How to Manage When Your Manager is on Vacation

The boss is away, so should the employees play? Of course not – managers deserve time off without having to worry about the office falling to ruins without them. Most people would agree, but there is still the issue about the best way to handle the boss being out of the office. Are there extra responsibilities that need to be taken up? Should anything in the office change, or should day-to-day life continue unhindered? Since our own boss is currently partying it up with Mickey Mouse on the Disney Cruise Line, the Social Media department figured that others could benefit from our sage advice on how we deal with the managerial absence in the office.

1. 1. Keep a log of what you’ve done

Now this doesn’t mean you have to write down every, single little detail of what you’ve finished while your boss was gone, but you should at least keep a broad log of what you’ve finished so that everyone can stay in the loop. We typically have a meeting with our boss every week so this little log is expected, but even if you don’t meet with them it’s still a good idea to have something on hand that you can turn over if somebody comes by your desk for an update on what you’ve been up to.

1. 1. If you’re trusted, act trustworthy

Our office operates in a very healthy atmosphere of trust. The employees trust the managers, the managers trust the employees, and everyone gets along. The bigger the office gets, the more important trust becomes. Office morale can be killed overnight by a nosy employee or an irresponsible manager. You should never do anything that you’d be embarrassed of if you were caught. Plus, the last thing you want is for your boss to come back and think that they suddenly need to micromanage everyone.

1. 1. Don’t be afraid to send them a quick e-mail to see how things are going!
      

Now this may not fly in every office, but MyCorp’s workforce is fairly close and we chat with our CEO all the time. More than anything, checking in is just a nice gesture. Our Social Media manager Heather sent out a little ‘Bon Voyage’ e-mail that has led to a few good back-and-forths between her and our CEO. If you don’t feel it’s appropriate then feel free to ignore this piece of advice, but if you have a close knit office then it’s not a bad idea to check in and ask how the vacation is going.

In all likelihood, your office isn’t going to change very much when your boss heads out for a couple of days. But it is always a little weird to have the person you report to and work for head out the door – it’s certainly odd to not have Deborah walking through our office. Just have a little common sense, and write down whatever you think your boss will want to know when they come back. That way they’ll be relaxed, updated, and happy – plus they’ll know they can loosen the reigns a bit without having to worry about things falling apart.