Kerre Woodham: Productivity and the great Christmas shutdown

This morning, I'm going to pretty much let Toss Grumley do the opener for me.  

Who's Toss Grumley? Well, Toss is a New Zealand business advisor and investor. The Post has run an editorial he wrote, bemoaning the Christmas shutdown. In it he said New Zealand's Christmas break has started to become way too extreme, and it's impacting our productivity on an individual business level and at the level of the economy. 

The summer break, he says, seems to be extending, leaving less room for leave later in the year. But the most concerning part is the circle back mid-February mentality, which means that while many are at work, they aren't doing much productive work. And the mentality of circle back Feb seems to start late November or early December. 

He says having 10 weeks of no productive conversation simply isn't good for business. He points out our productivity has grown at around 1.2% per year since 1996, while Australia's has grown at around 1.8%, and we're getting left behind. We need to work longer as we're producing less. We are 30 to 40% below top performers like the US, Norway, and Ireland. He also points out that March and April are the peak months for business arrears. This, he says, is not by chance, it's driven by business habits over December and January. Additionally, our GDP quarterly volatility is in the top third of the OECD. 

Again, he says, this is the Christmas season. For retail, we have a huge October to December quarter, then everyone stops spending all of January, creating cash flow problems for our businesses. He says while we all need to recuperate at times, in a country where our recovery is so fragile, we need to work hard up to the break, take some well-deserved time off, then get back into it and get our lives and businesses moving again swiftly. 

Thank you very much Toss and The Post for doing the heavy lifting on the editorial for me this morning. 

He does have a point though, doesn't he? Because we have our very own Mike Hosking who's, even as I speak, roaring down the motorway in his fine European vehicle, heading off on his hols before December's been here for a week. The Chrissy decks have barely been put up around the office, and he's gone. And it's unsettling for people when the routine is disrupted. 

I myself will be heading off – I don't go until the 19th, but I won't be back for a while. Most of January I'll be gone. It's a long time. They're the sort of holidays I could only dream of when I was a junior woodchuck reporter. Penny and Robert, our favourite coffee shop downstairs, they're paying rent on their space. They don't stop paying rent over Christmas and New Year, so they'll be back. Heaven knows who'll be around to buy the coffees and the excellent muffins that Helen barely ever touches because our people are clearing off apart from a skeleton staff. The council offices over the road will be deserted too, I imagine, apart from the skeleton staff. 

I'd be really interested to hear from you as to what you want. If you are one of the many, many small business owners, small to medium business owners, do you work like a navy right up until Christmas Eve, and then think, thank heavens, put the closed sign up on the shop and head off for three weeks, four weeks, and think, no, I'm not doing anything over January. I'm done. Do you wish that you could take two weeks off, recover, and then come back and everybody else came back too and business as usual, like Toss is saying. 

He got a fair bit of flak for this when he posted this initially on LinkedIn. People were really grumpy, saying he begrudged people holidays. And he doesn't. He says he just wishes they were spaced out throughout the year, rather than having the great Christmas shutdown. 

Do people order their bathroom or kitchen renos in December and January, or do you wait until February? Is it a case of, oh well, might as well take the time off because my supplier's taken the time off and customers aren't responding to calls, and then it becomes a domino effect. One topples and the next thing, you know, we all fall over and lie in the sand with a cool drink by our side, thinking, well, circle back February. 

How many weeks for you is optimum for a holiday? How many would you like other people to take? When it comes to the schools and the teachers, when it comes to radio stations and the hosts, when it comes to businesses, when it comes to suppliers. Is it six weeks, four weeks, three weeks? What to you would be the optimum? 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:09):
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Speaker 2 (00:16):
This morning, I'm going to pretty much let Toss Grumley
do the opener for me. Who's Toss Grumley? Well. Toss
is a New Zealand business advisor and investor, and this
morning The Post has run an editorial he wrote bemoaning
the Christmas shutdown. In it, he said New Zealand's Christmas
break has started to become way too extreme and it's

