The Top Methods to Increase Productivity in the Workplace

Every leader is looking for a new way to increase productivity in the workplace. It doesn’t help that many people aren’t happy with the state of work today. It follows us everywhere.

Many employees wake up and down coffee to get ready. After that, it’s a long commute to the office. Even after leaving, workers answer emails and messages from bed.

When work affects the quality of life, it has consequences. Sometimes, we need to make huge changes. This is often the true answer to wanting to increase productivity at work.

Once a worker gets to the office, many feel overworked and marginalized. When ideas and efforts are ignored all week long, it can cause bad feelings. Feeling like a number, not a person, isn’t a good way to create inspiration and productivity.

Perhaps there should be more communication in the workplace. People should be seen as the unique individuals they are. Moving toward a people-centered environment might be the perfect place to start increasing productivity.

Factors That May Lead to Decreased Productivity

One of the things that can cause diminished productivity is a lack of morale. This can manifest in a variety of ways. However, once you know what’s going wrong, you can take steps to change the workplace.

A few of the common causes of low morale include the following:

Lack of Meaning

When workers feel as if their work isn’t meaningful, it can bring them down. Morale starts to decline slowly, so you may not notice it at first. Making changes to build meaning can increase productivity.

Toxic Environments

If work feels like a slog, workers won’t want to go. They can be stressed and disengaged with the low morale to go with it. This can lead to less productivity if something isn’t done to correct things.

No Incentives

Everyone wants to be noticed for their hard work. When that doesn’t happen, it can decrease productivity. Even simple recognition can go a long way toward turning things around.

Lack of Company Value Alignment

If a worker doesn’t feel they match the company values, it can bring them down. At first, it can make morale suffer. However, in some cases, it could end in them leaving the business.

Not Having Needed Tools

Workers should have the resources and tools needed to do their job well. If not, it can feel as if nobody cares about their needs. Adding proper tools can increase productivity and morale at the same time.

No Job Satisfaction

If an employee isn’t satisfied with their job, it can spell trouble. When there’s no excitement or job, morale can plummet. This can end up spreading to others in the organization.

Bad Leadership

When workers don’t trust, respect, or feel confident about leaders, employees can struggle. Leaders who micromanage, lack communication skills, or bully can lead to decrease morale and make people think about leaving.

Absence of Autonomy

As workers should trust leadership, the same works in reverse. Employees should be trusted to work the way they want, when they want. Not having the ability to own their work can cause morale issues.

The Best Methods to Increase Productivity at Work

So how do you inspire workers to be more productive at work? There are tons of ways. Making a change to the way a team operates is often integral to the process.

Below we’ll be going over several methods to ensure employees feel productive. You can decide which of them is ideal for your own team. Pick and choose a solution that works for your company.

Look at Work-Life Balance

The Remote Employee Experience Index provides insight into workers around the globe. It shows that many workers would rather be remote than work in an office. However, almost 40% of those remote workers spend more hours on tasks than those in the office.

Late nights and early mornings can lead to serious burnout. If this is a problem at your company, a change may be needed. This could be as simple as a rule that prohibits work emails between certain hours. Give people time to rest and unwind.

If someone breaks the rule, speak to them about it. You might be surprised how much this can help. It’s also easy to implement, which means less stress for you as a leader.

Sure, you might appreciate the hard work. However, turnover can be devastating in terms of costs for a business. Resources, money, and time are used to train new workers. It’s better to keep the good ones you have.

Of course, you can choose your own method to ensure a reasonable work-life balance. The point is to do something to give people space between work and the rest of their lives.

When you implement these things, you’ll notice workers are more upbeat and energized. It’s a great way to increase productivity in any workplace, no matter the industry.

Build More Trust

A Slack report about the future of work has interesting insights. It shows that 87% want their company to be transparent. Another 80% want to be more aware of how decisions are made.

Trusting leadership is essential to an increase in productivity. When workers trust you, they have better morale and may work harder.

It only stands to reason when you think about it. If teams don’t have that trust, they aren’t going to feel safe. This could lead to less communication and contributions from them.

So what should you do to foster trust? That’s up to you. Perhaps it should be something you build into your value system.

Being honest and transparent will go far if you choose to do it. Arm employees with the ability to see how things are going. Give them tools to track plans, so they know what is happening.

Reassurance and information are huge for connection, whether people are on-site or remote. Initiating transparency about the company can lead to success if the goal is to increase productivity.

Foster Open Communication

An open door policy is great – but it might not be enough to increase productivity. Instead, make sure you’re out there having conversations with workers.

Implementing stay interviews can be a method to increase productivity. You can learn why people stay at a company. It also gives you insight into changes they’d like.

In many cases, workers want things that are reasonable and easy to achieve. For instance, they might want to have more of a voice or wish that leadership was more engaged.

Some leaders have found that creating committees is another great option. Add a small budget and implement fun activities. Choose coaching leaders and think about initiatives the company can get behind.

In one case, this led to 32% more worker engagement. It also led to an increase in performance across the company by 28%. It’s definitely something to try.

However, you might wonder where to start. It doesn’t have to be something overwhelming. Simply make sure there are channels for workers to ask questions to leadership. And then make sure those questions are answered.

Support Worker Initiatives

When workers are passionate about something, let them explore it. Often, they have good ideas that can be put into place for the use of the entire team. For instance, the Be Well, Work Well initiative was started after workers were already finding ways to be healthy at work.

This initiative looks at social, financial, spiritual, mental, emotional, and physical health. With the advent of working remove, it also offers things like crisis child care reimbursement and psychological support.

When you invest in worker initiatives, it shows the company cares. Not only do you care about the workers themselves but the things that matter most to them. It’s a great way to increase productivity.

Remember the Small Things

Not every gesture has to be huge and sweeping. Remember the small things too. This includes educational resources, recognition, or bits of fun swag.

It might be surprising how small things can increase morale and show that leaders care.

Make sure that you are showing recognition regularly. Add it to your daily calendar and make a point of being sincere. These small things can create bigger impacts than you might expect.

Consider creating a messaging channel just for these types of gestures. Everyone can give shout-outs and keep a positive vibe going. Get imaginative about how you create this kind of appreciation.

In Conclusion

Every company wants to increase productivity. It helps with morale and can push the business to succeed. Making it an ongoing part of the culture is the best way to go.

Make sure you check on employee feelings to ensure you’re doing a good job. Surveys are a great way to check on the mood from time to time.

Building a positive and healthy culture can take some work, but it’s well worth it. Keep an eye on the big things, such as career growth and learning and development, as well as the smaller things, like recognition and social events. This will lead you on the path to increasing productivity.