Survey Confirms Most Employees Less Productive Before Major Holiday

Between the eggnog lattes and gift exchanges, the distractions at work tend to multiply as the holidays approach. It’s no surprise then that 44 percent of executives polled recently said employees are less productive the week before a major holiday. The good news is there are some people who pick up the slack — 23 percent of managers surveyed said they believe workers are more productive during these times. The national poll includes responses from 150 senior executives — including those from human resources, finance and marketing departments — with the nation’s 1,000 largest companies. It was conducted by an independent research firm and developed by Accountemps, the world’s first and largest specialized staffing service for temporary accounting, finance and bookkeeping professionals.

“Offices are typically less productive during the holidays than at other times of the year because of the many distractions,” according to Max Messmer, chairman of Accountemps and author of Motivating Employees For Dummies® (John Wiley & Sons, Inc.). “This can place pressure on managers and staff to stay focused on critical end-of-quarter and end-of-year projects.”