(00:38):
impacting our productivity on an individual business level and at
the level of the economy. The summer break, he says,
seems to be extending, leaving less room for leave later
in the year. But the most concerning part is the
circle back mid February mentality, which means that while many

(00:58):
are at work, they aren't doing much productive work. And
the mentality of circle backfab seems to start late November
or really decend. He says. Having ten weeks of no
productive conversation simply isn't good for business. He points out
our productivity it has grown at around one point two

(01:20):
percent per year since nineteen ninety six, while Australia's has
grown at around one point eight percent, and we're getting
left behind. We need to work longer as we're producing less.
We are thirty to forty percent below top performers like
the US, Norway and Ireland. He also points out that

(01:41):
March and April other peak months for business areas. This,
he says, is not by chance. It's driven by business
habits over December and January. Additionally, our GDP quarterlyvotility volatility
is in the top third of the OECD. Again, he says,
this is the Christmas season for retail. We have a

(02:02):
huge October to December quarter, then everyone stops spending all
of January, creating cash flow problems for our businesses. He says,
while we all need to recuperate at times in a
country where our recovery is so fragile, we need to
work hard up to the break, take some well deserved

(02:22):
time off, then get back into it and get our
lives and businesses moving again swiftly. Thank you very much
TOAs and the Post for doing the heavy lifting on
the editorial for me this morning. He does have a point, though,
doesn't he, Because we have our very own Mike Cosking,
who's even as I speak roaring down the motorway in

(02:44):
his fine European vehicle, heading off in his holes before
December has been here for a week. The crissy decks
have barely been put up around the office, and he's gone.
And it's unsettling for people when the routine is disrupted.
I myself will be heading on. I don't go until
the nineteenth. I'm heading off on the nineteenth, but I

(03:05):
won't be back for a while. Most of January I'll
be gone. It's a long time. They're the sort of
holidays I could only dream of when I was a junior.
Would chuck reporter Penny and Rob at our favorite coffee
shop downstairs. They're paying rent on their space. They don't
stop paying rent over Christmas in New Year, so they'll

(03:25):
be back, but heaven knows he'll be around to buy
the coffees and the excellent muffins that Helen barely ever touches.
Because our people are clearing off, apart from a skeleton staff,
the council officers over the road will be deserted to
I imagine, apart from the skeleton staff. I'd be really
interested to hear from you as to what you want.

(03:49):
If you are one of the many many small business owners,
small to medium business owners, do you work like a
navy right up until Christmas Eve and then think, thank heavens,
put the clothes, sign up on the shop and head
off for three weeks, four weeks and things. No, I'm

(04:10):
not doing anything over January. I'm done. Do do you
wish that you could take two weeks off, recover and
then come back and everybody else came back to and
business is as usual like Toossa is saying he got
a fair bit of flack for this when he posted

(04:30):
this initially on LinkedIn, people you know were really grumpy,
saying he begrudged people holidays and he doesn't. He says
he just wishes they were spaced out throughout the year
rather than having the great Christmas shutdown. You know, you
can't you can't just switch off. I mean we can't

(04:54):
just play, you know, put music on and say oh
stuff that people aren't interested in talking. You might have
to work a bit harder because people are busy at
this time of year. People are distracted, People are out
and about, they haven't got time to phone in giving
their thoughts, So you might have to work a bit harder.

(05:14):
To try and get you to interact. You're always very
good on the texts. I grant you, but you can't
just stop, and yet a lot of people do. Do
people order their bathroom or kitchen renaults in December and January?
Or do you wait until February? Is it a case

(05:37):
of oh, well, might as well take the time off
because my supply is taken the time off and customers
aren't responding to calls. And then it becomes a domino effect.
One topples and the next thing you know, we all
fall over and lie in the sand with a cool
drink by our side, thinking, well, circle back February. How
many weeks for you as optimum for a holiday? You know,

(06:00):
how many would you like other people to take when
it comes to the schools and the teacher, when it
comes to radio stations and the hosts, when it comes
to businesses, when it comes to suppliers. Is it six weeks,

(06:21):
four weeks, three weeks? What to you would be the optimum?

Speaker 1 (06:26):
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