Good Managers Lose People In December. Great Ones Don’t.

By Susan LaMotte for Forbes

Link to original article:  https://www.forbes.com/sites/susanlamotte/2025/11/13/good-managers-lose-people-in-december-great-ones-dont/

The holiday season is already a taxing time managing family, travel, and work commitments. Under the shadow of widespread layoffs, shifting business priorities, and rising workforce anxiety, this year is even more stressful for workers. With the data clear that employee engagement is at an all-time low, managers face a unique leadership moment if they want to retain talent.

Smart leaders must shift from reacting to employee stress and disengagement during this time toward proactively reigniting purpose, connection and commitment across their teams to drive performance and strengthen employer brand.

Context You Can’t Ignore

Layoffs in 2025 have surged to their highest levels in years and Americans are facing additional cost of living pressures as they head into holiday season.

This, coupled with on the job stress, has employee anxiety up too. In the U.S., the Glassdoor Employee Confidence Index shows just 45.7 % of employees believe their business outlook for the next six months is positive and according to the latest Gallup data published this year, only 21 % of employees worldwide are fully engaged, a full 10-point drop from last year.

As many workers take a needed break during the holiday season, that stress can lead to reflection. Time away from work brings familial check-ins, thoughtful conversations, and for many young workers, engines of career decision-making. Grandma and Grandpa may ask about your career goals and share their wisdom. Or you may be meeting your partner’s parents for the first time and they want to know your job and future are secure.

When employees sit down with parents or mentors at holiday dinners and they’re quietly disengaged at work, that conversation may reinforce their apathy and disengagement or be the tipping point to starting an active job search.

“Even if you’re not invested in the traditional holidays, the calendar naturally motivates us to reflect and act at the end of the year,” HR consultant Laurie Ruettimann told me in an interview.

There are anywhere from eight to 20 different influences on a decision to take and keep a job. And relationship influences are among the most impactful. With February as the busiest job search month of the year, keeping your team energized, committed and purpose-driven now is essential for leaders to stave off burnout and resignations in the new year. (Not to mention January job searching off the side of their desks.)

Being proactive as a people leader is a clear differentiating opportunity. Here’s how:

1. Tie the work to the real “why” now.

When rumors about layoffs circle and confidence falls, the default is to hunker down. Since the employment relationship is anchored in the four dimensions of organization, leaders, co-workers, and work, focusing on the work can be helpful. When you re-anchor your team in purpose and what value your work delivers to customers, communities or colleagues, employees can be re-energized. Even if the organization and leaders are swirling, employees can laser in on the value in their work and refocus their energy in a positive way.

2. Show up and be human.

In a world dominated by AI and automation, any semblance of humanity is appreciated by employees. This includes getting your hands dirty as a manager and modeling the behavior you want to see in the team.

“Great managers lean into their own core values. They actually show their workforce that it’s possible to do great work and be kind even in an age of chaos,” says Ruettimann.

That automated employee high-five? It’s never as good as the handwritten card or the quick call to wish someone a great holiday and say thank you before they go on vacation. Being human as a leader is a clear way to stand up and stand out.

3. Surface and reduce uncertainty.

Ambiguity and rumor‐filled spaces make people emotionally check out.

“Even if leaders don’t have all the answers, honest communication about what they do know reduces speculation and can restore calm,” Former CHRO, Christine Dellecave, Ph.D, told me in an interview.

Be honest and acknowledge the uncertainty of the business environment. Host a team forum: what do people know, what are they worried about, what is within our control? This matters because strong teams pay attention to both facts and feelings. When you clarify what you can influence, you empower people rather than leaving them adrift.

4. Build rest, reconnection, and return momentum.


Many employees will have conversations over the holidays about work, career, and what that all means. How they feel coming back matters.

Given that two out of five employees say their moods worsen in winter, compounded by holiday stress, proactively embedding downtime is leadership advantage.

Encourage your team to truly disconnect (to the extent possible) so they return refreshed and engaged rather than depleted. For employees in high-stress retail or or other positions with little holiday time off, ensure they manage overtime effectively, take breaks, and plan to use vacation after the busy season. And say thank you. Gratitude is even more important in times of stress and overwork.

And when employees return from any time off, set the tone for a strong start. Energizing stand-ups, a short offsite or welcome back conversations in January can re-energize and signal that the next chapter is a new onw.

“The best leaders use the holidays not just to close the year, but to open a conversation about what’s next. Asking, ‘What are you excited to grow into next year?’ shifts the focus from fatigue to possibility,” says Dellecave, who is now the CEO of Dellecave Consulting Group. “Hope is a powerful motivator.”

5. Recognize the small wins.


Engagement thrives when people feel seen. Explicitly celebrate contributions (not just during formal annual review), let people know the difference their work made. A personal note, a quick peer-shout‐out in a team meeting, or recognizing someone’s effort in a client success story all build the psychological energy that counters disengagement. These quiet, subtle cues of appreciation are the emotional scaffolding that helps people feel connected to you, to the team and to the work.

December Is Your Strategic Advantage

As a manager, the impacts from a team on the edge are multi-faceted. At the micro level, when employees disengage or underperform, managers are forced to pick up the slack—reallocating workloads, covering missed deadlines, and redistributing responsibilities that stretch already-thin capacity. Burnout spreads upward. When those same employees ultimately decide to leave, the burden deepens: recruiting, onboarding, and training new hires becomes another time-intensive managerial responsibility that steals focus from day-to-day work.

At the macro level, the consequences ripple into your employer brand. Disengaged or dissatisfied employees don’t just quietly exit. They talk. In today’s transparent labor market, negative word-of-mouth travels quickly through Glassdoor reviews, social media posts, and personal networks. This makes it harder to attract high-caliber replacements or inspire confidence among remaining team members. Especially if they’ve already been through the ringer with family members grilling them about their future over turkey and stuffing.

As manager, you can either ride into January with a recharged, committed crew or with a team that has mentally checked out. You don’t need to be glad-handing or giving empty platitudes. You need intelligent, authentic leadership: tying work to meaning, clarifying what’s within your control, enabling rest and reconnection, and consistently showing appreciation.

Use this holiday season not as a lull but as a leadership lever to ensure you keep your talent after the holidays. The conversation your people have with their families starts at their dinner table but it also starts with how they leave your workplace to head into PTO.