When summer rolls around, a change in the atmosphere far beyond the weather takes place. With a heightened level of excitement in the air, your staff members look forward to relaxing and enjoying the reliably warm weather and “summer slowdown” that often accompanies it. Alongside that slowdown will be weekends spent outdoors, spontaneous road trips, and yes, vacations. But how can you plan for employee PTO this summer and still keep all your projects on track?
Communicate Expectations Early And Often.
If you know several of your employees are planning summer vacations around the same time, ask for notification as soon as possible. This is especially important if some of your staff have set hard plans for birthdays, anniversaries, or vacations that require deposits and pre-planning. If possible, encourage employees to file for PTO in the early spring or earlier if they know when they plan to be out. This will allow you ample time to plan around their absence and ensure they can make their reservations.
Set Up A Game Plan.
Once you’re aware of when your staff will be coming and going, you can set up a game plan to get projects completed on time while still allowing people to enjoy their PTO. It’s common for companies to experience less business and decreased workloads during the warmer months of the year, so it’s important to ensure teams are provided with the resources they need to meet deadlines. This time of year also allows you to focus on optimizing some of your business practices and getting to projects you may have pushed off in the past.
Address Issues ASAP.
If you have too many vacations overlapping or projects falling through the cracks, address them as soon as possible and get everybody on the same page. The earlier you do this, the better. If you have some problematic overlap, debrief your management teams and get them set up for success.
Respect Boundaries.
As a business owner, you always want to treat your employees how you would like to be treated. That means respecting your staff’s boundaries while they are on vacation. In other words, don’t call, text, email, or message them unless it is an absolute emergency that cannot wait. This will allow your employees to return to work feeling refreshed and ready to do their best work going forward.
If you do harass your employees while they are enjoying their earned PTO, you have just bought a 1-way ticket to ruining your company culture. Why? Well, the answer is pretty simple. PTO is part of a worker’s compensation package, and if you are expecting them to work while they are supposed to be off, then you are not allowing them their full benefits. Nobody appreciates that. So, yes, that email about the Q3 budget report can wait until they return.
Lastly, make sure you are taking time to enjoy the summer weather as well. While summer can result in some complications for your business, it is also a wonderful time to enjoy your family, friends, and loved ones. So, let’s go into this summer prepared to be productive and have some fun along the way.
