For many businesses across Aberdeenshire, the start of this year has not been straightforward. Alongside the usual January slowdown, we have just come through a period of severe winter weather, with heavy snow causing travel disruption, school closures, and unexpected absences.
When teams are working around delayed starts, remote working challenges and missed days, it is easy for momentum to slip. At times like this, HR can feel like something to deal with later. But in reality, strong HR practices can play a key role in helping businesses reset, refocus, and get back on track.
Many of the levers that support productivity, engagement and resilience sit firmly within HR’s remit. Here are five ways HR can help Aberdeenshire businesses recover from a slow and disrupted start to the year.
1 – Performance management and training
After periods of disruption, clarity becomes essential. Employees need to understand priorities, expectations and what success looks like over the coming months.
Rather than relying solely on annual appraisals, early-year performance conversations help re-establish focus. Setting clear, SMART objectives, specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound, gives people direction and purpose after a challenging start.
This is also a good time to identify training needs. Whether staff have struggled to keep up or have taken on extra responsibilities during disruption, targeted development can rebuild confidence and capability.
2 – Recruitment and retention
Recruitment challenges are nothing new in Aberdeenshire, particularly in rural areas or specialist roles. Winter disruption can make these challenges feel even more acute, especially when vacancies remain unfilled or key staff are stretched.
Effective HR processes help businesses recruit more efficiently and retain existing employees. Clear role design, structured onboarding, and consistent communication all help new starters settle in more quickly. For existing staff, feeling supported during periods of disruption makes a significant difference to engagement and loyalty.
3 – Culture
Recent snow and travel disruption have highlighted how important workplace culture really is. Businesses with strong, supportive cultures often find teams are more willing to adapt, help one another and go the extra mile when conditions are difficult.
Culture exists whether it is intentionally shaped or not. HR helps embed values, reinforce expectations, and support managers to lead with consistency and empathy. A positive culture supports morale and keeps people connected, even when circumstances outside work are challenging.
4 – Absence management
Severe weather inevitably impacts attendance. Effective absence management is not about blame. It is about fairness, consistency and understanding the reasons behind absence.
Good HR systems and processes make it easier to manage sickness, emergency leave, and flexible working requests. Return-to-work discussions, when handled well, help address issues early and reduce the risk of absence becoming a longer-term problem.
5 – People strategy
Beyond day-to-day issues, the start of the year is an opportunity to look ahead. How resilient is your workforce to disruption. Do you have the right skills in place. What would happen if key people were unavailable?
Strategic HR input helps businesses plan for future challenges, whether related to weather, skills shortages or growth. This forward thinking can make a significant difference over the rest of the year.
Add value with HR
Many Aberdeenshire businesses come to us when a problem has already escalated. But HR delivers the greatest value when it is used proactively. After a slow and snow-disrupted start to the year, now is the ideal time to reset, strengthen your HR approach and build momentum for the months ahead.
Book some time with us today.