Business leaders need to stay alert about individual employees as many of them are not engaged in jobs properly. Individual tracking at work is now easier than ever, thanks to modern tech like employee productivity tracking software. The topic of discussion though is if you can track employee productivity without making it look like an unwanted process.
Keeping the fine line between employee monitoring and micromanaging can be a challenge. In an Accountemps survey, 59 percent of employees admitted working under micromanagement, of which 55 percent said that the system hurt their productivity rather than helping out. It is quite clear that no one wants to work under the “big brother” and no manager wants the hassle of being the “big brother.”
To avoid such collision inside your business, follow these four do’s and don’ts for keeping tracks of your employees:
1. Track individual performance to evaluate in future
The overall performance of a business comes down to the individual dedication and productivity of each employee. It is why it is essential to keep track of each employees’ performance. Using employee productivity tracking software is one way to keep accurate track and reduce the hassle. You also need to arrange one-to-one meetings to get a better idea of their performance and how well they understand the business.
With employee productivity tracking software, you can also track their working time. A benefit of it is that it helps to know the overall productivity, idle and wasted hours. Both you and your employees will get to see this data, and they can adjust their work style to ensure better time management. It is a great way to secure productive work hours and meeting deadlines.
It will also reinforce employee recognition and reward system inside the organization. Employees will be promoted solely based on performance evaluation and skill development over time. In a study, participants have stated that they feel more encouraged when their hard work is praised by their leaders and colleagues for the hard work they have done. Rewards like bonuses, paid leave, or any other incentives influence people to serve at their best, which you can do based on the performance evaluation results.
2. Stay close and provide feedbacks
What could be the reason for employees not reaching their peak performance? Well, they could be distracted. CareerBuilder did a study on 2,100 hiring managers along with 3,000 employees to find some answers. They admitted that phone text, office gossips, internet, and social media browsing are some of the top-ranking causes of distraction at work. As an employer, you need to show your presence to the workers. Spend more time with employees on the office floor, get close with a friendly approach, and get connected on social media. These approaches will help to determine their time-wasting activities as well.
You can also provide continuous feedback by staying close- employees tend to be more motivated when they get specific feedback on their work. They could be helping your business by handling customers or society in large. Either way, it is crucial to let them know how their actions are making a difference. Adopt a system that provides continuous feedback, this will help to motivate employees innovatively and more smoothly.
You also need to trust employees’ capability in getting their jobs done. With the current transition to remote work and the introduction of employee productivity tools, employees are best left to work in their way and believe in their success.
3. Use employee productivity tracking software
With proper use, technology can help detect productivity levels and track employee performance. Implementation of employee productivity tracking software will help to determine employee engagement at work without portraying yourself as the “big brother”.
The tool helps both sides to build trust by allowing employees to work in flexible hours. Employees can even attend personal work by pausing its clock, so you will know how much time an employee has given to work on a particular day. It prevents any doubt regarding employees’ attendance at work, which is necessary to keep them confident and feel valuable.
If the internet and social media usage become a problem, you can prevent it with the software as it keeps a record of running apps and browsing tabs. The software doesn’t record any of these when employees are logged out or taking a break. It is a win-win situation as both the employers and employees can prove the desired job engagement level with this tool.
4. Motivate your employees
As a business leader, you have to ensure that employees are getting a work environment and culture that motivates and engages them. It will prevent any reason for picking on the employees. A little, friendly competition among employees helps to stimulate without hurting anyone. It enhances employee engagement and participation as well. To keep a warm contest going, you need to provide a vision and a plan to achieve it. Having a plan makes the path of promotion more clear for employees while reaching organizational goals. Also, let them explore new ways of doing their tasks. You need to keep in mind that each employee is unique and so are their ideas- so let them find what activities suit for their best output. Inspire them to share new ideas and discuss them with the team so that everyone can help in finding new ways. It is a great way to motivate employees and value their opinions.
When employees get the idea of upcoming rewards or what incentives are waiting for them upon reaching goals, they get more motivated and try to increase commitment towards their employer. Not only your employees will get the job done but also make your organization more valuable by establishing a motivated and loyal workforce.
Use the proper tools like employee productivity tracking software to review employee performance and fix the goals for them so they can develop. Avoid reviews that focus on employee errors to judge productivity. After all, it is best to focus on solutions rather than looking for errors.