The summer months can present many opportunities for UK companies, but can also be a difficult period when you are trying to manage an increased demand for products with more staff wanting to take annual leave.
Luckily, planning ahead can reduce the likelihood of problems, while a management accounting service will remove the likelihood of seasonal difficulties altogether.
Planning
Prior to the start of the holiday season, consider the changes you need to implement, like more employees wanting time off work for holidays and increased demand for summer products. If you have a business that experiences its highest demand during the holiday season, you may need to consider employing temporary staff. You may also need to look at productivity levels to ensure they are at their maximum output. If you intend to have a higher output, you will need to consider raw materials and increase orders if necessary.
Resourcing
The workforce will understandably want to take most of their holidays during the summer months, especially as the UK tends to suffer more than its fair share of rain. Rather than leave this to the last minute, decide a few months before the summer how you will deal with resource levels. You may want to restrict leave to just two weeks’ during the summer, or you may only permit a specified percentage of staff to be away from the workplace at any one time. If you find that these numbers are higher than anticipated, talk to employees, as some may be willing to be flexible to help the business.
Only refuse annual leave as a last resort, as this will cause resentment among employees and could also result in a workforce that’s exhausted and not motivated. Of course, this is sure to impact on productivity.
Take the time to make sure that all workloads are covered by colleagues during the busiest periods, which may entail some training for staff. You may require some temporary workers to cover some of the busiest periods, or to offer overtime to your existing staff, especially if you experience high demand in the summer.
Taking stock
During the summer months, you may be able to remove some of the excess stock you have, perhaps by reducing them in a summer sale. Carry out a stock check prior to the summer months to ensure that you have sufficient stock for the products with a higher demand, and make plans for those products that are slower at selling.
If you would like to discuss your planning options, please call us and arrange a meeting.