By Maria Mothibeli, Head of Operations: SPM
Starting the year on a strong footing is a comforting idea. Clean calendars. Fresh budgets. Teams returning with the expectation that work will pick up where it left off. In operations, that expectation rarely survives the first few weeks.
A slow or uneven start is not unusual. It is how complex systems behave after a pause.
The early weeks tend to feel less like execution and more like stabilisation. Teams spend time understanding conditions rather than advancing plans. Assets need attention before optimisation can even be discussed. This work is quiet and demanding. It requires sound judgement, steady presence, and a willingness to operate within limitations rather than around them.
Problems arise when a difficult start is treated as something to be smoothed over. Progress is reported in rounded terms. Language becomes careful. Targets are adjusted without being examined closely. Over time, this creates a gap between what is said and what is happening. That gap slows recovery far more than the original disruption.
The beginning of the year offers a useful view into the system. Issues that were parked surface quickly. Risks that were managed informally become harder to contain. Capacity that exists in planning documents is tested against actual conditions on site. These signals are not anomalies. They are information.
Operational maturity shows in how this information is handled. Decisions are made about what requires immediate attention and what can be managed over time. Some issues demand intervention. Others require monitoring. A few point to deeper structural work that cannot be rushed. Trying to address everything at once often extends instability rather than resolving it.
There is also the reality of people returning to work carrying fatigue from the year before. Expectations are high from day one. Pressure arrives early. In this period, leadership is felt less through communication and more through action. Being present, making decisions, and taking responsibility where it belongs builds confidence quickly.
A difficult start does not define the year. The way it is handled does. When leaders stay close to the work, acknowledge constraint, and act deliberately, trust strengthens. When leadership drifts into abstraction, teams feel the distance.
In operations, momentum develops through consistent decisions and visible follow-through. It is built over time.
The year does not need to begin cleanly. It needs to begin with an honest understanding of where things stand and a steady commitment to restoring stability.
