Two of the most critical questions every employer faces are: How to increase employee productivity 10x without micromanaging or continually offering incentives? Why does the team struggle to meet deadlines?
It’s aggravating when your team is perpetually behind schedule, and they never seem to catch up, no matter what you do. You know your staff can be more productive, but you’re unsure what makes an employee more efficient, and what tactics can help you increase productivity at the workplace tenfold. Every employer must work toward SMART objectives.
Distractions are one of the leading causes of low productivity among employees. Understanding how to increase employees’ productivity at work is vital and will help manage the organization and the workflow. The process of increasing employee efficiency 10x is not overnight but happens gradually. Using the right strategies and implementing them effectively can work in the long term.
What is Employee Productivity?
Employee productivity is defined by the amount of work done by employees in a specific time frame. Employee productivity is a term used to describe the level of effort employees put into their work. It is measured in terms of the amount of effort that needs to be exerted for a fixed period of time, or for any tasks involved. In other words, it refers to how much effort you need to put into a job to complete it successfully.
As an example of how to improve productivity in the workplace, A company that makes artistic bottles might wish to know how many creative bottles one person can make in a certain amount of time. This is overall productivity in the workplace of the employee.
Some Employee Productivity Statistics?
Let us check some of the statistics related to employee productivity:
According to the report by Atlassian,
- 91% of employees engage in daydreaming during meetings,
- 39% of employees engage in sleeping during the meeting,
- $37 billion of salary cost over unnecessary meetings
- 2hrs are spent to recover from the distraction.
- 96% of people have missed at least one “mandatory” meeting
- 73% of people worked on other work while in a meeting
10 Ways to Increase Employee Productivity 10X at Workplace:
Let us now check the top 10 ways to increase the productivity of employees at work:
1) Setting up Clear Expectations
If you don’t inform your employees what you expect from them, they won’t know. Do you want your team to behave in this manner? If not, then it is best to set up clear expectations. Before the week’s conclusion, update the status of all tasks in your project time management software.
Even if the response is “I got your message, and I’ll check into this on Wednesday,” respond to emails and texts the same day.
Before submitting any marketing materials for approval, proofread them thoroughly. You must make it plain to them that this is critical. You might think it does not make any sense to tell someone to double-check their work, but they may believe that the whole point of submitting for approval is for you to detect those mistakes. If you do not set the expectations clearly, both parties will be confused over certain things & you just find the answer to how to maximize employees’ productivity every time. You want something that isn’t available to you, and your staff thinks you’re unjust.
2) Optimize Meetings
On average, employees spend around 87 hours each month in meetings, equating to $37 billion in lost revenue every year, since many sessions devolve into pointless debates. Instead, send an email. Since email is a more effective and precise mode of communication than attending numerous meetings, send a group email within the time set aside for emails.
Bring down the overall number of meetings daily. Hold meetings only when required.
Reduce the number of people who attend the meeting. While certain employees may be required to participate in the meetings regularly, others should not be.
3) Reduce Micromanaging Tasks
Delegating duties is helpful, but managers frequently can’t let go of their commissioned jobs, so they micromanage every detail, rendering task delegation useless. Furthermore, up to 85% of employees are disheartened by micromanagement; frequent supervision causes them to lose faith in their talents, resulting in mediocre performance.
Since you’re striving to improve productivity in the workplace, it is when micromanagement takes place. This action can bring a drastic change in the employee’s overall productivity.
Plus, an employee can’t be effective if constantly involved in other activities. This causes severe bottlenecks and causes everyone’s work to slow down.
4)Provide Employee Training periodically
One of the primary ways to improve productivity at the workplace is to provide training to employees periodically. Training is nothing but upgrading the skills that will help them work and improve their overall productivity.
5) Using Employee Monitoring Tools
Another method of how to increase employees’ productivity by 10x is by adding employee monitoring tools. DeskTrack offers employee monitoring software that can monitor the complete activities of each employee on the floor and in the remote region. Employers can create datasheets, salary sheets, and overall performance sheets to help further changes in workplace policies.
6) Recognize and Reward Achievements
One of the reasons why employees don’t feel like contributing to the company after a point of time is because their talent isn’t recognized. They get ignored when it comes to appraisal or formal recognition among other employees. If an employee completes the job on time, it is the best time to recognize their talent. When employees get recognized & appreciated their productivity will increase & they will try to give more jobs on time.
7) Providing Valuable Feedback
According to one survey, 82 percent of employees value receiving feedback. It’s not enough to remark, “Way to go.” Make it clear to the employee what you liked and disliked about their work. Make your suggestions specific and actionable. Employees must be aware of the problem and how they can improve. If we talk about ways to improve efficiency in the workplace, Make no comments about an employee’s personality. Concentrate on their actions and results, and give them explicit instructions on enhancing both.
8) Conducting Team Building Activities
Employees working as a team have a long way to go. It is the job of the organization’s top authority to ensure the team works together in unity. what makes an employee more efficient? Conducting regular team-building activities within the organization can help how to increase productivity of team at work. This could be anything from quiz day or any other activity once a week, bringing all employees together.
9) Working on a Flexible Schedule
For some people, a typical 9-to-5 schedule is insufficient. 47% of employees strongly think that having greater flexibility in their schedules will help them be more productive.
In recent years, businesses have been increasingly aware of this. Companies are increasingly allowing their staff to work on a flexible schedule. The process will enable employees to set a convenient timetable themselves. Instead of forcing one to work during traditional work hours, individuals can work when they’re most productive. Employees are happy when they have a flexible schedule, which improving quality productivity even more.
10) Building Transparency and Unity
An organization with complete transparency and unity will witness the smooth functioning of the work in the long term. Team members who do not have access to all the information they require to accomplish their jobs are frequently inefficient. Focus on transparency of how to improve efficiency at work or boost staff productivity. It will ensure that employees are working accordingly and that team members can perform at their best.
Transparency with employees fosters trust. As a result, employees are more likely to commit to your company’s goal. It also allows them to view the larger picture and see how their activities contribute directly to the company’s objectives. Employees are more comfortable sharing their ideas when operating in a transparent setting, which boosts the team’s output. The process will also help in increasing employee productivity 10x at work in the long term.
Conclusion
After you’ve realized how critical employee productivity is to your company’s success, you’ll need to take the appropriate steps to measure and, most importantly, enhance this vital business resource. To do so, ensure you improve the office environment, optimize emailing and meetings, allow for flexible staff schedules, and give appropriate employee training, among other things mentioned above. Productivity at the workplace is highly beneficial for an organization and its employees in the long term.