How To Be More Productive At Work
High productivity in the workplace means that your clients get the high-quality work that they expect of you and that your team continue to grow and enhance their skills. That said, productivity can fluctuate. This could be the result of external factors, such as world events, or internal factors such as a lack of resources or an increased workload.
Being more productive at work isn't just about having the tips and tools to help you. It also means that you need to be able to identify potential barriers and implement systems to help overcome them. Here at eras, we look at productivity tips as well as ways to ensure your team has everything they need to succeed.
What Could Impact Productivity?
There are a number of different factors that could impact productivity in the workplace. They can typically be categorised into external or internal factors. Here are just some of the issues that could lead to a decrease in productivity:
| External Factors on Productivity | Internal Factors on Productivity |
|---|---|
| World events - The COVID-19 Pandemic changed the way that many businesses worked and dramatically changed our everyday routines. | Working environment - With hot desking, hybrid working etc, workplaces can become extremely busy and noisy. This leads to an increase in distractions and a reduction in productivity. |
| Personal life events - Family issues, problems in relationships and more could cause stress and anxiety, which could carry over into work. | Training and development - Many businesses put training and development at the heart of everything that they do. However, a worker without the training and development that they need may find themselves spending longer on tasks as they haven't had the necessary training to complete them. |
| Health and wellbeing - Physical and mental health can affect our mood at work and how much work we can get through. | Workload - Workloads can fluctuate, especially with increases in demand, staff absences and new projects starting. This could lead to burnout and stress. |
| Financial difficulties - The current cost-of-living crisis together with other factors are putting significant pressure on employees which can lead to a decrease in productivity. | Workplace conflict - Sometimes coworkers don't get along. This can lead to tension and conflict, which could cause problems in productivity. |
| Travel and distance - Commuting to work is a struggle for many workers. A long commute, delays in public transportation, traffic jams and more can lead to long days and a lack of productivity. | Lack of support - A company culture without a focus on supporting staff or providing adequate compensation for work can mean that workers don't feel motivated and so they may not be productive. |
Tips To Improve Productivity At Work
Prioritisation
Some projects or tasks are a higher priority than others. Highlighting the importance of tasks can help your team to correctly prioritise them. This ensures that the most time-critical tasks are completed first, with other tasks being completed later on.
One problem with this method is that the prioritisation needs to be consistent across the team. Setting all work as a priority means that none of it is, and so your team won't be able to use the priority system to plan their workloads.
Communication Strategies
Clear communication can ensure that everyone working on a project understands what is expected of them. A central workplace with all of the information and resources that they need can help provide clarification when someone is unsure of what the next step is.
Another benefit of clear communication is that employees will be able to talk to management about any issues that they are facing. Management can then adjust workloads or strategies accordingly to support their teams and prevent burnout.
Time Management Techniques
Sometimes implementing time management techniques or tools can help you to improve your productivity at work. There are a number of different techniques that could help, such as:
- The Pomodoro Technique - This technique involves setting a timer and working until the timer goes off. When the timer sounds, you then set another timer and take a short break. Usually, this would mean 25 minutes of work, and then a 5 minute break.
- Time Blocking - It can help to plan your day in advance. Experts recommend creating two columns on a piece of paper, one with each hour of the day planned out and another for setting tasks. This helps you to stick to a schedule and spend less time jumping from one task to another.
- Parkinson's Law - This is the preferred method for those who need rigid deadlines. It could be a self-imposed limit, such as saying you'll finish a task by noon so that you can take a lunch break. Others like to use technology to help, such as unplugging their laptop. They have until the battery dies to complete the task.
Using Psychometrics To Identify Productivity Barriers And Create Solutions To Overcome Them
Psychometric assessments are extremely useful tools to use as they can provide a great deal of information about an individual as well as larger groups. With insights on behavioural characteristics, training/development interventions and leadership approaches, they can help you identify the best ways to improve productivity for teams and individuals.
Is The Quest Profiler® Right For Your Business?
The Quest Profiler® is one of the fastest-growing personality questionnaires in the UK. It has been used in the recruitment selection process and in training and development by some of the biggest companies in Britain. With three levels of detail available, you can gain incredible insight into individuals and teams:
- Standard - Behavioural preferences, leadership styles and team styles.
- Full - Sales performance, culture match, competencies, as well as all of the elements of the standard package.
- Premium - Leadership approach, conflict handling, Jungian type, emotional behaviours, development interventions and all of the elements from the standard and full packages.
How The threesixty° Assessment Tool Could Help
If you want a complete and comprehensive understanding of an individual, threesixty° is right for you. It uses feedback from a range of people to provide information on a person's personality, working style and more. It is a powerful tool and completely customisable, making suggestions on relevant intervention strategies where necessary.
The threesixty° provides you with reviewer details, an overall summary, a relationship summary, a competency summary, an importance summary, a behaviour summary, development interventions and an action planner.
Could Psychometrics Improve Productivity In Your Business?
There are many benefits of psychometric tests in businesses. In fact, a significant number of organisations around the world use them to not only recruit new talent but also support the learning and development of their teams. The insight they provide can highlight barriers individuals experience and help you to implement interventions to overcome them.
Integrating psychometric assessments into your current processes doesn't have to be complicated. The eras team can help you. Call +44 (0)1379 882279 or email info@eras.co.uk to see what we can do for you.