Managing your own business can be time-consuming. However, investing in employees’ productivity makes it easier to attract and retain great talent. 

There are many benefits of investing in employees’ productivity such as:

Increased Return of Investment (ROI)

Recruiting and training new staff can cost money. However, when you invest in your workers, you have better control of your labor costs. For your business to succeed, earning and keeping your profits is important too. Investing in employees’ productivity helps your ROI by keeping workers engaged and motivated.

Employee Engagement

Employee engagement is one of the top priorities. When your staff is engaged, your business will see an increase in productivity. They don’t look elsewhere for work. According to Gallup, there is a connection between engaged workers and an increase in the output of work.  

There are methods to ensure your workers are engaged. Initially, hire great leaders. Then, develop good business practices. Research best practices to improve engagement. Conduct surveys and ask for input as well. Also, ask how you can improve their work/life balance. Can you offer flextime? 

Implement good systems and processes. If your staff feels ownership, they are more likely to work hard for you. Treat them as you would want to be treated too. When your staff is engaged, they are good at their jobs. They want to work hard and provide great customer service. Communication is vital to your people and their success. Miscommunication costs businesses $37 billion (or $26K per employee) per year. 

Employee Development

Many people leave their jobs for other opportunities. Meet with your team members periodically to find out their goals. Also, what can you do to help them advance within the business?

Offer training and workshops. Some people are born leaders. Find those who like to solve problems. Also, if you have a team member that has a natural ability to manage, what type of training could you offer them? Most likely your manager is already doing the job. Consider tuition reimbursement for your workers to obtain their degree. 

Hiring internally provides many benefits. Long-term workers who stay with the company will reduce time and money on recruitment and turnover. Plus, they already have a sense of loyalty. If you develop your staff, you will gain more time to work on other things.  

Team Collaboration

Investing in your staff makes them more likely to work in a team better. When they work together well, they can solve problems and become more innovative. Good team collaboration builds productivity. One study from Stanford found that those who work in a collaborative setting are 50% more effective at completing tasks and are more engaged at work. 

Collaboration is more than just working on a team. Create a culture that inspires your workers to collaborate. Collaboration can be more than working on a project or a problem. It can even be about automated processes and systems as well. For example, many ideas can be generated virtually. Team members can make recommendations and sign off. 

Another example is by using a time-tracking app like ezClocker. It will help you manage your employee’s timesheets instead of manually tracking their time. It will save you money and time by allowing you to view your employees’ timesheets in real-time. What other systems or processes can your team collaborate on? 

Collaboration can help reduce wasted time and eliminate repetitive tasks. What tasks or projects would benefit from team collaboration? 

Ability to Attract New Talent

When you invest in your current workers, you will attract new and top talent. Many owners may have a problem hiring even if they have great pay and benefits. New talent may come on board, but if they aren’t engaged, they won’t stay long.

Develop clear and open communication with your team. Good leadership skills are important. Develop yourself as a leader. Also, hire great leaders to work for you as you grow. If you hire one bad manager, you have a problem. You will have turnover and then you will have hiring and customer issues. 

You have the ability to attract good talent when you are investing in employees’ productivity. When you are hiring, your current staff will recommend other friends and former co-workers. If you aren’t a good place to work, they will not recommend your business. 

Low Turnover 

Replacing a staff member can cost anywhere from 30% of an entry-level salary. It can cost up to 400% of a senior executive’s salary.  

Investing in your current staff helps to reduce turnover. LinkedIn’s Workforce Learning Report states that 93% of workers would stay at a company longer if it invested in their careers. When you have a low turnover, you don’t need to hire much except for business growth. Motivate your workers. Sometimes the job is tough. 

Need an Affordable Mobile Time Tracking App for Your Employees?

Loyalty and Reputation

Disengaged workers have no loyalty. They don’t recommend others to work, and they will take the next good job opportunity. According to Indeed, employee loyalty is when an employee remains with a company for a lengthy period. They feel valued, appreciated, and believe in the company’s overall mission.

When your workers are loyal, they provide great customer service and increased production. When they are happy, they tell everyone about their fantastic job. Does your staff have loyalty to your business?

The more you invest in your staff, the more they are engaged and loyal too. When you have loyalty, your business develops a great reputation for being good to your workers. Be open with them and build good relationships. If your staff is happy, your business will do well. 

Investing in Employees’ Productivity 

Although some ideas are mentioned above, here are some ways you can invest in your employees’ productivity:

1. Invest in great systems, technology, equipment, and processes to reduce repetitive tasks.
2. Develop succession plans. 
3. Pay for certifications, degrees, or training. 
4. Hire great managers. 
5. Build leadership abilities. 
6. Offer good benefits and perks. Can you offer work-from-home opportunities sometimes?
7. Encourage your staff to discover their career paths. 
8. Include employee engagement goals with your annual business goals. 
9. Develop core values and a mission statement. Also, communicate your goals. They should help you reach your mission and values. 
10. Train workers on how their role helps drive the company’s success. 
11. Avoid micromanagement. If you don’t trust your workers to do the job, find out why and address the issue by training or termination. 
12. Develop an ideal workplace culture. Research best practices.
13. Invest in diversity to help discover new, innovative concepts. 
14. Training in great customer service is essential.
15. Develop a collaborative environment. 
16. Inspire your team to do great work and listen to feedback. 
17. Treat your staff fairly and equally. 
18. Evaluate your policies annually. What changes need to be made? 
19. Be creative when recognizing team members. 
20. Allow mistakes. No one is perfect. 
21. Can you offer flexible hours? It can help with childcare issues. 
22. Provide feedback on a regular basis. 

Final Thoughts

Investing in employees’ productivity isn’t hard, but it will take time. 

Each year, you should take time to set goals. They will help you increase your profitability and make changes. Ensure you set goals to improve the workplace. 

Make a timeline of how you can reach your goals. Also, share your goals with your staff. Their goals should align with the business. They do the job every day and may have some great ideas too. Also, they may know of good technology to do the job faster. 

Apply good hiring practices. Develop a handbook and write clear and detailed job descriptions. Also, think about what benefits and perks you want to implement to get and keep the best staff. 

Create an engaged and happy workforce. Invest in your workers by offering development classes. Offer support and communicate well too. When you do, you will attract and retain top employees. 

Author: Kimberley Kay Travis

Kim Travis has over 20 years of experience in business, human resource management, and leadership roles. She has specialized knowledge in employment law, employee relations, recruiting, management consulting, small business growth, leadership development, workplace safety and health programs, and writing business content.

Twitter Facebook