Low levels of productivity can hold a business back from realising its true potential.
If employees start slacking or they’re not able to fulfil their tasks within the working day, the overall performance of a company might start to dip, too. In this guide, we’ll cover some of the best tactics to help any business optimise productivity when it matters most.
Minimise time-wasting
Whether your employees work from home or from an office, there’s always something to steal attention from the task at hand. When these little things add up, valuable hours can be lost, so it’s crucial to get a grasp on these as soon as possible. Try to keep an eye on:
Meetings, making sure they’re only as long as necessary and don’t overrun
Emails, especially if a quick direct message might suffice instead
Personal conversations, particularly if deadlines are looming
Disorganisation, including untidy desk spaces
Social media, by implementing a company policy
Refine internal processes
It’s easy to overcomplicate daily processes that could be timesavers. Instead, try to focus on simple yet structured plans with clear outcomes and steps, supporting your employees to stay concentrated and on-task. This also applies to your online systems, programmes, and services.
If you’re not developing inhouse, or trying to create a new electronic product for example, you could outsource your prototyping to make sure that your employees benefit from efficient IT systems that make a genuine difference to the workload and also save operating/overhead costs at the same time. This is a standard procedure for many small or new businesses with small budgets.
Consider productivity apps
Online apps, incentives or projects could be an effective solution to solving productivity stalemate in your company. While mobile phones can be an intense distraction in the workplace, the best productivity applications can seriously boost the workplace when they’re used in the right way. A few examples include Slack, Dropbox, and Evernote.
Understand procrastination
Even though it’s estimated that 15-25% of all people regularly procrastinate, it’s still entirely misunderstood. The habit comes from the avoidance of difficult emotions, which is often why workers who frequently procrastinate don’t respond well to harsh punishment.
If you notice an employee procrastination, try to help them break their unproductive habits, offering your support and understanding instead of judgement.
Keep your team motivated
Keeping your team interested, focused and willing to try hard can be one of the most significant hurdles when it comes to productivity. Along with reviewing your goals regularly, try to incentivise your teams. Why not stir enthusiasm with monthly competitions aiming to focus on a different niche each time?
What usually holds a business back?
If you’re struggling to see any progress within your team, it can sometimes be hard to identify where you’ve been facing setbacks. A few factors that can hold back your business from meeting its long-term goals include:
Outdated ideas
Unproductive location
Inflexible working hours
Fear of change
Remember the importance of technology
From basic communication to more complex operations and unique transactions, modern corporate processes depend on technology. Never overlook the role and prominence of online services and systems in boosting the productivity of your business.
