Businesses and human resources departments need to act as a team to ensure that their management takes an annual holiday – which could boost motivation and productivity – according to one sector commentator.

Mike Petrook, spokesperson for the Chartered Management Institute, said organisation was needed to make sure that two employees who were responsible for the same task or department were not away from the office simultaneously.

In determining when a suitable time to go away was, he advised that it should be decided at a team level.

"Fundamentally, the message has to be that if you don’t book holidays, if you don’t take time off, you won’t be rested and mistakes will be more likely to happen," Mr Petrook stated.

However, recent research by the Chartered Management Institute revealed that four out of the ten managers surveyed had still not booked off their summer holiday.

Furthermore, 33 per cent said they would rather exchange their holiday entitlement for cash, while 20 per cent claimed an excessive workload was preventing them from taking time off.

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2 Responses to “Holidays for management ‘could boost motivation’”

1. peter@hunter-consultants.co.uk Says:
   July 1st, 2009 at 6:22 pm

   Of course managers having time off will increase motivation, but not in the way this article suggests.
   95% of employees who leave their jobs do so because of the way that they were treated by their manager.
   The problem is that managers have no idea that it is their behaviour that is having this effect on their workforce because even after they have left workers will still not tell their manager the truth because they still want to get a reference from him.

   For most of the workforce the only time in the year when they get any relief from continual bullying and humiliation is when their manager takes time off.
   So yes, force the mangers to take more time off, even pay for their holidays because the increase in performance when they are not there will more than pay for their holiday.

   The managers who say that they cannot afford to take the time off are a bit more savvy.
   They know that if they take time off production will go through the roof and some very awkward questions will be asked about why this always happens when they are away.
   They have no idea why this happens or what to change to change the effect that they have on the workforce, so they find it much easier not to take time off then production will stay poor all of the time and no awkward questions will be asked.

   Absolutely, force management to take more holidays. The effect on the level of motivation of their workforces will be massive.

   Peter A Hunter
   http://www.breakingthemould.co.uk

2. Mitch Williamson Says:
   July 8th, 2009 at 12:26 pm

   Very Cynical Peter, what type of workplace gives you these opinons? This may happen in your place of work, maybe you need a holiday or have a poor manager! I would be surprised if it happened in most workplaces. I personally would think productivity would go down slightly when the Manager is absent, whilst the cats away the mice will play springs to mind. I think the point of all this touches on the fact that there is not enough multiskilling or Managers have not set up correct procedures to allow them to be away from the office. Delegate and communicate is the way forward.