The year-end holidays often mark a period of reduced productivity among businesses. Employees are distracted by holiday imagery everywhere they turn, causing them to think more about family and friends than work. Despite these tendencies, here are effective steps you can take to keep your workforce productive during the holidays.

1. Offer Greater Scheduling Flexibility

Some of the big reasons for the “Great Resignation” of 2021 has been workers wanting to spend more time with their families and have greater work flexibility. Consider remote work as an increasingly popular strategy for increasing workplace flexibility.

2. Ask for Overtime Help Only if Necessary

It’s important not to overwork your staff during the holidays. Even if your company has a labor shortage, be cognizant of how your workers feel about overtime. Make sure you give employees meaningful incentives to work extra hours when they don’t expect it.

3. Don’t Allow Workers to Shop Online

Various reasons exist to restrict online usage to work-related activities during work hours. It protects your company from workers accessing illegal content or spending too much time on personal matters. Tell employees they’ll need to wait until break time to use their own mobile devices for online shopping.

4. Be Flexible with Coworkers Socializing

If your management gets too strict about socializing during the holiday season, it can trigger negative thoughts about company’s image and lead to increased turnover for the new year. Moving toward flexibility that allows coworkers to have a degree of freedom to socialize creates a more work-friendly atmosphere.

5. Use Meetings to Emphasize Productivity

Group meetings are often the best way to communicate company goals and visions. At these meetings explain barriers that reduce productivity so that your team is aware of activities to avoid. Be ready to share key data that relates to your fourth quarter goals.

6. Recognize Wellness for Employees

Physical and mental health of employees are growing areas of concern among employers. Wellness is a positive state of mind that employers realize contributes to superior work performance. In order to ensure wellness on the job, employers are using strategies to make work environments more pleasant.

7. Give Employees Feedback

While group meetings are essential for getting team members on the same page, providing one-on-one feedback will help create a closer bond with workers. Be honest about their performance but also let them know you appreciate their efforts.