Christmas is now less than a month away! Which means offices all over the globe are currently in the final push towards the end of the year. The closure over Christmas can be daunting, especially in Australia and NZ where businesses often operate on absolute minimum staff for up to 2 weeks, so we’ve put together 5 often overlooked tips to ensure you’re well organised this festive season!
1) Make sure you’ve told your clients and customers you’ll be out of the office
Communication is key. Make sure you’ve told each of your clients your final day in office and when you come back to work. If possible, put this in writing so they can search back to it if they need to, and make sure it’s clear who to contact in the event of an emergency.
2) Shut down non-essential equipment
Simple things like turning off the office lights, turning off the thermostat and switching off any non-essential computers can save money, but also minimise risks over the holiday period.
3) Make sure you know who from your teams is away, and for how long
Being clear on who’s away, and how long for, will help ensure that any important tasks that cannot be delayed are assigned to someone else in the absence of a staff member. It also allows you to better plan for when people return to the office after the break.
4) Ensure you can access your files remotely, just in case!
Sometimes emergencies happen, and you need to be able to access a file or folder ASAP. If you’re not nearby the office, having cloud based file management set up means you can access what you need to from the beach or by the fire.
5) Remember, most of your clients are going to be out of the office as well!
It’s easy to be stressed at the thought of leaving the office for a prolonged period. But most of the people you work with will also be on leave. It’s a good chance to rest and rejuvenate ready for a big 2019, with much lower risk than other periods.
