One of the biggest problems faced by employers is how to get their employees to be more productive on the job. There are several things that employers can do to raise productivity awareness in the workplace. Productivity seems to go downhill at certain times of the day and week. If the employer raises awareness about the problem, it will cause a rise in the production of the employees who might otherwise be wasting valuable company time.
Here are some tips on how to raise productivity awareness in the workplace:
Meetings
During the next company meeting, bring up productivity. Make sure that your employees are aware of how important it is to stay on task. It is a rare instance when you have everyone in one place. Make the most of it. Explain clearly what you want from your employees in the way of production. You must also make it clear that you will accept nothing less. There are, of course, times that everyone has days that they won't be as productive as others. There are always exceptions. The point is, you need to make it clear to your employees that there is a standard for production and you expect them to, at a minimum, keep up with that standard.
Orientation
When you hire new employees, there has to be an orientation period. This is the time that you let the new employees know exactly what is expected of them. This is the perfect time to bring up production standards. This should be the first in a series of times that you highlight production as one of the most important parts of the business. Without production, there is no company.
Company Handbook
It is very important that your company handbook outlines production as an important issue. Although there are usually misty references to production in nearly every employers handbook, it is important to highlight it in the book rather than dance around the subject. Make it clear in as many ways as possible because that will give you a better leg to stand on if an employee isn't living up to the company standards of production.
Reviews
When you are giving your employees their reviews, it is a great time to bring up production. This is especially helpful if the employee is one of the employees who has a tendency to slack when it comes to production. Reminding the employee in a one on one session could be the answer to the problem. If the employee you are talking to does well with production, bring that up as well. When an employee is praised, it will spread quickly throughout the company and others will want to obtain the same goal.
Rewards
Production is an important part of the company. In fact, it is so important that you company can't run properly without it. Therefore, it pays to reward those who are productive. Your company can run contests for productiveness. Those who are the most productive with have the opportunity to win awards based on their merits. This is a great way to encourage productivity. Your employees will be far more productive if there is something extra in it for them.
Discipline
Discipline needs to be taken if you have employees who simply refuse to be productive. You would be amazed at the ways that your employees can find to waste time. Some might even say to take a look at government workers to get an idea of the best ways to waste company time. Have a strict set of standards that you expect from your employees and enforce it where necessary. That doesn't mean you have to run a sweat shop. It does mean that you need to put your foot down as the boss and let your employees know that you will not tolerate unproductiveness. Make it clear the discipline that will take place if they don't follow those standards.
These are some of the best ways to raise productivity awareness in the workplace. Enforce your standards as much as possible. Be careful not to drive people away from the workplace though. You don't want to be too hard on them. Everyone should feel comfortable in their workplace. It is possible for them to be comfortable and follow production rules at the same time though.
