Manager School Series - Year-End Leadership Mastery
- Week 1: Budget Season Survival Guide - Financial planning for managers
- Week 2: The Manager’s Holiday Party Playbook - Team building during celebrations
- Week 3: Setting Your Team Up for Q1 Success - Strategic planning
- This Week: Managing During the Holiday Slowdown - Practical tips for December productivity
- Week 5: 2026 Vision: Trends Every Manager Should Watch - Forward-looking insights
It’s December 22nd. Half your team is already mentally on vacation, the other half is frantically trying to finish “just one more thing” before break. Meanwhile, you’re caught in the middle, trying to maintain some semblance of productivity while respecting that it’s the holidays. Here’s how to manage through it.
Embrace the Reality of December
December productivity looks different, and that’s okay. Fighting against the natural rhythm of the season creates stress for everyone and rarely produces meaningful results.
There’s a cadence to meetings, but don’t make the tempo too frequent and burn out your team. This is especially true during holiday weeks when people’s attention is divided between work and family obligations.
The December Management Strategy
Instead of fighting the slowdown, turn into it and use it strategically:
Focus on Relationship Building
December is perfect for the conversations you’ve been putting off. Schedule those coffee chats with team members—the ones where you actually talk about their career goals instead of sprint planning. I also make it a point to meet up with former colleagues during December. There’s something about the end of the year that makes people more reflective and open to real conversation.
Handle Administrative Tasks
You know that documentation that’s been sitting on your “someday” list since March? December is someday. Clean up those project files and shared drives that have become digital hoarder situations. Process your expense reports and clear the administrative backlog that’s been nagging at you. And get a head start on planning January’s meetings and kickoffs—your future self will thank you when you’re not scrambling on January 2nd.
Invest in Learning and Development
Catch up on the industry reading you’ve been saving in browser tabs. Take those online courses or watch the training videos you bookmarked. Attend virtual conferences or webinars without feeling guilty about “real work.” Most importantly, reflect on the year’s lessons learned while they’re still fresh. What worked? What didn’t? I like to ask what would I like to never do again as a starter?
Communication During the Slowdown
Your communication needs to adapt to the reality of December:
Set Clear Expectations:
- Communicate response time expectations
- Define what constitutes an “emergency”
- Share coverage plans for critical functions
- Be explicit about deadlines that are firm vs. flexible
Use Asynchronous Communication:
- Default to email for non-urgent matters
- Use shared documents for updates that don’t need immediate response
- Record video updates instead of scheduling meetings
- Leverage project management tools for status tracking
Managing Client and Stakeholder Expectations
Before you fully check out, it’s good to send out your team’s holiday schedule
Communicate early and often about:
- Who will be out and when
- Coverage arrangements for critical functions
- Response time expectations during holidays
- Emergency contact procedures
- When normal operations will resume
Be proactive rather than reactive. Send this information before people start asking for it.
The “One More Thing” Problem
December is notorious for scope creep disguised as “quick wins” before year-end. Here’s how to handle it:
The December Filter Questions:
- Does this absolutely have to be done before January 2nd?
- Who will be available to work on this and when?
- What’s the real risk if we wait until January?
- Are we being asked to do this because of artificial year-end pressure?
If it doesn’t pass these filters, it goes on the Q1 list.
Supporting Your Team
Your team is juggling work with holiday stress, travel, family obligations, and end-of-year burnout. Be the manager who makes their lives easier, not harder.
Practical Support:
- Be flexible with schedules when possible
- Don’t schedule meetings on the days people return from travel
- Acknowledge that productivity will be lower and plan accordingly
- Focus on team morale and recognition
Emotional Support:
- Check in on team members who seem stressed
- Be understanding about family obligations
- Share your own holiday challenges (appropriately)
- Remember that not everyone loves the holidays
Preparing for the New Year
Use December’s slower pace to prepare for January’s intensity.
Finalize your Q1 goals now and actually communicate them to your team—don’t wait until everyone’s back and overwhelmed. Get those important January meetings on the calendar while people still have availability. There’s nothing worse than trying to schedule a critical kickoff meeting on January 5th when everyone’s triple-booked.
If you have new hires starting in January, prepare their onboarding materials now. Future you will be juggling fifteen other things on their first day and will not have the bandwidth to throw together a coherent onboarding plan. Review and update your team processes while you have the mental space to think clearly about what’s working and what needs to change. Most importantly, plan the first few weeks back in detail. Map out your priorities, block your calendar strategically, and decide what you’re saying no to before the requests start flooding in. January hits like a freight train every year.
What NOT to Do in December
Avoid these common December management mistakes:
- Don’t start new complex projects
- Don’t schedule critical meetings the week between Christmas and New Year
- Don’t make important personnel decisions when people are distracted
- Don’t burn out your most dedicated team members with “urgent” projects
Remember: Your team will remember how you manage during the holidays. Be the manager who respected their time and supported their well-being.
Next Week Preview:
Our final newsletter of 2025 will look ahead to 2026, exploring the trends and changes every manager should be watching for in the coming year.
See you next week!
-Frank
