“How to be more productive” is the age-old question that’s been asked around the workplaces for generations. Especially in the aftermath of COVID-19, when thousands of employees were suddenly sent home and expected to adapt to the environmental change, a lack in productivity swept the workforce. Those that weren’t used to working from their dining room tables every day were forced to face the distractions that come with working from home, while also being expected to produce the same amount (and in several cases, more) work than when they were operating in an office.
With this global pandemic forever changing the way we see the workplace, there are tons of companies that are making executive decisions to never step foot in an office again. And while things might certainly be getting easier as we settle into over a year of quarantine, we’re still faced with the dilemma of keeping up productivity, no matter where you work.
Thankfully, there are tons of technological tools that can help develop and improve productivity in your office across all employees.
Communication Software
This may come as a no-brainer, but any kind of communication software is imperative for connecting your company. Whether you are all operating remotely, starting to trickle back into the office, or have been commuting to work every day now, some sort of communication device is non-negotiable. This technology can take many forms. An incredibly popular example is Slack. Slack is an extremely helpful workplace tool that allows you to communicate with coworkers via written messages, video calls, and even phone calls. It can be used on your desktop, or on your mobile device as an app.
Other popular communication devices include video conferencing apps like Zoom or Google Hangouts, multi-faceted platforms like Flock, which allow you to schedule various tasks while speaking with team members, and integrated software like Tetra, which will automatically take notes for you while you are on a conference call, leaving you only to focus on the task at hand.
Task Management Software
Without some sort of technology to help you keep track of all of your tasks, remaining productive and on top of your work will be extremely difficult. Task management software is great for keeping you on track and organizing all of your files, paperwork, and projects, which will save you tons of time in the long run. This software will also give your company a competitive edge by boosting overall job performance.
And no matter the business you run, there are universal tools that can help with productivity across all departments and industries. For example, Wrike is a tool that helps you collaborate and manage different projects with your teammates. Wrike makes it easy to share and assign tasks, projects, and folders with your co-workers. This can also double as a tool that helps create transparency with your clients. You can give permission to clients to view your progress on certain projects, without granting editing access or worrying that they will disrupt the process.
Another similar, yet highly effective tool for helping you organize your projects and maintain them all in one place is Asana. Asana is a popular project management tool that streamlines team productivity and team collaboration. With this platform you are able to assign tasks to other team members, add people to ongoing projects, and monitor deadlines. Other helpful tools that carry a similar model include Basecamp, which is a simplified version for project management, ClickUp, which helps you manage multiple projects at once, and any.do, which allows you to properly manage all of your daily tasks.
Time Tracking Tools
Even if you are salaried or required to work a certain number of hours each day, utilizing a time tracking system will help you discover how much time you need to complete each task, and where your time can be better served. The best way to improve on your time management is to track it. Determining what your productive hours are vs. the hours that you find yourself most distracted will help you improve as an employee and determine the times of the day where you are most productive.
A great example of this software is Toggl. Toggl is an app on your phone or desktop that allows you to seamlessly clock in and out of work at any time that you please. Since you are able to create different categories of which you can dedicate your time, Toggl can serve as a sort of accountability tracker.
For example, if you created three different categories for meetings, team projects, and individual tasks, you are able to freely clock in and out of each of these throughout the day. This way you can easily see how many hours you spend on everything in a given work week. You can also create a category of time that you track whenever you are not working, in order to gauge how much time you may be wasting during the work week. And the best part about this app is that you can try out the basic plan for free to see if it is a good fit.
Other great examples of time tracking software include TimeCamp, which is a user friendly tracking app that allows you to manage as many workers and projects as you need, and you can receive a complete overview of your team’s performance.
Integrate Automated Systems
Much like project management software, transferring all of your files into a digital sphere is going to save your company tons of time and it will save you all of those headaches down the line. By automating, systemizing, and scaling your files, projects, and sensitive information, you are setting yourself ahead of the competition.
And the best way to achieve all of these factors is by turning to technology to do it for you. Look for places where you can automate the work load being done. By allowing a computer to do some of the more tedious tasks, your team will be left only to worry about the bigger projects. This increased productivity can lead to better collaboration, less burnout, and an effective end result.
Some great automation tools include 1Password, which is a password manager that keeps all of your sensitive passwords in one convenient place, across the entire company. It can also alert your employees when the passwords they are using aren’t very safe, and a tool that helps them create a random password with one click. Other systems that are great for the workplace include BetterCloud, a system that helps companies secure their data, Spoke, an integrated ticketing system that uses artificial intelligence to help solve IT problems, and Fleetsmith, a platform that collects data in order to track the health and status of all the company-owned devices.
We hope you found this article and blog informative. We always seek to add value to our relationship and look for suggestions. Don’t forget to contact ABM Insurance & Benefit Services for all your insurance needs. 800-362-2809 or www.getagreatquote.com