Staffing continues to be a challenge across nearly every industry, especially in service-based organizations. And when you’re leading an understaffed team, it can feel like there’s very little you can actually control.

Maybe you aren’t the hiring manager. Maybe you don’t control the budget. Maybe the decision to add headcount sits several levels above you.

So what can you do?

At Monarch Coaching, we believe in controlling the controllables.

You may not be able to make the hiring decision, but you can influence how your team experiences a staffing shortage. You can understand what they’re carrying, advocate for what they need, and create clarity around what matters most.

Here are three ways to lead through an understaffed season.

1. Awareness: Know What Your Team Is Actually Carrying

The first step is understanding the reality your team is experiencing.

Leaders often see the intended process, while employees experience the actual process.

You may look at a project and think, “This should only take a couple of hours.”

But your employee may know that it actually involves five additional steps, three systems, multiple approvals, and constant interruptions.

If you don’t understand the actual workload, it’s difficult to advocate for your team or make informed decisions about priorities.

Try this:

Ask your team:

• What are you currently responsible for?
• How much time does each task realistically take?
• What responsibilities have been added that weren't part of the original role?
• Where are you losing the most time?
• What is consistently falling through the cracks?
• What would become possible if you had more capacity?

Document the reality.

When you can show the workload, time requirements, and impact on service or quality, you have more than a feeling that your team is overwhelmed. You have information you can bring to decision-makers.

And remember: you cannot coach a team toward excellent service if they don't have the capacity to deliver it.

Before asking, “How can we get more out of this team?” ask, “Do they actually have the capacity to do what we’re asking?”

2. Advocacy: Have Their Back

Being a leader isn't just about managing tasks. It's about serving and advocating for the people doing the work.

When your team is understaffed, your role is to help remove barriers wherever you can.

This is where consistent 1:1 conversations become incredibly valuable.

Instead of only asking:

“How are you doing?”

Try asking:

“What is one barrier I can remove this week to help you deliver the quality of work you want to give?”

You can also ask:

• What's taking longer than expected?
• What is preventing you from meeting this deadline?
• What do you need from me?
• What should we stop, pause, or reprioritize?
• What do you wish leadership understood about your workload?

These conversations accomplish two things.

First, you're giving your team an opportunity to be heard and supported.

Second, you're gathering information that you can take to your leader.

Your team's challenges shouldn't stop with them. Your job is to carry the information upward.

You may not have the authority to approve another position, but you can bring the evidence that helps someone who does have that authority make a better decision.

3. Capacity: Shift From “Do More” to “What Matters Most?”

Here's the uncomfortable truth:

When staffing is lean, you cannot do everything at 100%.

Trying to maintain every priority, every deadline, and every expectation at the same level will eventually lead to burnout, mistakes, and a mediocre customer experience.

Instead, leaders need to create clarity.

Ask:

What are our non-negotiables?

If we're operating with limited capacity, what is the one thing we absolutely cannot compromise?

Maybe it's patient safety.

Maybe it's customer response time.

Maybe it's quality control.

Maybe it's the experience your customers have when interacting with your team.

Whatever it is, define it.

Then determine what can be delayed, simplified, delegated, or temporarily deprioritized.

Clarity is kindness.

When people are already stretched thin, uncertainty adds another layer of stress. A leader's job during a lean season isn't simply to demand more.

It's to help the team understand where their energy matters most.

For example, when we work with leaders and teams, we often help them distinguish between what is truly essential and what has simply become part of the process because “that's the way we've always done it.”

Sometimes, creating capacity isn't about hiring immediately.

Sometimes, it's about eliminating unnecessary work.

Awareness. Advocacy. Capacity.

These three practices won't magically solve a staffing shortage.

But they can change how your team experiences it.

Because if your team is telling you they don't have enough time, resources, or people to deliver the work you're asking for, your first response shouldn't be to argue with their reality.

Listen to it. Investigate it. Advocate for it. And lead through it.

Your team doesn't need a leader who pretends the problem doesn't exist.

They need a leader who is willing to say:

“I see what you're carrying. Let's figure out what we can control.”

A Leadership Check-In

If you're currently leading an understaffed team, ask yourself:

☐ Do I actually understand what my team is carrying?

☐ Am I advocating for the resources they need?

☐ Have I clearly communicated what is truly a priority?

☐ What can we stop, simplify, or deprioritize?

☐ What information do I need to bring to my own leadership?

You may not control the staffing decision.

But you do have influence over how you lead through it.

And that influence matters.

Ready to Lead Through the Challenge?

At Monarch Coaching, we help leaders build the skills to navigate real-world leadership challenges, from team capacity and communication to accountability, delegation, and difficult conversations.

If your team is navigating a challenging season and you're not sure what to do next, let's talk.

Schedule a conversation with Monarch Coaching and let's explore how we can support your leaders and your organization.

You can't always control the circumstances. But you can control how you lead through them. 🦋

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