As a business owner or manager, you want to get as much from your employees as possible. Small changes to productivity can have a significant impact on the bottom line.
Much of this comes down to how managers lead on a day-to-day basis. However, there is probably a lot you could do to improve workplace productivity.
Read on to learn some tips you can deploy to increase productivity in your workplace.
It Starts With Hiring
You need to have the right people in the workplace if you want to optimize productivity. And there’s more to it than looking for an impressive CV. A candidate’s work history and credentials matter, but you’re hiring the human. Focus on the individual during interviews and assess whether they are a good fit for the workplace culture.
Beyond hiring, you should also assess and improve your onboarding process. A good onboarding can help integrate new employees with the company. It is also the time for teaching them how they should perform their duties. You can also equip them with the skills they need to be as productive as possible.
Provide the Right Tools
Having the right tools and resources can go a long way toward ensuring optimal performance. Consider whether there is equipment that could make employees’ jobs easier or more efficient. Even if it doesn’t increase productivity directly, making one process easier or less burdensome can ripple out and improve performance in other ways. You should also look at various tech tools and software applications that might increase productivity in the workplace.
Outsource Workplace Cleaning
Having a clean workplace is essential for employee health and productivity. However, putting the work of cleaning on employees might actually hurt productivity. To start, employees will have to take time from their normal duties to clean. Along with that, most office workers won’t feel motivated to clean. That’s why office managers should consider hiring a professional cleaning service.
According to a professional from Compass Cleaning Solutions, “Cleaning services can do more than take the work of your employees. Most office workers don’t have the cleaning skills or experience that professional cleaners do. With cleaning services, you save time for employees and get better results for improved working conditions.”
Encourage Employee Breaks
The instinct for many managers is to try to get employees to spend as much time at their desks as possible. It seems intuitive that more time at the desk should equal higher productivity. However, this isn’t always the case.
Workers can feel burned out or over-stressed when they spend too much time at their desks. That’s why managers should encourage occasional breaks. Beyond the lunch break and others mandated by law, let employees know they can occasionally get up to walk around and stretch their legs. It will be better for their health, and they’ll return to their desks feeling refreshed and ready to be productive.
Show Appreciation
Your employees work hard for you. As much as you might appreciate their work, you might not express your appreciation enough. Make sure to tell your employees you recognize the hard work they do. Give them praise when they perform well on a project. Simple positive reinforcement can go a long way toward motivating your employees.
If you want to go the extra yard, you could consider giving awards or gifts to show appreciation. Many companies have employee rewards for things like having the most sales or employee of the month. Some may even give rewards like cash bonuses or gift cards.
Reconsider Workplace Design
When was the last time you thought about the design of the workplace? It might have been as far back as when your company first moved into the space. There is a good chance you and your employees have noticed a few ways the workplace’s design is hindering productivity. Maybe it’s time to consider new options for the office layout. It might also be time to think about redesigning different work areas or how desks are arranged.
Set Realistic Goals
Having a goal can be great for productivity. It gives employees something to aim for and achieve. Evaluate every position at the company and set goals for each employee. Try to align the goals with their performance and find ways to track results.
Beyond individual goals, setting team goals can be particularly effective for increasing productivity. When it is a team goal, you get all your employees working together. It can be more effective because they are all relying on each other to do their parts toward reaching the goal.
Optimize Communications
Communication is one of the key factors in maximizing workplace productivity. Managers should review internal communications to determine how well these systems and practices are serving their teams. Make sure they have all the communication tools they need. They should be able to call and email each other. Having a group chat can also be useful for communication. You may also want to look into various software tools that can unify different types of communications on one platform.
As a final point, ask for employee feedback. They have a different perspective from management and might see issues you don’t. Employees may also have suggestions for ways to improve different processes around the workplace.