Business Planning for Christmas Holidays-

Beginning with the end in mind will help you make the requisite initial decisions i.e., Research, Deliverables, Deadlines and Manpower so you can get on the holiday confidently. The vision plan will help you benchmark your targets and will show your employees that you have well thought through your idea.

· Identify the holiday’s followed by employee leaves

Now while you are planning your vision for meeting your target before the holiday barge in, do not forget to have a list of all the holiday dates of the respective employees (whoever may be on the leave) beforehand. Do not give work-related surprise or shock any opportunity to hit hard on your head during holidays. So it’s better to have a list of people that will be on the leave.

· Prioritize your deliverables - Pre, during and Post-Christmas

Once you have the list of holidays and the employees to be on leave in front of you, the next important task for you would be to set your priorities straight and you must segregate it into three segments i.e., Pre-Christmas, during Christmas and Post-Christmas. Assess, Identify and Define detailed requirements and the important deliverables in each segment. During this phase main business functions to be performed by you is to single out those that need to be addressed as a matter of priority, and the Client's information requirements is described.

· Assign skill sets to the available manpower

Action makes louder noise than just the words! Always remember that once you have committed to taking control of your work during holidays and determined your objective in launching, the next step is to plot a course of action. This is where determining and adhering to priorities is so important. Great you have both the list ready ‘Employee on leave’ and ‘Work Priority’; But now you have to ensure the right skill set that will be assigned the job at hand. Because for you time is money, isn't it? So you should identify the job for each employee vis-a-vis their skill set well in advance. It will deliver 100% results without wasting your valuable time.   

· Let them change their hats; Expect only what you expect them to deliver!

Economists always favored the six thinking hats! But did you ever consider considering the six hats to make your job simpler? There might be days where your employees are not well versed with every bit of your business. It’s okay! Every person needs to gain a particular knowledge or skill, which he / she is not well versed with. And so give him / her sufficient time to understand the role and responsibilities and give them enough space to get familiar with the employee whose hat he / she might adore during holidays. Once the task / job is assigned during holidays, communicate with employees, encourage them to be 100% ready, be clear with the employees about your expectations.

· Didn't get reply from the other end? Don’t let the same happen to your friends & clients

It is definitely a good idea to set up an out-of-office Outlook auto reply to let your clients and partners know when you are coming back or how they can reach you during your holiday. However, an automatic vacation response is not a solely business feature. You can set it up for your personal Gmail or Outlook.com accounts as well, so that your friends and relatives do not lose sleep wondering where you have gone. Your colleagues and clients will be grateful if you make it clear and complete.

click here to download a sample template for planning  

Sachin Lohade is a Chartered Accountant and works with Accounting Firms to improve practice and reduce costs. He can be reached out at sachin@corientbs.com or you can visit www.corientbs.co.uk for further information.