#workleave

At the height of summer, people are still arranging their vacation leaves to make time for some fun in the sun. To make sure that your vacation time with family or friends goes uninterrupted, prepare your co-workers for your absence. Here are some tips by Karen Burns on US News:

Get everyone on board early. Well in advance, notify coworkers, clients, and everyone who might be affected by your absence. People can’t work around your schedule if they don’t know what it is. Two or three weeks before you leave, put a “Vacation Alert” notice in your E-mail signature line.

Find a vacation buddy. If your duties permit, train someone at work who can cover for you while you’re gone. You’ll do the same for that person when the time comes. Make sure everyone knows this is the person to contact with questions they’d normally ask you.

Time it wisely. You may be tempted to schedule time off for immediately after a big deadline or right before a new project begins. But timelines can slip. Build in a few days of cushion. Schedule your absence, if you can, at a time when your presence is least needed.

Leave a roadmap. List key contacts, the status of all ongoing projects, the location of any information or supplies your coworkers may need to access, and send it to the people who may need it. Do this a few days before your time off and then once again right before you leave.

Neatness counts. Leave your work and workspace in a condition that others can easily comprehend. This is good for the job and makes you look good, too. Also, leave yet another copy of that “roadmap” in a prominent spot.

Bonus tips: When you return, get to work right away. Don’t complain about the 500 E-mails in your inbox. In fact, don’t give any impression at all that your absence has impaired your work, made you lazy, or put you out of touch or behind. Instead, make it obvious how glad you are to be back and demonstrate how much the vacation has made you even more effective and productive.