January is a leadership window most businesses waste
January in Australia isn’t a clean restart. It’s a staggered return.
Some team members are back. Others are still on leave. Business is open, but the pace is uneven. For leaders, that creates a window of opportunity: fewer meetings, fewer urgent deadlines, and just enough breathing space to think properly.
And that’s exactly why January is valuable.
Because the HR issues that cause the most disruption later in year usually didn’t appear overnight. They started as unresolved expectations, unclear boundaries, and “we’ll deal with it later” decisions from the previous year.
If you want a calmer year, January isn’t the month to “fix everything”. It’s the month to get clear, set the tone, and prevent predictable problems.
Why a January reset matters (even if you’re not “back to normal” yet)
Most HR stress for business leaders comes from one underlying issue: ambiguity.
Ambiguity leads to:
inconsistent performance conversations
frustration between team members
managers avoiding difficult discussions
disputes about what was “said” versus what was “understood”
higher risk when formal processes become necessary later
A January reset is not a compliance audit. It’s not a policy rewrite. It’s a practical leadership step: align expectations before the year accelerates.
When leaders skip that step, February often becomes reactive:
“Why is this suddenly a problem?”
“Why didn’t we address this earlier?”
“How did we end up here again?”
The 5 HR reset questions every leader should ask in January
These questions are designed for business owners, directors, and managers who wear the HR responsibility by default.
You don’t need perfect answers. You need honest ones.
1) What people issues did we quietly park last year?
Most businesses end the year with unfinished people matters:
underperformance that was tolerated because it was “too busy”
tension between team members that never fully resolved
managers who “meant to address it” but didn’t
a role that outgrew the position description months ago
If you parked something last year, ask one follow-up question:
What will happen if we don’t deal with it by the end of February?
If the answer is “it’ll get worse” (it usually is), it deserves a plan now.
Practical action (a short exercise):
Write down the top 3 people issues you’re carrying into the year.
For each one, identify: who owns it, what decision is needed, by when.
This is how you reduce stress quickly: you replace vague dread with a clear next step.
2) Where did expectations break down?
A large portion of workplace conflict is not bad intent. It’s mismatched expectations:
What “urgent” means
What “professional communication” looks like
What “ownership” means in practice
What a role is responsible for (and what it isn’t)
When expectations are unclear, you get inconsistency:
one manager tolerates behaviour another manager addresses
one employee feels targeted while another is excused
performance issues become personal, not procedural
Practical action (a simple check):
Choose one team (or one role) and ask:
What are the three outcomes this role must deliver this quarter?
What does “good” look like, in observable terms?
What behaviours are non-negotiable?
If you can’t answer those clearly, your team can’t either.
3) Which decisions did we delay because they felt uncomfortable?
Every business has decisions that were avoided because they were awkward:
a performance issue that requires a formal conversation
a boundary issue with a high performer
a “culture carrier” who has started to slip
a restructure that needs consultation
a leadership behaviour issue no one wants to address
Avoidance is understandable. But it has a cost: the decision doesn’t disappear, it grows teeth.
In January, you can revisit delayed decisions before the year becomes chaotic.
Practical action (a brief reflection):
Ask yourself:
What conversation am I hoping I won’t need to have this year?
That’s often the exact conversation you should schedule first.
4) Do our managers feel confident, or just responsible?
Many SMEs promote managers because they’re reliable or technically strong, then give them little support on people leadership.
So managers carry responsibility without confidence:
they don’t know how to document properly
they avoid feedback until it’s serious
they swing between being too soft and too harsh
they manage behaviour based on instinct rather than a fair process
This is where culture and compliance quietly meet:
Managers set the tone. When they’re not equipped, they create risk.
Practical action (simple check-in):
Ask managers two questions:
“What’s the hardest people issue you’re dealing with right now?”
“What do you need from me to handle it properly?”
If managers can’t answer, they’re probably overwhelmed. That’s a leadership risk worth addressing early.
5) If a serious issue landed tomorrow, would we respond calmly or reactively?
This question isn’t about paranoia. It’s about readiness.
Serious issues don’t wait until you’re ready:
a complaint
a conflict escalation
a resignation that triggers team instability
an allegation that requires a formal response
a Fair Work or award-related query
The goal isn’t to run your business in fear. It’s to build enough structure that you can respond without panic.
Practical action (a practical starting point):
Check the basics:
Do we know who handles employee complaints internally?
Do managers know what to document and where?
Do we have a consistent approach to performance conversations?
If the answer is “sort of,” this is your January work.
Turning the questions into a simple January plan
Here’s a practical way to convert reflection into action without overwhelming your team.
Week 1–2: Reset and prioritise
Identify the top 3 people risks you carried over
Clarify the top 3 role expectations that are currently vague
Decide what you will address by end of February (and what you will not)
Week 2–3: Align managers
Run short manager check-ins using the 2-question approach above
Confirm your expectations for documentation, feedback, and escalation
Standardise how you handle recurring issues (lateness, behaviour, performance)
Week 3–4: Set the tone for the year
Communicate what “good” looks like this quarter (outcomes + behaviours)
Reinforce the few cultural standards you will protect consistently
Put dates in diaries for the conversations you’ve been avoiding
This is how you prevent the February spike in HR stress: you create clarity while you still have space to think.
Common pitfalls to avoid in January
Pitfall 1: Pretending last year’s issues didn’t happen
Your team remembers. If leadership pretends everything is fine, trust erodes.
Pitfall 2: Going straight to “rules” without clarity
Policies don’t fix confusion. Clear expectations do.
Pitfall 3: Leaving managers to figure it out alone
Managers are the delivery mechanism of culture and compliance. If they’re guessing, your workplace becomes inconsistent.
Pitfall 4: Waiting for a crisis before acting
Reactive HR is always more stressful and more expensive than proactive structure.
Key takeaway
January is not for grand resolutions. It’s for clear foundations.
If you take nothing else from this, take this:
The sooner expectations are clear, the less often you’ll need formal processes later.
If these questions have highlighted uncertainty in your workplace, a short conversation can help clarify where the real risks and priorities sit. Strategic HR Australia works with business leaders to bring clarity early — before issues escalate or become reactive.
If you’d like to talk through what this year might require from an HR perspective, get in touch.
