productive. Encouraging team nights out, an early pub finish or a team building day can help employees recharge and reconnect with each other, and their roles. Brightstone are experts at providing tailored team building activities for organisations of all sizes.

Food & Drink – Providing food and drink for your employees is a small gesture that can go a long way to boost morale and productivity. Whether it’s ice cream on a hot day, a weekly fruit delivery or pizza on a friday, these acts can let your staff know you’re on their side.

Incentivise – If you feel that you can see productivity dipping the summer months, or you anticipate it might, then consider putting incentivised targets or bonuses in place that reward your staff for going the extra mile. These could be financial, an extra day off, or even better, a team-wide incentive that rewards collective good performance.

Encourage time off – Encouraging your staff to take time off, and more importantly, effectively managing your staff’s annual leave is one of the best ways to increase productivity across the entire year. Well rested employees are productive employees and as long as you work with your HR department to manage annual leave schedules, any ill effects should only be short term.

Accept the cycle of productivity – It may be the case that your industry experiences natural peaks and troughs of productivity due to the season. If summer is a natural lull in business then it may be a good time to embrace this. Allow your staff to recharge, try new things, implement new processes, or catch up on the backlog.

If you identify a drop in productivity in the summer and you don’t know how to address it, Richard at Brightstone is an expert in performance improvement, providing a suite of services including management training, coaching, team building, skills training and more. Contact us today to find out how we can help you.