As the holiday season rolls around, procurement teams across the UK face a familiar challenge: how to keep the wheels turning when large portions of the workforce are on leave.

While summer and Christmas breaks are a well-earned chance for teams to recharge, they can also create operational pressure points, especially in procurement, where approvals, contract renewals and supplier communications often can’t wait.

Without the right systems in place, key processes risk grinding to a halt. Projects sit idle waiting for sign-off. Supplier queries pile up. Contract deadlines slip through the cracks.

But it doesn’t have to be that way.

With modern procurement software like Atamis, it’s possible to plan ahead, automate routine tasks and maintain visibility even when the office is half empty. The right source-to-contract software partner can help procurement teams manage workloads, share insights and keep business moving, all without adding stress to the people who remain on duty.

Here’s how to make the holiday season smooth sailing, not a scramble.

The seasonal slowdown: why procurement feels the impact

Every function feels the effect of high leave periods, but procurement is uniquely exposed.

That’s because procurement sits at the intersection of so many departments, finance, legal, operations and touches every part of the supply chain. When a single stakeholder is unavailable, entire processes can stall.

Typical holiday-season pain points include:

  • Approvals bottlenecks: key approvers or budget holders are on leave, delaying sourcing or contract sign-offs.
  • Renewal risks: contract end dates creep closer without anyone around to review, renegotiate, or renew.
  • Supplier communication gaps: unanswered supplier emails can damage relationships and slow delivery.
  • Manual workload spikes: reduced staffing leaves remaining team members juggling admin-heavy tasks.
  • Visibility challenges: managers struggle to track project progress when multiple team members are absent.

This can lead to a frustrating mix of delays, duplicated effort and risk exposure at precisely the time when people are meant to be winding down.

But with the right tools and a bit of planning, procurement teams can flip the script, using automation, smart workflows and digital visibility to stay productive and proactive.

1. Automate repetitive tasks before the holidays hit

One of the most effective ways to manage high-leave periods is through automation.

Modern source-to-contract software like Atamis can handle many of the routine, time-consuming tasks that normally tie up procurement professionals, freeing people to focus on more strategic work, even when resources are limited.

Before the holiday rush begins, teams can use automation to:

  • Set up approval workflows so tasks automatically route to designated deputies when someone is on leave.
  • Trigger reminders and notifications for contract renewals or supplier performance reviews.
  • Generate reports and send them automatically to stakeholders at scheduled intervals.

For example, if a project is awaiting approval from a budget holder who’s off for two weeks, the system can automatically escalate it to an alternate approver. No manual chasing, no bottleneck, just business continuity.

Likewise, automated alerts can flag upcoming contract renewals or expiry dates so nothing slips through the cracks while key people are away.

It’s a simple principle: if a process can be automated, automate it before the holidays begin. That’s how you keep things moving when half the team is OOO.

2. Enable “set and forget” reporting with scheduled insights

A crucial capability in modern procurement software like Atamis is scheduled reporting.

Instead of manually pulling data each week or month, procurement teams can subscribe to reports within their source-to-contract solution, setting them to run automatically and deliver to relevant inboxes at prescribed intervals.

For example:

  • Weekly supplier performance dashboards sent to category managers.
  • Monthly contract expiry summaries shared with legal and finance.
  • Quarterly spend analyses sent directly to CPOs or CFOs.

This “set and forget” approach ensures stakeholders get the visibility they need, even when the people who’d usually compile the data are on leave.

It also means procurement can continue providing consistent, reliable updates across the business, demonstrating control and professionalism during the busiest holiday periods.

Because when reporting runs itself, everyone stays informed.

3. Make resource planning part of your digital toolkit

Holiday planning shouldn’t just be about managing time off, it’s about managing capacity.

The best source-to-contract software helps procurement leaders map workloads, allocate tasks and monitor progress across the team. With real-time dashboards, you can see who’s available, what’s in flight and where deadlines may overlap with absences.

This visibility allows managers to:

  • Reassign tasks before someone goes on leave.
  • Balance workloads so no one’s overloaded.
  • Spot project risks early before they become delays.
  • Communicate expectations clearly with internal stakeholders.

