It’s a simple equation. Improving staff productivity is likely to boost your company’s performance and profitability. So, what straightforward steps can you take to get more out of your people?

1. Improve the workplace. A cleaner, more orderly or spacious work environment is likely to boost employee morale and increase their motivation. Maybe it’s time to reorganise, redecorate or even move to new premises altogether. Always maintain best-practice health and safety standards, too; this will help to limit the likelihood of staff absence because of sickness or injury.

2. Keep the workplace organised. This will help you to maximise workflow efficiency by removing the likelihood of employees wasting time by not being able to find things they need when they need them.

3. Consider training. Assess the skills of your staff and consider whether sending employees on training or development courses could enable them to do their job better.

4. Assess absence and punctuality. If you suspect some of your employees are taking time off without genuine reason or if their timekeeping is poor, then putting effective policies in place can remedy the situation. These can include such things as return-to-work interviews for all absent employees, however short the absence.

5. Don’t let employees work long hours habitually. It can lead to a decline in the quality of their work. Moreover, if a staff member becomes over tired or stressed too often, their productivity can fall, while they could feel the need to look for employment elsewhere. Good management includes knowing when to tell an employee to take a break or go home.

6. Encourage teamwork. Employees are usually more productive when they work as a team. Teams can also share skills and increase their problem-solving capacity through collaboration.

7. Give incentives to staff. Rewards can be financial or non-financial. They should be tailored to both the employee’s personal needs and your business goals. You might offer family-friendly benefits (such as childcare vouchers or flexi-time) or pay a bonus when employees perform well.

8. Encourage openness. By creating such a work culture, you can get to learn about areas within the company you can improve. Moreover, employees whose opinions are listened to are likely to feel valued, which can increase their motivation.

9. Give your staff clear and achievable goals. If everyone knows what you expect of them, then your employees have targets to aim at. Such goals should always encourage employees to push themselves, to learn new skills and gain added experience.

10. Provide adequate resources. Make sure your employees have got the things they need to get the job done on time and to the necessary standard.

© BHP Information Solutions 2007