With the evolving understanding regarding the psychology of the workplace and access to current-generation technology, it’s no surprise that employee productivity has become a topic that draws growing attention for many businesses. After all, the workforce is the foundation of any company — they’re what enables an organization to succeed.
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Employee productivity — what is it?
In a nutshell, employee productivity refers to a person’s work within a specific time frame. It may sound like a basic measurement, but all of its influencing factors can be as complex as it is varied, from the tools to the working environment. There’s also a natural variance with the productivity of an individual, and it’s not necessarily an awful thing. When you get right down to it, those who put a lot of time into a single outstanding thing are as valuable as those who create significant volumes in shorter periods.
A business can measure their overall productivity on either a team or company level and even look into the individual output of their employees. One advantage of working on larger scales is that it enables leaders to ensure they’ve got the right combination of workers in their respective teams.
How to measure it
Some sources indicate that most workers are generally productive for just three hours out of every eight. However, the way you define the productivity of your employees will depend on the methods and metrics used, the traditional equation being the output or created volume divided by input or labour hours and resources. However, this is only the baseline. Over time, the measurement of productivity has grown to become even more refined and sophisticated, with some measures going beyond outputs and inputs to evaluate product or service quality and financial costs.
Factors that affect productivity
No two workers will be the same. Some might be very productive, while others may take a little longer. The reasons why levels of productivity vary could depend on personality, working ability, or style — elements that you may not always have complete control over. However, specific factors will enable you to dial down or up to aid your people in reaching their potential. These include but aren’t necessarily limited to the following:
- Wellbeing. Are your employees healthy? Have they reached an ideal work-life balance? Are they confident and comfortable at the workplace, and do they have access to the adjustments or support they require for certain things like parental leave, disability, or illness?
- Communication tools. Do your people have an easy time communicating with one another? Are the channels and tools that connect your employees easy and simple to use?
- Management practices. Are your team leaders engaged, and how does it impact the engagement of your employees? Are they approachable and available? Can they work on workers’ strengths to help them develop and perform as intended?
- Training. Do your workers understand how to fulfil their responsibilities and duties and handle any challenges that arise? Do they get the proper onboarding level once they’re recruited into the company?
How to improve the productivity of employees?
As mentioned earlier, the training, management practices, communication tools, and wellbeing all play critical roles in helping employees maintain a considerable level of productivity. However, what if your workers fail to reach a high level of productivity even with the foundation of basics all in place? Here are a few ideas that will aid you in developing the right approach.
- Praise and encourage. It’s never wise to use the stick — leverage the carrot instead. Giving your employees praise whenever they perform well will make them feel good, sending good messages to the rest of the team that you recognise excellent work. Look for ways you can encourage and support people who are dealing with challenging undertakings. Don’t be afraid to incentivise your top performers with rewards and bonuses. Create events to acknowledge their efforts, like funfair activities. They have a wide variety of options, from rides to photo mosaics, equipment rental and supplies, which they can even personalise based on your requirements. For this, you can partner to help make your event exciting with trusted funfair hire companies like https://www.wearetricycle.co.uk/.
- Define what you’re looking for. Although it might not appear obvious, your team members may not grasp your expectations fully. And there are times when you have to be more specific about all the basics. Ensure that they fully understand what’s expected of them. Try to make it clearer if your employees aren’t sure about how to go about their tasks. One tip is to set the short and long-term goals you’re looking for them to achieve and try to work from there.
- Create friendly competition. Every person aspires to become a part of a group and competes to become the best within their respective teams. By introducing friendly competition into the mix and pairing it with the appropriate rewards, you could encourage even the most unproductive workers who feel disengaged with their jobs to perform at a high level. However, be sure to use smart judgment. While most enjoy competition, some might not, and it’s vital that you determine whether or not your employees will be receptive to it before you make any commitments.
- Provide your people with downtime. It may sound counter-productive to offer your employees some time off so that they’ll be more productive, but you’ll be surprised at how much of a difference a little time off to re-energize and recharge can do. So make sure that you give your people enough downtime. Doing so will allow you to get the most out of your workers and enable them to perform at a much greater level.
Conclusion
There aren’t many things more integral to the success of an entrepreneurial venture than the performance and productivity of its employees. When you get right down to it, their work directly impacts a business’s ability to draw in customers and generate sales. So, make sure that you follow these practices and strategies and get the most out of your workers.
