How to prepare frontline teams for the end-of-year demand peak
Every year, the same scenario plays out: sales rise, orders multiply and the pace of work intensifies. According to Deloitte’s holiday retail forecast, e-commerce sales in the United States are expected to grow by between 7.5% and 8.4% from November 2026 to January 2027.
Behind every order are the people who prepare it, dispatch it and deliver it. These are the teams that feel the pressure of peak season most intensely.
Why peak season puts frontline teams to the test
Rising demand is not only reflected in sales. It is also reflected in people.
In practice, teams change from one day to the next: new employees join, extra shifts are added and there is less time available to explain each process.
This impact reaches all the way to the end customer. Deloitte’s 2025 holiday retail survey shows that slow or delayed deliveries are the main frustration for online shoppers. And expectations keep rising: according to Deloitte’s 2026 holiday retail survey, 26% of consumers surveyed want to receive their purchases on the same day. That experience depends on people who, for the most part, do not work in front of a computer.
The main challenges of peak season
- Onboarding a large number of people in a short time. Those who join for the season need to start working quickly, but they do not always arrive with the preparation they need. In peak season, when there is no room to learn on the job, a clear and streamlined onboarding process is decisive.
- Communicating on time. Shifts change, new routes emerge and priorities shift throughout the day. When employees do not have a corporate email, announcements get scattered and do not always reach the right people.
- Clear expectations for every employee. When the pace picks up, any uncertainty about tasks, schedules or priorities has a greater impact on operations.
- Sustaining engagement under pressure. When the intense pace extends over several weeks, feedback and recognition play a central role in keeping the team motivated. Engagement also has an impact on retention, as we explore in this article on AI and talent retention.
How to prepare teams before the demand peak
A complex plan is not required. A few simple decisions, made before the season begins, make all the difference:
- An onboarding process accessible on mobile, so that every employee is ready from day one.
- A single channel for urgent announcements, such as shift changes, route changes or safety alerts.
- Targeted communication by site, shift or team, so that each person receives only the information relevant to them.
- Short surveys throughout the season, not just at the end, to understand how the team is doing while operations are under way.
- Timely recognition of effort, along with an open invitation to return for the next season.
Platforms such as Humand make it possible to manage all of these actions from a single app, even for employees without a corporate email.
An opportunity to support clients
For those who work with logistics, retail or e-commerce companies, and particularly for those who are part of the Humand Partners programme, peak season opens up a concrete conversation: the goal is not to add yet another tool at the moment of greatest pressure, but to help the client get ready in advance.
Peak season comes around every year. The difference lies in how the teams who keep it running rise to the challenge.
