How To Keep Your Employees Productive

How To Keep Your Employees Productive

By Business Desk

Friday, May 12, 2017.

Your employees work around 40 hours a week, but they’re likely only productive for two thirds of that time. Making them work longer hours is not a smart solution; not only will you burn out your workforce, you may push them to quit if work starts to cut into their personal life. Instead, you should focus on ways to keep them motivated for longer. Teach your employees to work smarter, not harder.

Make it clear who’s in charge

Obviously, your employees will know you’re the highest authority at work, but you’ll likely be too busy to deal with every small problem that pops up. You need to have a clear system in place so everyone knows who they need to talk to about problems with their job. Pingboard can teach you more about drawing up an organizational chart to establish everyone’s role and responsibilities within the company.

Provide real-time feedback

Employees often cease to be productive if they’re constantly told they’re doing something wrong, but given no feedback on how they can do better. Without feedback, they’ll likely repeat the same mistake multiple times because they don’t know what they did wrong to begin with, or they will make new mistakes trying to compensate for what they perceived to be the original error. As a result, they will be frustrated and unproductive, and you will have extra work to do. Provide them with constructive feedback; don’t berate them for their mistakes, make suggestions for improvement, and highlight their successes as well as their shortcomings.

Train your employees

It’s getting harder to hire people who meet all your criteria, so you compromise with someone who is willing to learn certain skills on the job. However, expecting them to instantly know things can be overwhelming. Set aside to teach them what they need to know, and make it clear that they don’t have to present themselves as an expert. By doing this, you will have an employee who knows how to do their job well.

Use technology

There might be a fear that technology can be a distraction at work, but the benefits far outweigh the risks. Up to date machines will increase the speed at which your employees work, letting them do their job more efficiently. A company social networking tool such as Slack is faster than email, but doesn’t have all the distractions of actual social media sites. You can see which employees are most productive through the use of a monitoring app. Your employees can coordinate their projects and share files on apps such as Basecamp.

Reward their hard work

People work better if they’re rewarded with more than just a paycheque. Recognizing their efforts and contributions will make them feel appreciated and they will continue to be productive workers. However, you should remember that one employee will be happier with a private “thank you,” while another might prefer a more public acknowledgement. But either way, they will think more highly of you if you think highly of them.