A snapshot survey conducted just three weeks out from Christmas reveals the traditional ‘slackening off’ at the pointy end of the year may be a thing of the past.

Overall, 85% of leaders, managers and employees surveyed expect to be working at the same level or harder in the Christmas lead-up period compared to their normal workload.

In a 2010 survey, 37% described their productivity in the Christmas lead-up weeks as being less than normal. By contrast, in the 2015 survey, only 11% say they will be working less hours than normal in the lead up to Christmas and only 24% have a winding down period of a week or longer in the lead-up period .

There’s an apparent significant change in behaviour in the workplace for this time of the year, according to Andrew Henderson, Executive Director of Strategy and Growth, at Leadership Management Australia (LMA)which conducted the snapshot survey as part of LMA’s ongoing 15-year-old Leadership Employment and Direction (L.E.A.D.) Survey series.

 “There’s quite a healthy work ethic leading into the holiday period,” he said. “Many sectors are working harder this year than they have in recent years as the economy turns a corner and looks to a more prosperous 2016.”

The snapshot survey shows that 45% percent of the workforce expects to be personally working the ‘same hours’ as normal in the weeks leading up to Christmas. A further 40% expects to work more hours (15% a lot more, 25% a little more) during this period.

Only 11% expected to be working ’a little less hours’ and three percent ‘a lot less hours.’

As for their organisations’ plans to wind down for Christmas, 20% of the 620 respondents expect output to be maintained right up to Christmas Eve and a further quarter (25%) will start the wind-down just two-to-three days out.

Another quarter will begin to reduce output up to a week out from Christmas (8% percent four-to-six days before, 16% a week prior). Just one percent of organisations had already started their wind-down.

“Of particular note,” said Mr Henderson, “is that one-in-five (21%) organisations will not be taking the foot off the pedal at all, and may even be working harder during the traditionally quieter time (17% will have no reduction in output and 4% will be working harder).”

The snapshot research was conducted by Chase Research for the L.E.A.D. Survey. Total sample – 619 (Leaders 229, Managers 310, Employees 80). Chase Research’s Adrian Goldsmith says the sample delivers robust results with a margin of error of +/- 3-5 percentage points. Respondents are drawn from a wide range of industry sectors and organisation types and sizes.

Leadership Management Australia has been delivering improvements to workplace performance and productivity in over 120,000 people from thousands of organisations across Australia and New Zealand for over 40 years.

 

Snapshot report: http://leadershipmanagement.com.au/fewer-slacking-off-in-christmas-lead-up-survey