Four Tips that Can Help Improve Your Staff’s Productivity

The key to any successful business is a hard-working team. Without a dedicated staff pushing the buttons behind the scenes, businesses would grind to a halt. However, keeping teams motivated can be a struggle, especially in the midst of high-pressure environments that are filled with deadlines, problem-solving, and stress.

As motivation drops, so does productivity, so how can you ensure your staff is working at full capacity? Here are four tips on how to improve the productivity of your team.

1. Take advantage of efficiencies

‘Busy work’ is the bane of many employees’ lives. This kind of work is defined as tasks that have hours spent on them when a quicker alternative is available which could save a lot of time and energy. Take your Point of Sale proposition, for example, identifying what products are selling well and which need a push is one of the most key pieces of data when deciding to restock or not.

Cutting out manual stock checks and implementing a modern POS system not only saves time but will ensure that human error never leaves you sold out of a bestselling product accidentally.

Less busy work, fewer headaches, and more efficiency.

2. Improve workplace conditions

Your place of work can be a major contributor to productivity if it allows your employees to feel comfortable whilst they’re working. Temperature can be a major factor in this, and maintaining a pleasant working temperature, while tricky, will ensure employees keep their minds focused on the job at hand rather than wondering why they didn’t pack an extra sweater.

Creating ‘chill out’ zones for employees to enjoy on their breaks - or just to get away from the screen for a few minutes - are also invaluable. While it might seem counter-intuitive to create an area where employees are encouraged to down tools and take a period of relaxation, it’s been proven that these periods of respite more than make up for it in terms of the productivity levels they provide.

3. Provide opportunities for growth

Delegation is a tricky topic for many managers, especially if they’re one of the founders of a business. Letting go and giving employees increased responsibility will not only help spread the workload but will also give employees much needed growth opportunities.

While there is an element of risk involved in the delegation, these can be negated to ensure tasks are given to well respected and proven employees. 

Handing out these opportunities will not only save you time they will also give employees a chance to prove themselves and help them to step out of their comfort zones and grow professionally.

4. Keep your employees happy

Probably the most important point of all. A happy workforce is a productive workforce and keeping spirits and morale high is proven to have a positive impact on performance. Happiness levels are also likely to lead to fewer sick days, fewer internal disputes, and create a less stressful atmosphere.

Tackling the above issues will help employees feel valued, looked after, and challenged which are three crucial components of workforce happiness.