If your Mum forgot to wish you a merry Christmas, you’d be pretty pissed right? It’s similar at Christmas with your team, if you don’t acknowledge and recognise your staff at Christmas, morale will decrease and you will have a lot of team going home over the Christmas break wondering if they are actually valued. You have to pay your staff attention at Christmas – you should pay them attention the whole year too but we’re not here to discuss that today. And you’ve all heard that a motivated
If your Mum forgot to wish you a merry Christmas, you’d be pretty pissed right? It’s similar at Christmas with your team, if you don’t acknowledge and recognise your staff at Christmas, morale will decrease and you will have a lot of team going home over the Christmas break wondering if they are actually valued. You have to pay your staff attention at Christmas – you should pay them attention the whole year too but we’re not here to discuss that today. And you’ve all heard that a motivated workforce is a more productive workforce.
Here are 3 key stats from the AXA PPP healthcare experts to keep in mind as you go into the festive season:
36% of people called in sick the day after the Christmas party
If a third of people are calling in sick, it is pretty safe to assume that the people that are in the office aren’t working to the best of their abilities either. This doesn’t mean cancel the Christmas party but think carefully about the timing of it. Can you do it on a Friday or the day before your least busy day of the week?
The other thing to consider is how can you make your team want to come into the office of the next day. A technique that I have used before is promise a morning of Christmas films and a takeaway for lunch and let the team come in slightly late. Make it easy for the team, when the hangovers subside they will be there ready to work and I often found that without even saying anything to them, they would just start working again. They’re much more likely to work if they’re in the office than if they’re sat at home eating pizza watching Christmas films.
57% of workers said they would rather the cost of a party went towards paying them a bonus
This is a tough one as there are so many money-motivated people out there however as a team believer, I support the Christmas party. The type of party and the money spent on it has to be well considered though. It’s probably too late in the year to give you advice on what you should plan for your parties however what you can take from this learning is that it is important how to position the party with the team. And of course, if you can, give a mini bonus too.
Interesting when you compare if to this stat:
43% of employees believed free and low-cost rewards are most important at Christmas
In a time of general austerity, it is important to not be too flashy and to be considerate about what you spend your money on and what you prioritise. That doesn’t mean Christmas parties should be a no, it means keep the party low-cost and whilst don’t make it cringe-level-cheap, it is the thought that counts.
This is a good time to socialise with your team, get to know them outside the environment. Build up a rapport with them and you will build up trust. Trust is one of those things that doesn’t cost anything but will mean a lot and will enable you to benefit more from their skill sets.
Just make sure that this doesn’t happen:
Happy Christmas parties to you all. Bonnie and I will be celebrating by doing a good old country walk and a drunken lunch in the local pub. There’s nothing like these early, dark nights to inspire a bit of daytime drinking!
