Managing a business can be a daunting task that requires excellent interpersonal skills and a strategic mind.
One of the most challenging aspects of running a business is making sure processes are streamlined and no time is wasted on unnecessary meetings, emails, or duties.
The following tips will help you cultivate a more efficient workplace, leaving your employees able to focus only on work that adds value to the company.
1. Outsource
Many businesses try to manage all of their processes in-house. While this can work for some companies, most small and medium enterprises would benefit from external expert input.
Outsourcing an expert partner to take on the burden of your marketing, manufacturing, or accounts, for example, can mean your employees can stick to what they do best.
In the medical field, outsourcing the pharmaceutical manufacturing process to companies like TriRx can help you streamline your in-house processes by leaving more complicated work to the experts.
2. Explore Digital Alternatives
There are many digital alternatives for tasks that have traditionally been performed manually. Technology can automate time-consuming tasks such as sending out marketing emails or scheduling social media posts.
If some of your employees are more productive at home, use virtual video calls or messenger platforms to keep them in the loop.
Maximise time management by using web and mobile applications that allow users to assign tasks to one another and keep a to-do list.
You could also ask your employees to keep a digital timesheet and then do a weekly audit of how much time is spent on each task using the digital timesheet’s stats and data.
If your staff find themselves spending hours on the phone with a particular client, it may be worth discussing with the client how they can be more self-sufficient.
3. Have A Daily Standing Meeting
In the US, $37 billion of salary costs for unnecessary meetings are wasted every year.
Some meetings are crucial to the development of the business or making a sale, but many meetings add no value to a company.
To minimise the number of meetings you’ll need to have throughout the week, hold a ten-minute standing meeting with your team every morning.
These short meetings will allow staff to give a quick overview of how their day looks and what support they may need, reducing the need for longer meetings later in the week.
Standing up during the meeting will cause people to tire more quickly, ensuring that people only share the critical updates.
4. Limit Interruptions
One of the most significant barriers to productivity is constant interruptions. If one of your employees has a large project requiring close attention, allow them to work from home or spend an afternoon with their emails switched off to complete it.
If your staff have more than one meeting in a day, encourage those meetings to be held one after another. This means a period of time will be blocked out for meetings, leaving the rest of the day to get on with other duties. This approach is more time-efficient than stopping work every two hours for a meeting.
These are just some of the ways you can make your business more efficient. The more you maximise your productivity, the more you maximise your profits and the better your employees’ job satisfaction.
