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AUSTRALIAN WELDING | OCTOBER 2015
Business Essentials:
How to Enhance Workplace Productivity The need to ensure and enhance employee productivity is a reality that no business can ignore these days. If you run your own business, you’ll know that it’s almost inevitable you’ll encounter issues that, from time-to-time, weaken or even completely extinguish employee motivation, dampening overall productivity. Obviously, you need to mitigate these productivity-killers. The first step is identifying these issues, so you can prevent them from emerging, or eradicate them if they’ve already crept into your day-to-day operations.
Strengthen Your Leadership When it comes to strengthening productivity, begin with your leadership team. Effective leadership requires a clear vision of
where your business is heading. It’s about identifying new opportunities, inspiring your team to pursue those opportunities, and giving your team the chance to identify and implement their own ideas.
Eradicate Productivity Killers Identify any productivity killers that already exist within your workplace. Closely observe your workshop or building site, and pinpoint any issues that seem to be dampening employee morale. It might be a lack of communication, a particularly aggressive team member, a lack of learning and development opportunities, or something as simple as a shortage of supplies. Once you’ve identified the issues, eradicate them one-by-one. Foster A Positive Culture
Positive relationships between employees, teams and managers are a defining feature of productive workplaces.
Positive relationships between employees, teams and managers are often a defining feature of productive workplaces. A positive working environment motivates people and helps them feel like a valued member of the organisation. Employees are more likely to feel encouraged to ‘go the extra mile’.
INSIDE THE INDUSTRY: BUSINESS ESSENTIALS
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Value Employee Ideas
Set Clear Standards
Invest in Your Employees
As a manager or a business owner, it’s important that you value your employee’s insights, experience and knowledge. Ideas from employees who are carrying out the same tasks day-in and day-out can improve your processes and procedures, making your business more innovative, cost-effective, and productive.
Ensure that all employees are familiar with what the company expects from them. They should be 100% clear on assigned tasks and their overall role. Clearly define expectations, and employee tasks and responsibilities.
The more skills your employees have, the more productively they can work. More highly skilled workers make less mistakes, require less supervision, and are more likely to adapt to new technologies. So, invest in your employees skills training and development.
Encourage Innovation Innovation is key to improving workplace productivity. Productive workplaces are innovative in the way they use technology, and plan and organise themselves. They usually employ more highly-skilled and highly-paid workers and through innovation they are able to increase their market share.
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Without clear expectations, people find excuses when they fail to achieve targets.
Get Organised Productive workplaces have processes, procedures and a structure that enables growth (rather than contraction) as technology, clients and markets change. A well-organised workplace is more likely get the best out of its employees.
Communicate Clear lines of communication should be available at all times throughout your workplace. Employees should know who to approach if they need help, or have an idea to improve productivity. Company goals should be clearly and regularly articulated. Ensure all employees have the information they need to operate as productively as possible.
Maximise Your Earning Potential. Did you know? You may be eligible for internationally recognised qualifications without any further training or exams, particularly if you gained any of the following: Prior to January 2007 > WTIA Welding Inspector
Prior to July 2005 > Any AS 1796 Certs 1-9
Prior to July 2003 > AS1796 Cert 10 > AS2214 Welding Supervisor > WTIA Welding Supervisor
Give Your Company the Edge. Stand out from the crowd. Companies certified to ISO 3834 enjoy increased credibility in today’s global market. Certification improves customer satisfaction, and gives your business an edge.
Get certified by the WTIA. Show the world: You’re a cut above the rest.
Want to know more? Phone +61 (0)2 8748 0121. Email: a.dickerson@wtia.com.au Welding Technology Institute of Australia