How to increase employee productivity
It is a popular opinion that if a person is paid more then he or she will work harder. However, many employers' experiences have proven otherwise. Unfortunately, higher pay and more benefits do not guarantee better work performances. However, there are some ways an employer can increase their employees' productivity levels.
In modern times, most companies in the United States have forgotten what it takes to keep employees being as productive as possible. The company's owners or Board of Directors are more interested in the money they make than the employee's welfare. Thus, instead of it being a win-win-win situation between company, employee, and consumer, it is now a win-lose-lose situation. In some cases, it becomes a lose-lose-lose situation. Either way, the employee loses out, which in turn makes the consumer lose out.
In order for a company to attain its highest productivity and highest quality of product levels, all of the employees must work at their highest capacities. Therefore, the employer must understand what the employees' strengths and weaknesses are. The employer must then utilize all the various strengths of the employees. Additionally, he or she must address the weaknesses and compensate for them. Moreover, the employer must examine and address the issues that are affecting the employees' productivity.
For example, stress levels can decrease productivity. Employees who are stressed too much can become sick and this increases absenteeism. It can also increase the job burnout factor, which leads to absenteeism. Stress related illnesses also decrease an employee's productivity even if they show up to work. Not only does stress related illnesses cause lost of productivity, it causes financial burdens for everyone.
Thus, a company that actively seeks ways to reduce the stress levels in the work environment will increase productivity. Reducing stress may be as simple as changing the lighting or noise levels, or introducing aromatherapy techniques. Giving employees more time to make personal calls can also improve work performance. Even just having the employees take short walks or do stretching exercises can help quite a bit.
However, the employee also has a life outside of the work environment. No matter how much an employee tries to keep personal business separate from work, it's going to affect the employee's performance. Therefore, making it easier for an employee to cope with personal problems, while working, will increase productivity.
For example, many employees are single parents, or are parents of school-aged children. This means the employee has to deal with finding day-care, after school programs, or child-care during their work shifts. No matter how well the parent may plan for emergencies, there will always be times the employee will have to miss work because a child gets sick or has a dentist/doctor appointment. However, a company that provides daycare, after school programs, or allows a parent to bring their children to work will be able to reduce absenteeism. Having healthcare staff on duty in an infirmary will also help decrease absenteeism, if the parent can bring the sick child to the infirmary to be cared for while they work.
In addition, missing out on important school events can cause strain on family relationships. Strained family relationships will decrease the employee's productivity. If the employer permits the employee to attend the school event and then make up the hours missed (either before or afterwards), then everyone wins again. Actually, this should apply to all employees, since all employees need personal time off from work to cope with problems.
Every human being has some personal issues going on at one time or another. The employee may be going through a divorce, or may be suffering from grief or depression due to the loss of a loved one. They may have issues due to elderly parents or some other relationships. There may be some financial problems going on, or there may be transportation issues.
The low productivity could also be due to a lack of proper training or education. Or maybe it's due to a lack of proper equipment. Inadequate communication can cause decreased productivity. A company that assists the employees to improve their education and communication skills cannot lose out. Giving the employees all the necessary tools for success is also essential.
Providing counseling services and assisting with transportation are some of the most overlooked ways of increasing productivity. If a company can assist the employee cope with his or her personal issues, the employee will remain loyal to the company. That employee will give top performance to the company for as long as the company needs him or her to do so.
Basically, it boils down to this: a company that cares enough to invest in its employees, and shows the employee respect, will have happy employees. Those happy employees will in turn care about the company and will respect their employer. As a result of this mutual caring and respect, loyalty to the company's goals will increase. This loyalty, in turn, will lead to increased productivity and higher quality work performance. Higher quality work performance leads to better consumer experiences with the company, which means more repeated business interaction between company and consumer. Thus, it becomes a win-win-win situation, and everyone comes away completely satisfied.