Its time to prepare for Christmas and a close down
Its nearly that time of year again. Time when the big fat fella comes down the chimney, the kids get lots of pressies and the parents get stressed out. But – it doesn’t have to be like that. Let us help you to ensure your business is under control for the Christmas break and then all you’ll have to worry about is taking some time for you and your family.
Given today it is just under 4 weeks until the 23rd December there are a number of things to check to ensure you are all under control:
Christmas Shut Down or reduced/extended hours
Does your business close for a period of time over the Christmas break? Are your customers all aware of your close down period? If you don’t close but are open for reduced hours, or closing early on certain days then have you advised your customers of early closing hours and publicised those hours, updated Google and Facebook or whatever social media you use? It might be that you are in an industry where you have additional late nights coming up before Christmas – have those been publicised?
Once you’ve decided all this – have your communicate this with your team and had conversations around who is taking leave when?
Staff Christmas Party
Hopefully by now this is well and truly booked and organised. Christmas time is one time of the year when your staff really like to feel appreciated, and it is nice to be able to thank them for their contribution throughout the year. It’s also a great opportunity for a bit of team building. You want your employees to feel appreciated so let them know what, when and where. Better still give them a budget and give someone the responsibility of organising the party – one less thing for you to worry about and the team gets the party that they would like.
Staff Leave and pays over the holiday period
Whether your employees are taking time off due to an enforced close-down or not you still need to follow your process for applying for leave to ensure the pays are correct. This also allows you to make sure you are adequately staffed if your business is not closing down. Additionally, if people are wanting to take time off without having any leave owing it gives you time to have those discussions and make the decision as to how to handle this. It also ensures given you will probably have reduced turnover that you’ve got the funds organised for making these payments.
With regards to the holiday pays – the couple of weeks over Christmas is a crazy time both for your business and for your staff. It is also an expensive time of year so the last thing you want is to run the risk of a payroll not going through. If your normal payday falls on a Stat Holiday then you need to have your payroll in the bank the day before. For example, if your payday would normally be on Boxing Day (Monday 26th December) then you will need to have the payroll paid on Friday 23rd December. Do you have this organised from both a cashflow and practical point of view?
Client Christmas Gifts
There are arguments both for and against Christmas gifts and cards for your clients – some think it’s not environmentally friendly, that e-cards are the way to go, still others think e-cards are tacky and just show that you’ve got them on a mailing list. There is no right and wrong and the choice is yours. I personally believe that a thoughtful gift and a personalised card shows those that have supported your business that you appreciate them and are willing to take the time to show them so. Whatever option you choose, the reason I’ve added this to the list is to ensure that whether you do client Christmas gifts or not you’ve thought about it and made the decision.
Lastly and most importantly – booked some time for you
Finally, and arguably most importantly is to remember to take time for you and your family. Christmas is after all about family. We all know how hard this business ownership job is so don’t forget to take time for you and your family and book in that ever-elusive holiday – whether it be over the Christmas period or further throughout the year. Make sure to book it in because otherwise it doesn’t happen.
Finally from our team to yours – Merry Christmas!!!
