OPERATIONS | Busy vs. Productive: Why do American Workers Waste So Much Time on Non-Value-Added Activities?

In nearly every workplace, no matter the industry, there’s at least one person who somehow manages to get paid to do nothing. Maybe it’s a pair of office schleps who play games all day to avoid filing paperwork, the lady in the cubicle down the hall who spends an inordinate amount of time working on scrapbooks full of cat photos, or the delivery guy who somehow manages to spend a few hours of every shift at the pub watching football. Goofing off on the company’s dime doesn’t just waste money – it unevenly shifts the workload to others, which can lower morale and start a vicious cycle.

Loss of productivity can break even a successful business. Workers waste time for a lot of reasons – sometimes it’s lack of a defined schedule or concrete deadlines, other times it’s a lack of motivation or a need to clear the mind for a little while. Either way, you can nip time-wasting in the bud by giving your employees regular breaks, putting accountability in place to make sure tasks get done, praising good work, and setting goals that allow employees to see their importance in the daily functioning of the business.

The first and most important factor in employee productivity is morale. If your employees aren’t happy, they’re not going to put as much effort into their work. Make sure you’re providing a work environment that makes employees feel valued – that means providing fair benefits, for one. It also means setting goals and making sure each employee understands their value in the overall scheme of the company. If they feel like their work isn’t important or appreciated, they’ll be more likely to waste time on the internet or talking on the phone, so praise is very important.

On that note, having deadlines – and being firm about everyone sticking to them – can be a big motivator. If employees know that work is due on a certain date and time, and that someone will be holding them accountable for their work, they’ll be far more likely to get it done. You may also want to set progress markers at certain intervals before the deadline to go over outlines or see how the project is coming along. Communication really is key – keep up with your workers and make sure their questions are answered along the way.

Take a close look at the company supervisors. Having bad bosses can be a huge obstacle to success in business. If the employees can’t get along with their boss, they’re not going to be very motivated to do a good job. Supervisors must offer praise, keep negative comments to a minimum, take ownership of their own mistakes and keep their promises.

Finally, you must accept that your employees aren’t robots. If you work them too hard, they’re going to burn out and do even less work in the long run. Have reasonable expectations and they’ll be far more likely to go about their work with a positive attitude.

Give employees regular breaks throughout the day – say, ten minutes at midmorning and/or midafternoon in addition to the lunch break – to get personal things done like phone calls and internet browsing, or to get up from their desks and stretch a bit. This also gives them a chance to re-focus if they’ve hit a difficult point in their work. All of these measures show your employees that you understand the need for a work/life balance, and that in turn will help increase productivity.

Non-Productive Meetings and Endless Emails: How to Avoid Them (Like The Plague)

It’s happened to nearly all of us: you get called to an important meeting, everyone sits down and schmoozes a bit, there’s some unfocused discussion and by the time the meeting is over, you realize that not much was accomplished. Idle banter that goes on too long, lack of an agenda and unequal floor time between attendees can turn what should have been a productive meeting into a major time-waster.

The first step toward a productive meeting is having an agenda. Outline what you want to accomplish during the meeting, and e-mail it to all attendees a day or two ahead of time. That will give everyone time to think about how they can contribute to the topic at hand, and will give the group a sense of purpose. The agenda should list the topics you want to cover, in the order you want to discuss them. Re-state the agenda before the meeting starts as a refresher for the inevitable few who only glanced at the email.

Don’t schedule meetings right before or after lunch, or at the very end of the day. Mid-morning and mid-afternoon are best, since everyone’s energized and less likely to be distracted. You don’t want all of your employees daydreaming about sandwiches, falling over with post-lunch fatigue or watching the clock, itching to leave for the day. Definitely avoid holding meetings during a meal – it’s far too distracting.

Have an assistant take notes throughout the meeting. Not only will this provide a record of what was discussed and what ideas were brought to light, it will also help maintain an air of professionalism that will help discourage idle banter and side conversations.

The meeting must have a clear leader who guides the group through each topic, and encourages participation. Encourage everyone to participate equally – don’t let that one guy who just likes the sound of his own voice (or is trying to make himself look good) do all of the talking. Make it a point to ask the quieter attendees what they think, and prod them for their own solutions.

Give each attendee an adequate amount of time to talk, and limit interruptions. If you’re respectful of their opinions, they’ll be more likely to provide valuable feedback. You want everyone to feel safe expressing their ideas in front of the group.

Stick to the allotted time for the meeting. Ten minutes before the scheduled end, the meeting leader should mention that you’re almost out of time and begin assigning tasks based on the discussion. Setting goals will help ensure that the meeting will actually help you get something done.

Time after time, after meetings have ended, the boss (or meeting organizer) gets bombarded with emails from employees about things that were discussed during the meeting. A good way to avoid this is to have a quick follow-up Q&A session later in the day or the following day after everyone has had a chance to absorb the info and come up with questions. Getting everyone together for this also ensures you’re not hit with multiple emails asking the same question.

Announce the Q&A session at the end of the initial meeting, so everyone knows they’ll get a chance to have their questions answered and there’s no need to email. Keep the Q&A session short and sweet, so it’s not redundant.