How Your Business Can Improve its Productivity

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Even if your business is running like a well-oiled machine, it may still be unproductive in several areas. A product could be modified for better results, or tasks could be delegated more efficiently. In this article, we look at some of the ways you can improve the productivity of your business by implementing some simple but highly effective productivity strategies. 

Delegate Tasks 

At first, it might seem as though you’re taking a risk, delegating important tasks to staff. The chances are they will carry some inexperience and possibly get things wrong, costing you lost revenue and a reduction in productivity. The reality is, however, if you do not delegate tasks, and retain a core team to do everything, you reduce morale and de-incentivise staff, which carries more risk.

On the other hand, if you delegate meaningful business tasks to employees with a proven track record, you increase morale and motivation, whilst also getting the world done to a high standard. The key to success with this strategy is to select the best workers for the job. Choose those who qualify through effort or seniority. 

Delegating tasks in this way gives staff the opportunity to feel part of the company at a collective level. This brings energy, enthusiasm, and new motivation to your business environment – it also has the added benefit of diversifying the workload, meaning that more people can carry out important work and instruct newer staff. 

Reduce Distractions

Distractions are a huge productivity killer. It’s so easy to get a little bored at work and switch on your social media account. As you passively read through an assortment of random articles and updates from friends, your workload slowly grows. Today, this is worse than ever, especially since every employee has a mini-computer in their pockets. 

As a business owner, it’s in your interest to reduce these distractions and increase the productivity of your workforce when they’re on shift. But how do you do this without banning their devices and affecting their morale and motivation? The answer is productivity management. Banning smartphones is not an answer, but allowing your staff ample time to check their accounts keeps up the morale. 

Explain to your employees that they can check their phones at certain intervals throughout the day, however, when they are at their desks, or on a shift in their home office, it’s against company policy to procrastinate on the phone. If you approach the issue with fairness and understanding, your employees are more likely to respond appropriately. 

Remote Testing 

You can significantly improve the productivity of your business with a process called remote unmoderated testing. This is online software that is used to test websites and mobile applications and to gather data about user interactions; more information can be found at Userzooms guide to remote unmoderated usability testing. This data is very valuable and can be used to modify your business for higher performance value. 

The data the research gathers is both quantitative and qualitative. It is particularly valuable as it is collected from a user’s natural environment and thus captures useful behavioural data that could not be simulated otherwise. The data collection is automated and remote; it does not impinge upon the user whatsoever and allows the gathered data to be seamlessly integrated into the business model.

Remote unmoderated testing can also include A/B testing, surveys, and true intent studies with a range of productivity benefits for your business. A/B testing is the most efficient way to test a product or process and optimize it, surveys give you valuable user feedback to adapt your product, and true intent studies give you an important understanding about the quality of your website traffic.

Productivity Strategies 

It’s enough to rely on your staff’s motivation levels. Of course, you would hope they are motivated for the work and you probably also hired them carefully; but the reality is that even the most highly skilled and energetic workers might reduce their productivity levels over time, especially if they are not suitably challenged.

Luckily there is a range of strategies that work well to improve your employee’s productivity levels without the pressure to perform better. The 80/20 rule states that 80% of an employees output is based on 20% of their efforts. The reason for the inefficiency might be due to procrastination or inattention. This means that the most important business tasks need to be prioritised to meet the 20% of staff efforts.

This can be achieved in several ways. A staff survey will tell you when your staff feel they are at their most productive. Some people are morning people, for instance, but others take a long time to get started. Particularly with a digital workspace, or home office environment, you should be able to assign priority work bases on individual productivity factors.  

Incentivise Staff 

If your workers feel as though they only work for the company but don’t feel invested in it, it can lead to a drop in productivity levels. This is where incentives and perks become useful. When a company offers free tickets, reduced memberships, and regular community events, staff feel more connected to the company and foster a more productive attitude towards their work. 

There are several ways to incentivise staff in this way. You can buy tickets for concerts and sporting events, or strike a deal with a local gym for reduced membership offers. Perks like these can be offered to staff in the form of a competition or as a reward for exceptional work. It’s important to remember that your incentives have to be things your staff want, so ensure you take a survey to find out. 

One other excellent way to incentive your workforce and bring more meaning to the company culture is to organise regular community days. These could be annual events or seasonal activities. These events will be a chance for staff to introduce family members to the company and for colleagues to meet outside of work. When employees feel the company values their family life, it motivates them in new ways.