Are you running out of ideas when it comes to improving employee productivity? Well, you’re not the first manager in this situation, and you won’t be the last.
There are so many different types of people in this world. Over 7.5 billion, in fact. Each of them have a different idea of what productivity is and how to be an efficient member of a team.
As a manager, it falls to you to teach them what you expect and how they can mesh with your standards. The following ten tips will give you some great ideas of how to help your employees be more productive and get more done each and every day.
1. Revamp Team Meetings
Have your team meetings become dry and boring time-wasters with no clear purpose or motive? It’s time to take a step back and see what is going wrong in the planning stages for these meetings. The ability to hold purposeful meetings will play a major part in any manager’s capacity to be a good leader.
Avoid going into any meeting without a clear-cut goal to be achieved by the end. Take the time to organize a specific agenda and assign someone to take down notes of key points made during the group discussion. Find ways to make them fun and engaging to keep team members involved from start to finish.
2. Wellness Program
Everyone wants to be healthy, but people often need a reason beyond their good health to eat well and exercise. A work wellness program can be a great way to improve employee productivity thanks to the health benefits that come with it. People who are healthy have a stronger ability to focus on tasks and maintain their energy level throughout the workday.
Put together a wellness program which offers prizes and other incentives to motivate your team to participate. Not only will it boost day-to-day productivity, but it can also minimize sick days, reduce workplace injuries, and improve office morale.
3. Offer Remote Work
While this may not be possible for every industry, numerous studies have shown that people who are given the opportunity to work from home can be far more productive than at the office. If you have the option to give employees the chance to work from home, it may be worth a test run.
Start out by offering part-time remote work days and if you see an improvement in employee productivity, you can bump it up to full-time. While some may jump on this idea, others may prefer to work in an office setting. Be sure to leave both options open to accommodate both sides.
4. Keep Equipment Up-to-Date
Do your employees ever joke about the “ancient copier” or their “old-school computer” equipment? While you may think this is all in good fun, there may be an underlying message that it’s time for an upgrade or two. Ensure you are setting your team up for success by providing working hardware, software, and applications for them to use.
Faulty equipment can often have negative effects on productivity, leading team members to use them as excuses for missing deadlines or not being able to accomplish tasks. Don’t give them the chance by keep everything in the office well-maintained and in working order.
5. Do Not Micromanage
If you ever look up tips for being a manager, you’ll often find this near the top of most lists you come across. Micromanagement has always, and will always do more harm than good in a work setting. It can have some of the most damaging effects to employee productivity and give the manager a bad name among their team.
Instead, manage your team from a distance, allowing them to learn from their own mistakes and engaging in teaching opportunities as they present themselves. You’ll garner more respect from the group and generate deeper relationships with each individual.
6. Consider the Office Layout
The world is full of introverts, extroverts, and everyone in between. Both sides have their talents and faults, but more importantly, they both have office atmospheres where they feel more productive. As you organize your office and place individuals, pay attention to how they are communicating with one another.
While it may sound like elementary school all over again, it is not a bad idea to separate people who seem to spend more time talking to each other than they do focusing on their work.
7. Train, Train, and Retrain
Being productive isn’t a skill most people are given at birth. It is something that must be taught, often more than once because of the many variables involved. Be ready and willing to train your team in the ways of productivity.
Hold seminars and group meetings to discuss the importance of this great characteristic. You can even hire an outside consultant to come in and share their wisdom and knowledge on the subject. As you promote employee productivity and teach each individual how to incorporate it into their work life, you’ll see it improve quickly among the ranks.
8. Share Positive Feedback & Constructive Criticism
Everyone loves to hear how well they are doing at something. While not everyone is able to handle hearing the ways the need to improve. But both of these are necessary conversations that should be held between a manager and their staff.
Take the time to recognize those who are going above and beyond the call of duty to achieve the team goals. Give them praise both in a group setting and in one-on-one conversations. Constructive criticism on the other hand is better to share in a private setting, giving you the chance to discuss tactics on how they can be more productive.
9. Streamline Your Processes
Just about every company out there has rules, regulations, and standards they expect their employees to live by. Unfortunately, not as many companies have defined their processes in a way to boost efficiency among the team. Even with all the necessary rules, without set operations and procedures your team will never be as productive as it can.
As an example, using tools like Toggl Plan can streamline your planning and project management process. It allows you to create powerful visual roadmaps, giving everyone on your team a clear view of goals, expectations, and more.
10. Celebrate Wins
While a verbal complement and obligatory pat on the back are always appreciated, it’s important to really celebrate the big victories that occur in your business. As you reach milestones and fulfill long-term goals, find ways to thank your team for their hard work and diligence.
This can be something as simple as an ice cream party all the way up to a corporate retreat with the entire team. Whatever it is, make the reward match the effort that was needed to reach the objective.
More Ways to Boost Employee Productivity
While Toggl Plan can be a tremendous help in project planning, it has a great deal of features beyond that. Organize team timelines to keep everyone on the same page, integrate other software to streamline your processes even further, and use the annual overview to see the big picture of what you’re trying to achieve.
As you seek ways to improve your employee productivity, take a look at our blog for a vast array of tips and tricks.
Logan Derrick is a full-time business writer and content marketing strategist. For years, he has worked closely with several project management professionals, learning from them and increasing his own knowledge of the industry. Having held multiple management positions in fields ranging from customer service to marketing, Logan has found a passion for helping others learn about project management, marketing, and the powerful tools available to professionals today.
