When you run a small business, you’ll generally start alone. You’ll take the bulk of the work onto your shoulders and do your utmost to run independently. This is primarily due to a budget issue. Many startups don’t have the funds to bring in a lot of professional help and mainly rely on the grit and determination of the owner to get the ball rolling. As you progress, you’ll likely outsource a little work to freelancers. This is a lower commitment than taking on permanent staff, but it will bring relevant expertise to various areas of your business and help you progress. This may be a graphic designer creating a logo for your brand, a web designer and web developer working in tandem to create a high-quality website for you, or anything else.
As sales start rolling in and you begin to experience more success (and consequently, more profits), you may find that you are suddenly able to start taking on staff to support your business and help you progress even further! Of course, when paying staff to help your company grow, you will want them to be as productive as possible. Here are a few pieces of advice you can follow to help your staff be as productive as possible at all times!
During the Coronavirus Pandemic
Let’s start by looking at the current world situation. At the start of 2020, we couldn't have imagined how the following months would pan out. We were living our usual lives and working in our everyday routines. In May, much of the world is in lockdown to slow the spread of the deadly coronavirus pandemic. Governments encourage us all to stay home at all times, only leaving if we are key workers or need to collect food or medication. This will likely significantly impact your business, and if your staff can work from home, they’ll be working remotely rather than in your commercial premises. Here are a few tips that can help you to help them be productive during these difficult times.
Prioritize Their Well-being
The first thing to note is that you should always put your staff members’ well-being first. These are challenging times for many people. Some will have experienced the illness themselves. Some may have lost loved ones. Some will be trying to look after their kids who are off school. Some will be struggling to adapt to being home all of the time. Anxiety, stress, loneliness, and feelings of being overwhelmed are rife right now. So, be patient and lenient with staff. Give them time to settle into working from home. Offer your support at all times.
Invest in Necessary Software
You may need to invest in the necessary software during these times so your staff can communicate effectively while working from different locations. Microsoft Teams is an excellent piece of software that offers instant messaging features, as well as options for remote meetings and conference calls.
Listen to Suggestions
It’s a good idea to give staff a way of expressing suggestions for things that will make working from home more accessible. The best way to get this information is to conduct anonymous surveys. This way, staff will feel more confident in putting their ideas forward. Small changes you’ve not considered before could make all the difference to your staff’s productivity. This gives you a way to tap into them.
During Day Operations
Of course, this will all hopefully pass at some point or another and we will be able to return to our usual routines. So, what can we do during standard times to boost our staff members’ productivity? Having a structure works for some people, perhaps even a to-do list or this daily hourly planner to have everything in one place. Staying organized can help streamline operations, and boost productivity along with the following:
Have Staff Clock In and Out
A lot of working time is lost from staff turning up slightly late, taking too long lunches, or leaving early each day. A way to discourage this is to have time clocks, where staff clock in and out. If staff are in work for the right amount of time, they’ll be paid the right amount. This is generally enough incentive to keep people on track and discourage lateness. It’s also beneficial for tracking staff members’ behavior. If someone is routinely late, you can call them to determine why and offer solutions to help them manage their time more effectively or resolve issues and lateness. To determine why and provide solutions to help them manage their time more effectively or fix problems that
Boost Natural Light
Natural light is essential in any working environment. Sure, artificial light can make spaces workable. But natural light regulates our bodies’ circadian rhythms and lets us know when to be awake and perk up and when we need to wind down and start getting to sleep. More natural light will let your employees’ bodies know it’s day, and they need to be productive and alert. Only consider workspaces with natural light; if you don’t have enough, you can always consider skylights!
Set KPIs and Goals
KPIs (or “key performance indicators”) and goals can help to keep employees on track with their work. After all, nobody wants to underperform. It prevents slacking, as they know they must complete their work to a high standard by a deadline. Just make sure that the KPIs and goals are realistic and achievable. Otherwise, they can have the opposite effect and can dishearten your workers, meaning they may reduce their efforts or give up.
These simple steps can help your staff to be more productive. Remember, reward generally works better than punishment. So, be kind and caring and positively push your staff in the right direction!