When launching a startup, there are going to be endless hours of planning, preparation, and stress. From sorting out your business plan to working out how you’ll fund your venture, once your business goes live and you grab an audience, you need to keep your productivity levels up.
In business, there is never room to slouch. Even if things are ticking along nicely, problems can quickly occur which can send your operation spiralling out of control. For that reason, you need to manage your time effectively and pour all your heart and effort into keeping your brand a success. If you need a bit of help, here are some ways on how to maximise productivity and efficiency that both you and your employees can utilise.
Stop Multitasking
When you’re in the beginning stages of a business, we understand you’re going to have to wear many hats. There are going to be all kinds of duties you’ll need to perform in a timely manner to keep clients and customers happy. If you’ve got a lot on your shoulders, it’s time to learn how to prioritise your workload and stop multitasking. While you may think doing multiple things at once will get the job done quicker, you’re not going to be putting your all into each task.
Multitasking is what can break your business. You need to break big tasks down into smaller, manageable ones and concentrate on one at a time. That way, you can put your full focus into the task and make sure you’re working at your best.
Set Attainable Goals
Once your business is up and running, it’s vital you have goals in place to work towards. Whether you want to bring more customers on board, acquire new clients, or hit certain profits, just make your goals are achievable and attainable. While it’s good to set the bar high, if you’re raising the bar too much, you’re never going to be satisfied with what you’ve achieved thus far.
You need to set attainable goals for everyone in the business. If you expect too much from your employees, they may struggle to keep on top of their workload which is bound to hinder productivity levels and efficiency. From the offset, you should outline company set goals for your team so they know exactly what they’re doing.
Make Regular Training a Priority
To keep productivity and efficiency levels up across the business, you need to ensure regular training is implemented within your operation. There is always something new to learn in business, regardless of what sector you’re in. If you’re bringing in new tools and software, employees need chance to learn how they work and how to adapt them into their day-to-day routine.
You can also look into OKR training from 1ovmany. Their programme can help you align and connect your team to your business goals, give clear direction to employees and increase productivity through focus on goals. Never underestimate the importance of regular training. Without it, you and your team will be losing out and at a stumbling block.
Take Regular Breaks
While this one may sound counterproductive, in order to remain productive and efficient with your workload, it’s important to take regular breaks throughout the working day. If you spend too much time at your desk, this is only going to demotivate you and cause you to lose steam. Therefore, having time to stretch your legs and focus on something else is a must for boosting productivity.
The same goes for your employees too. Allow them to have regular breaks so they can step aside from their duties and have a chance to unwind. What you’ll find is when everyone returns back to their screen, they’ll be in brighter spirits and have the motivation to continue and do a good job.
Hold Team and Individual Meetings
As a startup owner, you will be in charge of monitoring and tracking employee performance. To do this, it’s crucial you hold regular team and individual meetings. These serve as opportunities to check in with the group, discuss the latest goings on within the business, as well as strategies everyone needs to take on projects and tasks.
Regular meetings are an absolute priority. While you may have managers further down the chain who keep a close eye on employees, it’s a good idea for you to be present in these discussions too. Allow the whole team to share their honest thoughts and opinions too. After all, if your staff aren’t happy, they’re not going to be putting their all into their work which will quickly become evident.
Encourage Flexible Working
One of the major things employees look for in a business is flexibility. Rather than having to adhere to the typical Monday to Friday, 9 to 5 pattern, more and more employees are attracted to the idea of choosing their own working hours. As a business owner, you need to appreciate that everyone leads hectic lives. The chances are some of your team will be parents who have a whole load of duties waiting for them outside the office.
Because of this, it’s a wise idea to encourage flexible working. As long as employees are hitting targets and working their required hours, giving them the option to pick and choose when they work can be a lifesaver and boost productivity. If possible, encourage remote working too. This allows your team to work from home without the need of commuting.
Set Reminders
It’s safe to say startup owners have a lot on their plate. To make your venture a success and to gain respect from industry peers, customers, and clients, you’re going to need to put the groundwork in. Because you’ll have so much to do to get things rolling, it can be all too easy to forget about an important task. Should this nightmare become a reality, trying to catch up can be difficult.
If there is one thing we can suggest to solve this issue, it’s to set reminders. You can set reminders on your phone that will alert you when a particular task needs to be completed by. That way, you can always be confident you’ve got everything completed on time.
Minimise Time-Wasting Activities
There are so many business activities that can take an eternity to finish. Whether it’s sorting through emails, posting on social media, or conducting meetings, there are steps you can take that can speed up the process without any compromise on quality.
For example, instead of sitting behind your desk manually posting on social media, you can automate it instead. This means important posts and updates can go out at certain times of the day without you having to monitor them. There are faster ways to share or get information than email too. Whether you send a quick Slack message or launch an impromptu video chat, connecting directly rather than via email is almost always more efficient.
A business can only be successful as long as everyone within the organisation are working to the best of their potential. This goes for both yourself and your employees. To boost productivity and efficiency across the board, there are certain actions you will all need to take and regularly do to keep everything running smoothly.