Some systems even allow for digital “handover notes” or temporary access delegation, so teammates can pick up where others left off.

Resource planning becomes less about firefighting and more about foresight, supported by technology that keeps everyone in the loop.

4. Keep contracts under control, even when key people are away

Few areas of procurement are more time-sensitive than contract management. Deadlines, renewals and obligations don’t pause for the holidays.

That’s why having robust contract management software in place is critical.

When contracts are stored in a central, searchable repository, not scattered across inboxes or shared drives, procurement teams can easily access, track and manage them, even if the contract owner is unavailable.

Smart contract lifecycle tools allow teams to:

  • Set automated renewal alerts well in advance of end dates.
  • Assign back-up owners or reviewers to ensure continuity.
  • Track obligations and deliverables through dashboards accessible to finance and legal.
  • Generate pre-scheduled reports on contract status or compliance.

With this level of visibility and automation, procurement can avoid the all-too-common “holiday expiry panic”, when a key contract is set to lapse because everyone thought someone else was handling it.

5. Strengthen collaboration with finance and legal

When procurement, finance and legal teams each have their own systems and processes, communication during high-leave periods can easily break down.

But a connected source-to-contract solution creates a single point of truth that all departments can access, keeping collaboration smooth, even when staffing levels fluctuate.

  • Finance can view approved spend, contract commitments and supplier performance data directly within the system, avoiding bottlenecks caused by missing information.
  • Legal can manage contract templates, track review stages and sign off on clauses remotely, supported by automated workflows.
  • Procurement can see at a glance where each document sits in the approval chain and who’s next in line.

When everyone shares the same digital workspace, handovers are cleaner, queries are fewer and the process stays on track no matter who’s on leave.

6. Embrace data-driven oversight

Another major benefit of modern procurement software is visibility, the ability to see what’s happening across projects and categories in real time.

Through dashboards and analytics, managers can track progress, spot risks and make informed decisions without having to rely on endless email updates.

During the holidays, this level of oversight is invaluable. It allows you to:

  • Monitor open projects and see who’s accountable.
  • Identify bottlenecks before they escalate.
  • Keep executives informed with minimal manual effort.
  • Track compliance and supplier performance even with fewer hands on deck.

Whether you’re in the office or logging in remotely, you get a full picture of procurement activity, ensuring momentum never dips, even when your team does.

7. Use automation to maintain supplier engagement

Your suppliers don’t take holidays on the same schedule you do, which means maintaining consistent communication is key.

Automation within your source-to-contract software can ensure suppliers continue to receive acknowledgements, updates and feedback even when team members are away.

You can:

  • Set up auto-replies or notification triggers when new documents or responses are submitted.
  • Enable self-service supplier portals so vendors can upload information, update details or check project status without waiting on manual responses.
  • Schedule automated performance surveys or status updates to maintain two-way communication.

These small touches reinforce professionalism and trust, showing suppliers that your organisation remains responsive and well-organised all year round.

8. Plan ahead: make technology part of your annual leave strategy

Managing high leave periods effectively isn’t just about surviving them, it’s about planning for them.

Each year, procurement leaders can work with HR and IT teams to map out resource coverage, key project timelines and system automations in advance.

With the right planning and technology, procurement can approach the holiday season with confidence, not concern.

Take a break, not a step back

Time off is essential, not just for wellbeing, but for long-term productivity. The goal isn’t to avoid holidays; it’s to ensure they don’t derail business progress.

With the right procurement software in place, teams can enjoy their downtime knowing that automation, reporting and smart workflows are keeping things running smoothly.

At Atamis, we believe modern source-to-contract software should empower teams to work smarter, not harder, even (and especially) during the busiest leave seasons.

Our modular platform helps procurement automate tasks, maintain visibility and strengthen collaboration with finance and legal, all while integrating seamlessly with your existing systems.

So when the next high-leave period comes around, your procurement function can stay calm, connected and in control.

Because the best procurement teams don’t stop when people go on holiday. They simply plan smarter, powered by the right technology.