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Employee Productivity guide: how to improve your workforce efficiency

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When you hear the term “employee productivity,” what’s the first thing that comes to your mind?

It could be finishing off allocated tasks on time, right?

If you feel that way, then you’re not alone. But the truth is that it is more than just that.

In many ways, it is considered to be the driving force behind the success of any business. It is because a motivated and engaged workforce does wonders.

However, the corporate environment of today works on a highly competitive level. Missing a deadline for delivering tasks or projects can have serious consequences. Not to mention the issues like stress and burnout are equally increasing. This sometimes becomes a major challenge for HRs and business owners: how to improve employee productivity.

Through this, we will deep dive into some effective and proven strategies with tips to enhance employee productivity and implement effective employee productivity tracking.

Employee productivity: An overview

Employee productivity is an evaluation of how efficiently employees are producing output within the stipulated time period. It’s basically a measure to establish a relationship between the output generated and the resources that went into generating it.

Employee productivity is usually measured through a formula.

Total output / Total input = Productivity.

As said in the introduction, it’s not just about getting a certain number that reflects an employee’s productivity. Other factors also play a key role here that are qualitative in nature. This includes accuracy, focus, problem-solving skills, engagement, teamwork, overall environment, etc.

High employee productivity reflects that the employee is using their time, resources provided by the organisation, and skills efficiently. This will eventually lead to enhanced performance.

On the flip side, low productivity takes place due to issues like a lack of motivation. These can create serious consequences in the long run if not addressed promptly.

Employee productivity: Does it matter to businesses?

Boosting employee productivity in business

The quick answer is yes. When an organisation is focused on enhancing employee productivity, it unlocks exponential growth. Besides, it matters to business because,

It increases revenue:

One of the most direct benefits of high employee productivity is profitability. Productive employees produce more in less time, effectively reducing your operational costs.

Gives a competitive edge in the market:

Productive employees get more output for the same or less input, so that higher profits are earned with no increase in headcount. Emphasizing the development of a productivity culture will enable your organization to work smarter, faster, and better – creating an undeniable edge against less productive rivals.

Engagement gets better:

Enhanced employee productivity often represents better employee satisfaction. Increased efficiency, coupled with the effective and meaningful work by employees, directly correlates with an enhancement in job satisfaction. This is vital as it can result in reduced turnover costs.

It makes business scalable:

Strong productivity is essential for scaling. More work from your workers means more revenues and greater profits. Therefore, investing in advanced technologies and automation is necessary. This includes providing them with thorough training so that they can automate their workflow seamlessly.

It brings innovation:

An organization’s innovation potential is directly proportional to its productivity at the workplace. Staff who are more productive find they have available time and cognitive resources to concentrate on other duties. This lets them get out of doing the minimal work and focus on looking for new ideas and creative alternatives.

How to measure employee productivity?

Metrics for employee productivity

Now, it’s time to look at how one can measure employee productivity.

Quantitative metrics:

Output per task:

This works well for roles with clear deliverables. You can track projects completed within specific timeframes. These provide concrete data but may not capture quality or complexity.

Goal-based tracking:

This means defining SMART goals and tracking progress toward achieving them.

Time productivity:

This includes project completion times, meeting deadlines, or time-to-completion ratios.

Qualitative metrics:

Quality evaluation:

This examines the standard of work through peer reviews, customer feedback, error rates, or revision requirements. Effective in preventing the “quantity over quality” trap.

360-degree feedback:

An effective metric that collects insights from managers, peers, and direct reports, giving a complete picture of an employee’s performance.

Clientele response:

This metric reflects how employees are meeting client expectations and contributing to customer satisfaction.

Goal-directed metrics:

OKRs:

The system for defining an objective and 3-5 measurable, quantifiable scores to track progress toward that goal. By fostering alignment, engagement, and transparency, this approach makes employees more accountable for their work.

Project deliverables:

These are the tangible or measurable metrics, as they measure outputs produced as part of a project. They can be anything from a report, software feature, marketing campaign, design, presentation, etc.

AI tools & software:

HRMS & payroll software help organizations measure productivity objectively, monitor progress, and make smarter decisions. They provide a complete system that balances efficiency, quality, and results for better workforce performance.

How to make employees more productive?

Making employees more productive at work

There are several ways to improve employee productivity. Let’s take a look at them.

