How to increase productivity for your small business- Dukka
A business owner always wants to do more for their business. And the majority of the time, the owner’s desire and will are what motivate them every day. But occasionally, there might be issues that prevent them from being productive.
Productivity is crucial to maintaining the success of small businesses. Read on to discover what hacks you should employ in your business, as we look at the different ways you can increase productivity.
- Do away with activities that waste time.
You and your workers must be focused if you want to increase output. Even the most enthusiastic and involved employees will allow their thoughts to wander, so every hour spent at your business needs to be valuable.
Reduce the chance of taking unnecessary breaks to stay productive. During working hours, turn off or at least mute any distracting phone applications. Disable phone notifications, or even better, switch off the device and store it in a desk drawer.
- Automate as many processes as you can.
If you’ve been in business for a while, you’re aware that many tasks and processes are still carried out by hand. Frequently, these are simple but crucial tasks.
What if, however, those tasks were automatable, allowing you and your team to devote more of your time to more challenging tasks?
Consider investing in software that automates as many of your business processes as possible after analyzing your business operations. By doing this, you can finish the tedious work quickly and free your staff to focus on other tasks.
- Learn from your team.
Do you find it difficult to understand why some tasks take so long? Have you looked through every step of the procedure but are still unable to identify a trouble spot that could be streamlined? Asking your employees—who would know better than you—can be one way to find solutions to these issues.
Because they go through these procedures on a daily basis, your employees are the ones who are knowledgeable about the specifics of each process. Ask questions out of genuine curiosity rather than with malice when looking into potential areas for improvement. Instead of requesting an explanation for why something takes so long, you might phrase your query as an invitation to assist in improving the procedure.
- Delegate less important tasks
Delegation is crucial to increasing productivity, whether you’re a sole proprietor or you have a staff of workers at your disposal. You can accomplish more with your limited time if you delegate tasks to staff members because they can collaborate on projects rather than wait for you to finish.
Simpler tasks like blog post writing and social media management can be given to a member of your marketing team. Less seasoned workers can also take advantage of this chance to learn about new roles and responsibilities.
- Outsource what you can’t automate
Automation has its limits. It often can’t handle high levels of complexity and doesn’t provide the human touch that some tasks require. But instead of assigning a regular employee to every item on your to-do list, you should consider outsourcing.
The best tasks to outsource are those that are time-consuming and require expertise or sheer manpower that’s beyond your current hiring budget, such as accounting, social media management, or customer service calls. Be wary, though, of over-outsourcing. Some tasks require an intimate understanding of your brand, your processes, or your customers’ needs and are best handled by people close to the organization.
- Create favourable working conditions
Comfortable, pleasant working conditions boost productivity, so put some thought into the design of your work area. While you should encourage your staff to reduce the clutter at their desks or workstations, it’s up to you as the business owner to maintain a healthy work environment.
Good working conditions include a comfortable temperature, quality indoor air, noise reduction strategies that minimize unwanted sounds, and sufficient lighting in all work areas. Concentrate on optimizing these to reduce any discomfort that might chip away at productivity.
In conclusion:
As a small business owner, you don’t have a vast team to satisfy your business requirements. So, improving productivity for your small business is vital for your short and long-term success.
By using productivity hacks like the ones listed here, you can change your working habits for the better and increase the efficiency of your workforce.
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About Dukka
Dukka is a leading bookkeeping and payments app. We provide solutions for bookkeeping, payments, cash flow management, and access to finance for small businesses in Africa. We are building an OS for commerce for African merchants.
To learn more about what Dukka is doing or to have a general chat, visit Dukka.com.
