Without a doubt, productivity is one of the most important signs you need to look out for in your workplace, much similar to how you refer to a tools and apps review website when you evaluate whatever you’ve just downloaded. On one hand, your company may be raking in more and more profit as the years pass, but the thing is, if productivity is overlooked, then chances are, it may become quite easy for those who work harder than others to get overworked and eventually quit. Needless to say, you wouldn’t want that, primarily because these people who do work hard are the very same ones who are indispensable to the company.
What you need to do, therefore, is to come up with ways by which you can enable the increase of productivity in your company, in the way you set up your workplace. By learning some principles and strategies to help your employees to get on the move, you can also help in the improvement of the way your company runs and functions. Here are a few tips and tricks you can apply so that you can make sure that the next working day runs more smoothly.
Tips to Improve Workplace Productivity
One idea you need to understand is that employees who have a sense of accountability have better chances of being productive. Thus, the first step you have to do is precisely to instill a sense of accountability in your employees. You need to help them realize that they are an integral part of the success of the company, that if they don’t do what is expected of them, then the company is also not going to perform in a manner that’s to be expected. The key is to help your employees see their worth as employees, regardless of their position.
Another thing you need to do is to remember that while it’s good to know what goes on in your company, it’s also good to take that necessary step backward, and watch as your employees do what you have learned to trust them to do. Thus, the idea is for you to learn how to manage, without micro-managing. Needless to say, the line that divides the former from the latter is quite tricky and is almost imperceptible. Still, with a lot of practice, you’ll eventually find that balance, and as an employer, see how much good it will do for the team and for the whole company, as well.
If there’s one thing that some employers are wont to forget or to conveniently set aside, it’s the fact that employees’ productivity is directly proportional to the quality of the equipment that’s made available for the employees to use. Hence, if you intend to demand productivity of your employees, do remember to provide equipment with excellent quality. Doing so will actually give your employees a bigger and more valid reason to do well. When the available equipment is top-notch, then you can expect an output that has better quality, as well.
Employers also tend to forget about the importance of giving due rewards and incentives to employees. You see, no one really likes to work if the person feels that any effort they exert merely goes unappreciated or unacknowledged. There’s no better way to affirm people than to show them that the things they do, no matter how big or small, always come with the proportionate reward. Hence, as an employer, always make sure that you give good and desirable rewards for good performance.
Take a long, hard look at what’s happening in your workplace. Do people function as real people, smiling at each other, talking as friends? Or do you feel the sad atmosphere of a workplace full of mere robots, doing everything as routine dictates? If your answer is the second scenario, then take the initiative and break the routine once in a while. Breaking the routine gives your employees more breathing space, as well as more opportunities to remember that after all, they are not automatons designed only to follow strict routine, or trained circus animals who are made to follow orders. They are human beings who are alive with thoughts, feelings, and responsibilities.
Think of your best-performing employees. Were there ever times that they expressed or verbalized that they were looking for more challenging avenues to hone their skills and capabilities? If yes, what did you do about it? In case you don’t know what to do about it, try opening up more opportunities for them to step up and upgrade in terms of personal and functional development. Sponsor them and send them to seminars, workshops, corporate trainings, and the like. This will help them to see that you do value them as people, and not just as cogs in the machine.
Ultimately: Take Charge
Increasing productivity in your company takes more than just the ability to impose deadlines and make demands. It involves a lot of people-skills, which you need to learn and hone, especially if your desire to do better is sincere and true.
Bionote of Author
Mike Williams wears many hats at once. He is a blogger, an author, a photographer, a linguist, and a consultant for many business firms in terms of employee development. While he is not some corporate giant, Mike prides himself in being the head of what is to him among the best organizations in the world – his own family.