Set clear organisational goals:

High performance occurs only when clarity exists, and when workers have established realistic and measurable goals, it is clear what they expect. They can move forward knowing they have a clear pathway ahead of them to look at what they are accomplishing along the way. This will greatly secure your team from getting diverted and ensure that their efforts are toward a shared vision.

Build a healthy workspace:

The physical environment greatly impacts productivity. By adding features of natural lighting, ventilation, and plants, an organization will create a place that not only inspires moods but also boosts focus. In essence, a well-designed workspace becomes an inspiration for performance improvement.

Work-life balance matters:

Unchecked burnout is the productivity killer. Others – such as dismissed staff members or team members alienated by inflexible hours and inadequate respect for personal time – are disengaged. This can affect the overall workflow greatly.

Be an inspiration:

A leader is someone who does more than delegate tasks — the person inspires. Leaders who kick back, lead with integrity, and trust the team are better positioned for unlocking ultra-performance.

Give sincere and honest feedback:

Employees value honest and sincere feedback. Managers and HR should address work-related issues constructively, present areas that are limiting them, and foster a positive environment where mistakes are not seen as a finality of job loss.

Establish transparent communication:

Inefficient communication channels kill productivity. Employees waste time shuffling between a dozen different ways to communicate when they could be focused on their work. Stick to a single tool like Superworks and communicate efficiently. The simpler you can make the communication channel, the faster decisions can be made, and employees will act upon them promptly.

Provide training and opportunities:

Investing in employee growth drives business success. When staff see management’s effort in providing training and career opportunities—and these are clearly communicated—they feel motivated and respond with greater enthusiasm.

Build a positive environment:

When a corporation creates an environment of respect and inclusiveness, employees are inspired to produce and perform at their highest levels. Such camaraderie will also help ensure high morale and great productivity.

Acknowledge the victories of your employees:

People tend to go beyond their limits and perform beyond expectations when they receive recognition and affirmation. The recognition does not uniformly need to be magnanimous. It is enough for it to be simple, timely, and specific. Therefore, when an employee hits a benchmark in the workforce, and you recognize them in a meeting or send a brief moment of recognition, the impression is overwhelmingly positive on the entire staff.

Automating manual tasks:

Nothing frustrates employees more than performing monotonous repetitive tasks, as they take up their entire time and energy. They prevent employees from focusing on more meaningful and complex projects. Implementing automation in the operations can make a stark difference. This way, you and your workforce can spend more time working on strategies that bring growth.

Tools that can improve employee productivity for your business

Tools for employee productivity in business

When we talk about how to increase employee productivity in the workplace, investing in some tools is critical. This includes,

Communication tool

Having a communication platform to interact with team members is extremely important. The biggest benefit of it is that it brings all the employees on one platform. This makes performing tasks such as quick chat, collaboration, file transferring, project sharing, major updates, etc., easy.

Project management tool

These tools are extremely important for getting insights into tasks and project management. Tools like Superworks deliver exceptional results when it comes to project management. It allows managers to organise, track progress, and manage multiple projects with ease.

Time monitoring tool

As a manager, it is necessary to know how much time an employee is taking to complete one specific task. This will provide insight into an employee’s productivity levels. Superworks is such an effective time monitoring tool that it gives you a real-time update on tasks that are completed, in progress, and pending etc.

Workflow automation tool

Productivity starts the moment you decide to automate tedious and time-consuming tasks. Superworks automates attendance tracking, leave management, shift management, performance management, payroll processing, compliance, and more. It’s extremely swift and completely secure.

How Super Track helps businesses boost employee productivity?

Employee productivity is a lot more than just getting work done. It’s getting work done smartly. When everything is in place, the workforce will push the boundaries and create high performance. That’s what Super Track delivers. From automating routine tasks to tracking performance and payroll, managing attendance and onboarding, as well as projects, it really frees your team to focus on what matters. Do not manage your employees; empower them. Book a demo and boost employee productivity in your organization.

Alpesh Vaghasiya

The founder & CEO of Superworks, I'm on a mission to help small and medium-sized companies to grow to the next level of accomplishments.With a distinctive knowledge of authentic strategies and team-leading skills, my mission has always been to grow businesses digitally The core mission of Superworks is Connecting people, Optimizing the process, Enhancing performance.

Superworks is providing the best insights, resources, and knowledge regarding HRMS, Payroll, and other relevant topics. You can get the optimum knowledge to solve your business-related issues by checking our blogs.

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