Top tips for beating the January Blues in your office

We blinked and 2024 arrived! This month deflated employees dragged themselves back to work with a high chance of suffering from the January Blues and a handful of New Year Resolutions. Unfortunately for some employers these could include a commitment to focus on finding a new job. Clearly, starting 2024 with the loss of talent resulting in high recruitment and training costs is the last thing any of us need. Our top tips for beating the January Blues are outlined below.

7 tips to avoiding the January Blues

1. Create a positive working environment

Clearly the working environment is no longer completely within the control of the employer, however that doesn’t mean that we can’t support our teams to create a positive environment that supports comfort and productivity. For hybrid workers, this could be a good time to have a chat about levels of comfort, have they got proper chairs, workstations and the ability to control their temperature while homeworking. Encouraging managers to take an interest in individual levels of comfort and to provide proper homeworking equipment is a sensible investment for most.

For those who still operate from a traditional office – is there an opportunity to freshen it up in some way, introduce healthy snacks or a spring clean? Are there opportunities to maximise the social aspects of being in an office?

2. Conduct an employee survey

Starting the year with an employee survey is a quick and easy way of gaining valuable staff feedback. This allows staff to voice their opinions and express changes they would like to see. It also demonstrates to them your desire as an employer to meet their needs. Pulse surveys are becoming increasingly popular and may be used to conduct surveys.

3. Set SMART objectives for the year ahead

Of critical importance is for managers to work with their staff to set SMART objectives for the year ahead. This is fundamental to any high performing organisation as they provide employees with clarity. They also enhance engagement and help to underpin your performance management process. Why not take a look at our White paper: How to write SMART objectives.

4. Regularly use Performance Management Software

A new year is often the best opportunity to introduce new practices and achieve buy-in from managers and employees. The start of the year presents the opportunity to demonstrate the business case for allocating budget towards performance management software. What better way to set up for success than by using a system designed to embed year-round performance? Getting staff buy-in by explaining the benefits of such a system can bring new-found energy and attitude towards the year ahead. For more information about the benefits, visit our business benefits page here.

5. Demonstrate your commitment

By using online performance management software, you can encourage conversations between managers and employees around the topics of career aspirations, training and development. By doing so, employees will feel positive about how they can reach their goals with your support, without feeling the need to turn to an alternative workplace.

6. Invest in your Managers

In May 2022 it was reported that two in five UK employees had resigned over a terrible boss (this is double the number we reported in 2017!). We are not inferring that you have one but there are certain key management skills that can be nurtured! Actus offer various Management Essentials training courses and performance management system training to develop these skills. Why not also take a look at our resource 7 Habits of Highly Effective Managers.

7. Recognise your employees

It may sound like an odd time of year to provide recognition for your staff (who may not have been in work for several weeks), but reflecting on the previous year and highlighting any positives they achieved in 2017 is a really positive way to encourage your employees to work to their best abilities in 2018 and feel appreciated at the same time.

For more information on how you can kick start your 2024 with Actus Performance Management Software why not request a free demo?

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