When you are running and operating a business, such as a
warehouse, you need to ensure that productivity is a priority at all times. If
your business is not productive, then standards will slip, and before you know
it, you will start to lose customers and deals with suppliers. Taking decisive
action and remaining proactive is important, and when you do this, you give
your business a clear vision and goal for the future. There are lots of tactics
you may wish to employ to improve productivity, but what are they, and how can
they have an impact on your business?
Setting Goals and Targets
Before looking at implementing many changes, you first need
to focus on setting goals and targets. You cannot improve productivity if you
do not have a goal or target to work towards as all of your efforts will be in
vain. So, be focused when setting goals and targets. For example, aim to increase
production by 10% within the next quarter. Or, why not aim to empower all
employees over the next 12 months? When you are setting goals and targets, make
sure that they are realistic, but also think about how you are going to reach
them. When you can break down larger goals and targets, you can make them more
achievable and realistic, and you can create action plans.
Minimize Disruptions and Interruptions
When you look at the daily operations within your business,
can you see where disruptions and interruptions are happening? If you are not
looking for these situations, then you may miss them. However, it is important
to know that disruptions and warehouse interruptions can be avoided, and they can be
prevented. With careful planning and optimization of warehouse operations, you
can get a grip on what is happening, when, and why. If you are not focused on
the daily operations of your business, you can find that small or minor
disruptions and interruptions can escalate. Plus, they can become costly
and have a knock-on effect.
Focus on Motivating Others within Your Business
If you want to achieve productivity at all levels, then it
is important to focus on motivating those that contribute to your business. You
cannot do everything by yourself as you are not an island. Utilizing those
around you and motivating employees to do more and be more is important. If you
are not focusing on motivating others, you are not valuing their
role or the work that they contribute to your business. You are not
encouraging them to be their best, or do their best. This could eventually be
very demoralizing for employees, and it could mean that employees lose the
motivation to perform as well as they could.
Cut Down on Physical Meetings
If you are looking for quick wins that will help you boost
productivity, then look at cutting down on physical meetings. Getting all of
your employees or team members together in a physical location can be draining,
and it can be exhausting. It can also be very restrictive as well for those who
are perhaps working from home or working on flexi time. A lot of the time
talking and discussing issues at meetings can be condensed, and this is
something that you must start to focus on. Eliminating or reducing the
frequency and length of physical meetings will give productivity a boost, as
employees and team members will be able to focus on their roles and
responsibilities, and not minutes and briefings from meetings.
Reach Out to External Providers and Professionals
You are not expected to handle everything by yourself in
your business. So, with this in mind, do not be afraid to reach out to others.
There will be external providers and business professionals that can help you
utilize the assets you have within your business already. Plus, there will even
be those that can help you make better use of your time. If you are trying to
undertake everything by yourself you can find that you lack focus and
direction. This will then filtrate down to other areas of your business, and
before long, you will find that productivity ends up taking a hit. External
providers and business professionals will be able to tell you what you need to
implement or look at changing to get results.
Emphasize the Importance of Wellness
When you are focusing on increasing productivity, you can
often forget to think about the wellness of those who work within your
business. Your employees' wellness has to be a priority at all times. After
all, how can they give their best to you, and strive for results in your
business, if they are feeling incomplete or not as well in themselves as they
should? Getting to the route of problems encourages openness and discussion.
Plus, also focusing on wellness meetings and get-togethers can be beneficial
for your business, and essential for pushing productivity. To incorporate
wellness into your business, you can focus on reaching out to employees, and
finding out what they want to focus on. Gathering feedback from your employees
will help you create wellness programs that work.
Remove the Distractions
Are you aware of all the distractions there are currently
within your workplace? Plus, most importantly, are you aware of what you can do
to remove those common distractions? Creating a friendly and
welcoming atmosphere within any business or workplace is, of course, crucial.
However, boundaries and limits must be set and established if distractions are
to not overpower how employees work, and how productive they are at work. To
remove the right distractions, you need to monitor and carefully watch
employees and members of staff. See when productivity is spiking, but also see
when it is decreasing. Establish where the triggers lie, and then from here,
you can start to take positive and progressive action.
Focusing on Training and Education
When you invest in your employees, you can expect so much
more from them in return. You could focus on investing in advancing their
training and education, and you could also encourage professional development too. When employees feel
that they have more knowledge or awareness, they can then see what behavior and
attitude they need to have to improve productivity. When you can invest in your
employees, or in those that work within your business, you can also stand a
better chance of retaining them too. Staff retention will be better in those
that feel valued.
Empower All Employees
As a business, you want all of your employees to feel empowered.
When they feel more empowered and confident, this will shine in everything that
they do, and in everything that they approach. To empower employees, you may need to look at the culture
you have within your workplace or business. Is it healthy or are there toxic
traits that need to be eliminated? Also, look at what system can be introduced
that recognizes and promotes those that deserve it the most. A lot of employees
will resist pushing themselves forward for a promotion or better opportunity.
However, if you can be proactive about this, you can build their confidence and
morale, and encourage them to push for more. As a result, you can boost
productivity.
Utilize Communication at All Levels
There may be times when you don't know how to push things
forward in your business, and this is when great communication becomes useful. Being able to communicate at all levels can help you reach
out to employees, but it can also help you establish where problems or issues
are arising too. If communication is not being utilized at all levels, you will
find that you are often left in the dark about what is happening within your
own business. If you are open and honest in all communications within your
business, you will find that this will open up a two-way street. If you are
withholding any information or you are being private when communicating within
your business, you will see firsthand the negative impact this can have.
Celebrate All Employees
Employees do not want to feel that they are taken for
granted, or simply worked to the bone. This is why it is important to celebrate
all employees in any way that you can. This may mean giving them an extra day
off on their birthdays. Or, it may mean celebrating an achievement with others at a roundup or
meeting. Celebrate their little wins, and be proud of their successes. When you
are celebrating what they are working towards, and what they are achieving you
are seen as supportive.
Implement Autonomy Where You Can
When autonomy is introduced on a personal level (or even at
a team level), you will notice the impact and difference it has. When those
within your business are not micromanaged and have more freedom to control
their workload, you can notice a positive difference. To successfully balance autonomy, you must look at the roles
and responsibilities of employees. See where you can implement changes, and see
where further guidance or direction may be required.
