5 ways to increase your workforce efficiency
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Many different factors go into determining the efficiency of your workforce. This includes everything from the levels of staff engagement and the company culture to the management style and the morale of your teams. While that can make it difficult to know exactly what the best changes to make are, it also means that there are plenty of things that you can do to make your teams more productive.
So what changes can you make to improve efficiency in the workplace? From investing in a managed service provider to setting achievable goals, we look at five of the most important ways.
How to increase efficiency in the workplace
- Invest in a managed service provider
Managed service providers are businesses that provide a wide range of services to all sorts of companies on an outsourced basis. They can help with everything from IT services to staffing solutions and, thanks to the rise of cloud computing, they are usually available on a monthly pay subscription model that makes them more affordable than ever before.
A managed service provider that manages your staffing requirements on your behalf could be a very effective way to give your workforce efficiency a boost. Providers such as Indeed Flex can manage the temporary recruitment process on your behalf and make sure that you have the workers that you need to operate at full capacity.
- Work towards one goal at a time
Multitasking is a myth. Despite what you may have been told, humans are at their most efficient when focusing their attention on a single task. Workers who multitask might feel like they’re busy, but being busy and being efficient are two very different things.
To improve the efficiency of your workforce, you need to retrain your teams to think differently. They should set clear goals that allow them to focus on one task at a time. As well as producing better quality work with fewer mistakes, focusing on a single task can also be a great stress reliever and, importantly, less stressed teams are also more efficient.
- Give workers the freedom to develop their own routines
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We’re all different, which is why workers should be given the freedom and flexibility to develop their own routines. For example, while some workers are at their best after an early morning gym session, others might not hit their stride until they’ve had a stress-relieving lunchtime walk.
Introducing flexible working practices gives your employees the freedom to create sustainable routines that make them feel happy, healthy, clear-minded and focused on their work. The result is a reduction in workplace stress and an increase in efficiency. This has become even more important during the pandemic, with half of UK employees saying they’d quit their jobs if they were not given more flexibility.
- Improve the working environment
Creating a comfortable working environment is key if you hope to increase levels of workplace efficiency. It’s not just about making sure you have all the necessary equipment, such as ergonomic furniture, printers and monitors, in place. It’s also about creating a pleasant space where employees are happy to be.
It won’t come as a surprise to know that sitting and staring at a screen for hours on end with no fresh air or natural light can be detrimental to our happiness, health and productivity. That’s why breakout spaces, outdoor areas, greenery and sunlight should be embraced to spark your teams into life.
- Encourage your teams to take regular breaks
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If you think that taking regular breaks makes your teams less efficient, then think again. Numerous studies show that workers are at their most efficient when they work in short, sharp bursts that are punctuated by regular breaks.
90-minute sessions of uninterrupted work followed by a break to recharge are one of the most productive ways to work. That allows employees to maintain their focus without getting distracted or burned out. Once the 90 minutes are over, they should be encouraged to get up from their desks, grab an impromptu coffee, have a chat with a colleague or get some fresh air before returning to their work.
Increasing workforce efficiency is an ongoing process
Changing something so ingrained in the culture of your business does take time. However, by consistently assessing how your teams are working and identifying areas of improvement, it is possible to achieve the marginal gains that add up to create more efficient teams.
