6 Ways To Increase Employee Productivity

Your employees. Hire the wrong ones and you are asking for trouble. But even if your hiring process is sound enough to ensure you're surrounded by stars, those employees can often produce more with a little help from above.

1) Encourage Often, And Criticize Only When It's Constructive
Sure, the screaming may work short-term and sometimes it just plain relieves your stress. But to ensure that your employees operate at full speed, challenge them to do their best work as you encourage and foster pride. Give them a difficult job to do and let them know how confident you are in their abilities. If they've made an error, encourage them to take a closer look next time, rather them embarrassing them. Sure, there's a fine line between being a nice boss and being a doormat, but just make sure that while you are firm, you are fair and helpful.

2) Open Communication
Listen to employee suggestions and complaints. Pay close attention to the problems in your company and you may just be presented with golden opportunites to enhance both employee productivy as well as customer satisfaction.

3) Money Makes A Difference
As idealistic as we may want to be, the enticement of a raise or bonus when it's earned can go a very long way in motivating an employee. Consider creating a schedule that outlines future increases/bonuses to further motivate and increase productivity.

4) Whenever Possible, Make Work Fun
Or at the very least, interesting. Look at your employees as if you were a psychologist. What makes them tick? What makes them tick faster? Use that whenever possible. Promote engagement by instilling fun into a boring job. Turn on music, allow pets to come into the office once in a while, set up a company dinner or even a night out at a bar. Or anything else you feel may up the "fun factor".

5) Leverage Online Tools
There are many websites that assist with productivity. Here are a few to investigate:

www.horsesmouth.co.uk
www.springpadit.com
www.stress.org.uk
www.walkjogrun.net
www.rememberthemilk.com
www.xobni.com
www.bubbletimer.com

6) When All Else Fails, Increase Workload
This last one may not seem in line with the first five--there's surely no touchy-feely vibe here. But have you ever noticed how a person's focus increases when they're presented with a deadline? Consider a test of sorts. Increase the workload of an employee substantially--not so much to force him or her to quit (or to send you hate mail), but enough that a re-focussing of effort occurs. Nine times out of ten, the newly increased workload will be completed. Sure, there may be a few gripes to contend with but don't be surprised if things work out just fine.