Employee productivity is improved from the top down. Employees, either consciously or subconsciously, emulate their leaders. If you want them to be more productive, you have to be more productive.
It Begins At The Organizational Level And Works On Down
Employee productivity increases when employees view their company as a productive and streamlined business. The number one thing you can do to develop this image is to stop wasting your employee’s time by having unnecessary meetings.
Most managers will tell you they have too many meetings and then, paradoxically, proceed to schedule a lot of them. Do a review of your weekly meeting schedule, how many do you have a week? How many of them are attended by the same people? Could you change it to reduce redundancy?
Making changes at the organizational level goes a long way towards increasing your employee productivity, but don’t stop there. Your work habits also are instructive and guide your employees.
Be An Employee Productivity Guru By Modeling The Behavior You Want To See
What you do in front of your staff matters, so learn the techniques of productive people and model them in front of your staff.
If somebody asks you what you are doing, explain to them how you save time or produce more using the techniques. Be specific in how you are more productive because people will be more likely to try the method themselves. Here are three techniques you can use to improve your productivity.
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Find an app that helps you get things done. For instance, a Pomodoro-style timer is a good one. Once you have used it successfully, let people know how it helped you and show them the app icon on your phone.
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Keep a daily results list, not a to-do list. We all know what we need to do every day, so to-do lists really aren’t that helpful. What is more useful is a results list. List the results you must have by the end of the day, only the ones you can handle and achieve. After a while, show your staff how the technique works.
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Have specific times to do specific tasks. For example, check your email first thing in the morning and then again during mid-afternoon. People list emails as one of the most wasteful times of their days. However, it isn’t the e-mails that waste your time. It’s the time we spent dealing with the emails. Learn to use the ‘flag’ function of your email. When you check them in the morning, mark those you must handle immediately. Prioritize the rest for the end of the day or after you have more important tasks completed.
Employee productivity is key to a company’s success. The best way to make things happen is to model the actions you want to see. This not only improves your output, but it also enhances your company culture. Employees look at your efforts and will follow your example.
Equal Parts Consulting is an HR consulting firm helping many small and mid-sized businesses maximize their potential. We consider employee productivity to be one area that is inexpensive to improve, but also offer the best return for a company’s success.
