Improving productivity by supporting your people 

Employee productivity has long been a priority within businesses. This is particularly true in the UK where for many years the total of hours worked have been high, yet this has not been matched by economic output, which has sometimes lagged behind. Whilst there may be several overarching economic reasons for slowing productivity, the subject has come to the fore again, particularly over the last three years as an increase in remote, flexible and hybrid working has left managers and directors unsure of how best to measure productivity.

In September 2022 Satya Nadella, CEO of Microsoft, expressed his concerns over what he called ”productivity paranoia” – essentially managers who believe that their people aren’t working hard enough. He highlighted the paradox that whilst leaders may think their employees are not productive, our employees themselves think they are very productive when working from home, and in some cases beginning to feel burned out. Research amongst Microsoft’s own employees had found almost a third experiencing “peaks” of working in the morning and afternoon, with some also later in the evening, with the overall average workday expanding by 46 minutes since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.

How do we increase productivity while reducing stress?

Gallup’s “State of the Global Workforce” research in summer 2022 found only 9% of UK workers feeling “enthused” by their work with 41% reporting daily experiences of stress. Clearly in the new world of locationally flexible work this is something we need to address, especially as it comes following a period of accelerated digital transformation in which many organisations have invested heavily in new technologies to both streamline workflows and generate increasing amounts of data and analytics. 

So, how can we begin to improve productivity and reduce stress? Firstly, by recognising the importance of employee engagement, and the role it can play in boosting performance. Long hours alone are not a sign that an employee is engaged. Instead, it is a combination of commitment to the business, belief in its values and mission, and a sense of shared belonging and connection with colleagues. 

How do we boost support for remote workers?

Probably the key downside of remote working is the potential for a lack of connection with colleagues and managers, as it is often these daily interactions of support, knowledge and experience sharing, plus general conversation, that contribute strongly to how an employee feels about their work. One of the first things managers need to do is to understand the ‘moments that matter’ to their people – the day-to-day micro-experiences and interactions that shape how they feel about their colleagues and their work – and work out how to maximise these. This won’t necessarily mean an increase in video meetings but finding a way to support knowledge sharing and conversation in the flow of work.

Closely tied in with employee engagement is wellbeing. We know that supporting the wellbeing of our people can help to improve engagement, reduce sickness, and increase performance and therefore productivity. To address this, we need to see wellbeing as something that is embedded throughout the organisation, its leadership and culture, rather than a nice to have benefit. This means having support in place, and ready to access, for those who feel they need it, without having to ask. Also training managers and leaders to be ‘mental health first-aiders’, capable of having personal conversations, and being able to offer support and guidance to those who need it in an unobtrusive way.  

How does technology impact wellbeing?

One factor that impacts engagement and wellbeing is technology. We have seen a huge increase in investment in HR and Recruitment technology from organisations in recent years, but the individual employee’s experience of using it can be mixed. They need tech that can support and enable them to do their best work, help them develop the evolving skills and competencies that their increasingly complex roles require, and to help embed connection, recognition and knowledge sharing within their teams and wider organisation. Whilst most businesses claim that their employees’ experience of using tech is a major consideration when investing, my research regularly finds that too many do not take this into account when committing to final purchasing decisions, which can lead to a poor employee experience, and resulting drop in engagement.

To be a successful business, with a truly productive workforce, needs a commitment to improving engagement, wellbeing, and employee experience.