Employees are the backbone of any company. Business owners are constantly on the lookout for hacks and techniques to help them get the most out of their employees. Good productivity is one of the most important factors that determine success. Almost all employees want to work efficiently and outperform their colleagues. This is a sign of healthy competition. However, there are certain factors at play that hamper their productivity. While some of these factors are impossible to control (such as health, emergencies, etc.), other factors like motivation and office atmosphere can be worked upon. These challenges can be overcome by adopting certain measures that are known to help companies boost their productivity, and implementing the best employee productivity tools to achieve the same.
How to Increase Employee Productivity?
How to increase employee productivity is a question that troubles most business owners. Here are 10 tried and tested ways that help companies increase the productivity of their employees.
1.Maintain a suitable office environment
Cramped-up spaces, artificial lighting, and a lack of greenery are known to hamper productivity. People generally perform better when they are surrounded by greenery and natural daylight. This keeps them enthusiastic and helps them perform better. Similarly, bright colours are known to inspire creativity in people, as opposed to monotonous whites and greys. Ensure a vibrant and lively office atmosphere to get the most out of your employees. Social environment is just as important. Most of the time, it is stress that acts as a hurdle in the way of most people realizing their full potential. Make sure that your office environment is not a cause of stress for your employees.
2.Reduce absenteeism
Even though businesses look for a solution for how to increase employee productivity, absenteeism and poor discipline emerge as the biggest hurdles. Absenteeism is one of the biggest reasons why companies end up underperforming. Discourage unsanctioned absenteeism and reward employees who have a good attendance record. At the same time, you can be flexible and allow employees to work from home in rare cases. Being flexible and allowing the employees to work remotely turns out to be an advantageous situation for both parties.
Businesses can invest in a robust ERP solution to track the productivity of their employees. Accountability is one of the biggest benefits of digitalizing business operations.
3.Discourage time-wasting habits
Unnecessary meetings for long hours, poor punctuality, and long, frequent breaks are some of the things an average employee wastes time on and ends up under delivering. Most people have a habit of checking their cell phones frequently. This is bad for concentration and hampers productivity. While adopting a no-phone policy is an extreme measure, you still need to ensure that employees do not neglect work because of this. Encourage employees to take short breaks in which they can do what they like. Apart from cell phones, meetings are the second biggest culprit. Most of the office meetings are unnecessary and get stretched over long durations for no reason. Discourage unnecessary meetings and encourage emailing for communication within the office, as it saves ample time.
4.Encourage teamwork
One of the most effective ways of increasing employee productivity is by making them aware of the value they add. Emphasize teamwork by asking employees for their input wherever possible. This increases employee engagement and helps inculcate a sense of responsibility. In addition, cut-throat competition and office politics are other major culprits that cause employees to waste time and energy on unworthy things. Adopt effective team-building exercises to foster a healthy working atmosphere.
5.Do not micromanage
Bosses who micromanage and ask for follow-ups every hour do not make it into their employees’ good books. Moreover, this makes work feel like a burden to most employees, as they are under immense performance pressure. Employees are more likely to make errors when they are under pressure and stress. On the contrary, allowing employees to do a task their way fosters a sense of responsibility in them, which causes them to be more productive.
6.Ensure employee well-being
Excessive stress is one of the biggest culprits that hamper productivity. While people deliver better under little to moderate pressure, it does not go down well with most of us. Too much stress wreaks havoc on a person’s mental and physical health. This weakens the immune system and puts people at an increased risk of diseases. As a business owner, it is your responsibility to ensure the mental and physical well-being of your employees. In order to ensure this, you should help your employees manage stress in a better way by being more available and approachable. Always be open to communication with your employees and resolve the issues they face at work. This is one of the most effective ways of increasing employee productivity.
7.Set realistic targets
Unrealistic expectations are more likely to make people give up. Contrary to common perception, aiming too high is a recipe for failure. It is not practical and people often compromise on quality in order to finish a herculean task. It also gives rise to procrastination, which is the biggest enemy of productivity. Procrastination happens when people are asked to achieve unrealistic targets. Instead, you can present them with smaller tasks and watch them ace it! Setting smaller goals is more beneficial as achieving them is more encouraging and rewarding for the employees.Moreover, business productivity tools make it easy for managers to track progress and reach targets.
8.Acknowledge and appreciate
Getting acknowledgement and appreciation for one’s efforts is one of the biggest motivating factors for people. This makes them want to perform even better in the future. Appreciate and reward your employees when they perform excellently or achieve a difficult feat. Celebrating your team’s achievements helps them stay motivated and strive for more. This fosters healthy competition among employees and inspires them to perform better.
9.Skill enhancement
Encourage your employees to enhance and improve their skills. Not only will this help them do better in their career, but it will also be beneficial for your company. Highly-skilled employees are an asset to any company. By encouraging them to broaden their skillset and lending them the support they need, you will be able to witness a drastic improvement in their productivity.
10.Invest in the right tools
Workplace efficiency depends not only on the employees but also on how well-equipped the employees are. Sluggish workflow is a primary reason behind poor performance. This can be tackled with the help of the best employee productivity tools. It is not uncommon for employees to spend hours of their valuable time doing tasks that shouldn’t need to be done by them in the first place. Automation has made work easier by leaps and bounds. As a result, employees can divert their energy towards things that need their immediate attention.
In the absence of automation, a lot of human effort is still wasted on completing tasks that can be accomplished with automation in no time. To make sure that your employees work at their efficient best, you need to incorporate smart solutions into your office. These tasks can be anything, depending upon the nature of the business. One should not undermine the importance of streamlining operations. When good streamlining practices are implemented, it results in uninterrupted workflow and increased productivity.
The Solution: Business Productivity Tools from SAN Softwares
SAN Softwares, a leading software company in India with over 21 years of experience, came up with SAN Call Center Solutions- the best cloud call center solution you can find. SanCCS offers the best business productivity tools for businesses to boost productivity and realize their full potential. Automotive, healthcare, educational institutes, BPOs, the e-commerce industry, real estate, ticketing, and a variety of other industries use our products. The SAN call center solutions have the right solutions for all types of establishments. Some of these are hosted call center solutions, IP PBX, IVR, voice logger, billing software, accounting software, and more. Businesses can use the SAN call center solutions to streamline operations and improve services. It allows them to monitor and manage all operations with sophistication. It is one of the most cost-effective investments you can make to boost employee productivity.
