Having a business is an endeavour full of challenges. Regardless of the type and focus of the company, there is no denying you will encounter obstacles that could potentially hinder productivity.
When you successfully start a business, it is of the utmost importance to know how to run it effectively and learn all the ways in which you can support and increase productivity. This way, with a well-established and solid team and taking advantage of the right tools, you can drive the business further. But it is essential to mention that this takes hard work and commitment.
Not to mention that, in today’s almost digital world, it is crucial to embrace the use of technologies and adopt an innovative approach when it comes to running a business. Otherwise, not only do you risk being left behind and becoming irrelevant, but your productivity and the entire performance of the company could be altered. Digital technologies are being implemented in business operations and activities more and more, given that they can streamline processes, support a seamless running of the business, increase productivity and maintain motivation levels high.
How is this possible? With digital tools, software programs and digitalisation of a company, in general, you can effectively facilitate certain operations, saving and optimising time and focusing on urgent matters when necessary. Plus, communication is well-supported, whether your business utilises the hybrid model, the remote work practice or is performing entirely on-site.
In addition to digital technologies, there are other ways to improve productivity in the workplace. So, if you plan on starting a business or you already have an established company, but wish to improve this aspect, here are five essential strategies you can implement to increase productivity levels in the work environment:
1. Provide The Right and Relevant Digital Tools
As mentioned earlier, digitalisation has become a crucial aspect of the business world. In this day and age, the use of digital tools, devices and various technologies has increased as these have become highly embedded in professional as well as personal lives.
This being said, it is of the utmost importance for businesses to keep up with the demand and current trends in order to remain relevant within the industry and market and to the target audience for which they provide products and services. For this reason, using the right and relevant digital tools is crucial. This means anything from organisational and productivity tools such as Google Drive to more specific ones intended to support and facilitate various business departments, such as accounting or marketing.
But the use of technology also means using large amounts of data. For this reason, one crucial tool businesses should make use of, especially large organisations, is hybrid multi-cloud solutions which ensure business continuity and build resiliency, given that the business can cut overhead costs and minimise downtime. Plus, with hybrid multi-cloud, companies can seamlessly use both public and private clouds.
2. Prioritise Your To-Do List Effectively
Productivity is increased when there is good organisation of tasks. In any business, regardless of its focus or type, it is highly necessary to organise operations and activities by urgency and importance so that things run seamlessly.
If this isn’t the case, there is a risk that deadlines and urgent tasks will overlap, which can result in hectically trying to solve everything while wasting precious time and negatively affecting the performance of the overall business.
For this reason, it is of the utmost importance to learn how to organise everything by importance and urgency. The Eisenhower Matrix is an excellent and effective method of creating to-do lists and prioritising. This tool will help you organise and manage activities by the following criteria:
- Important and urgent;
- Important but not urgent;
- Urgent but not important;
- Not important nor urgent.
By using this method, productivity in the workplace can be ensured.
3. Embrace Flexibility and Adaptability
Nowadays, work environments have become more and more flexible. Many more companies are operating on a hybrid model or entirely remote work practice. But even if your business doesn’t utilise any of the models mentioned above and performs entirely on-site, the need for flexibility has increased significantly, and employees see it as a great advantage when looking at job prospects.
For this reason, it is crucial to embrace flexibility and build a company culture that can adapt well in the face of change. Innovation and disruption go hand in hand, one influencing the other, which means that changes happen more frequently than they used to.
So, being adaptable and flexible is almost a requirement for many businesses nowadays. As mentioned earlier, digitalisation is more and more embedded within business models and supported by hybrid cloud solutions. This benefits performance, increasing productivity.
4. Build A Solid Team and Value Work Relationships
For a business to run as smoothly as possible, it is of the utmost importance to build a solid team, with each member and employee valuing work relationships and embracing open communication. This can be a challenge, especially if the business is quite large. An effective way of accomplishing this is by organising team-building activities meant to strengthen the team and support employee socialisation.
Another way of building solid work relationships and solidifying the team is by giving your employees the opportunity to grow professionally, both as individuals and as a team. This acts as an incentive, increasing motivation levels which, in turn, will improve productivity.
5. Avoid Multitasking; It Can Actually Hinder Productivity
Chances are you have heard about multitasking and how this is a quality many recruiters and employers look for in a candidate. While this may have been true at some point, it no longer applies nowadays. According to various research studies, multitasking makes people less efficient. In a business, this hinders productivity and can negatively affect morale and motivation.
When you commit to doing more things at once, whether those tasks are straightforward or complex, your brain has a difficult time concentrating and doing one thing well. Indeed, when it comes to simple tasks, this may not be too dangerous, but in a company where you are responsible for more complex aspects, multitasking is to be avoided, as it can impact productivity.