by Monica L. Garrett

Created on: April 21, 2009

To understand why too much work leads to inefficiency, we must first understand the meaning of being efficient. Efficiency means that a person is doing well and producing good, accurate work without spending any extra money, resources, material and labor than is necessary to do the job.

The more work load a person obtains, the less likely they are to be efficient in all areas. For example, a trauma surgeon who becomes overworked will likely be in surgery for many hours per day. Therefore, because the surgery is obviously the priority for the surgeon and his patients, less urgent tasks such as paperwork may fall behind. The surgeon will have to catch up the reports and paperwork that is behind and will not likley be as thorough or detailed as he or she may have been immediately after the procedure.

In this scenario, the surgeon has likely sent additional notes and reports off to be transcribed by his medical transcriptionist. This will incur additional charges from the transcriptionist. It increases the possibility for errors to be made on the reports. Therefore, it is less efficient than if the surgeon had completed the reports immediately after the procedure.

Another example would be a contractor who takes on a heavier work load than he can complete himself. He may then subcontract the work to others who are not as qualified to do the job. This may produce work that isn't as good as what he would have done himself.

This is true in all professions. The busier a person becomes, the less efficient thay are. They begin to prioritize in order to ensure that the most important tasks are handled and less important work falls behind. This increases the stress level of the person who has fallen behind.

Stress causes health concerns and lessens a person's ability to think clearly and lessens their ability to perform tasks efficiently. The more stress that is added due to too much work being given to the individual, the less the individual is capable of doing.

It is better to delegate tasks which can be handled by a co-worker or employee than to hold on to them and let them fall behind. Items which are delegated can be handled in a timely and efficient manner by someone who does not have too much work on their plate, so to speak.

When there is too much work to be done, it is time to have a meeting to discuss the best options for the company or individual. Everyone involved should work out a plan to reduce the work load. This may mean adding additional employees or hiring a sub-contractor.

In some cases, a computer program may be purchased and implemented to reduce paperwork or to ease a work load. Additional office equipment may be used. A temporary employee or virtual assistant may be the answer.

Regardless of the situation, it is always better to find a solution as soon as you've realized there is a problem. Procrastinating can make the situation more difficult to resolve.

The term efficiency means that a person or machine do good work without spending too much resources, that means energy, material, capital and labour.

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