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Negosentro| Managing Tactics That Could be Killing Your Company’s Productivity |In the professional world, productivity is a key piece of the puzzle of success. Managers and employees rely on a certain level of productivity to allow a business to thrive; however, many things might be happening that deter true productivity. While everyone wants to strive for success at work, managers may be instituting practices that end up killing productivity. To create an environment where everyone can embrace their best work, consider avoiding these management tactics that can cause more harm than good.
Disjointed Mission and Goals
When you begin the steps to start a business, you will likely have great intentions; however, to have success at work, you need so much more than good intentions. You will also need direction and shared understanding. This shared sense of work can be created through a shared mission and goals that can help drive the processes and procedures. These give direction to managers and employees and help everyone remain on the same page as they take on their various tasks.
Micromanaging
While managers often feel the need to be involved in their supervisee’s work, this can be a common practice that leads to reduced productivity. Despite the manager’s best efforts, micromanaging may come off as controlling and mistrustful, not to mention that managers should have much more to do than directly watch their supervisee’s work. Increased attention from a manager’s watchful eye can lead to increases in staff anxiety, fueled frustration and even mistakes. These feelings are the perfect accelerant for an already struggling team and significantly reduce productivity.
Fear-Mongering
While fear tactics have long been disparaged for their lack of efficacy and results, it is important to note that fear-mongering at work has a direct impact on negative output. Fear can certainly be a motivating factor, but it can also lead to increased tension and stress which can negatively impact productivity. Intimidation at work is not only unhelpful but in certain cases, it is likely to garner the attention of human resources, if not a legal team.
Excessive Collaboration
In an age of team-based work, it is also important to note that there are times where collaboration loses its effectiveness. In the case of teams who have no clear delineation of tasks, teams can spend more time brainstorming with their wheels spinning than executing ideas. Not to mention that inefficient meetings that waste time are another leading factor in reduced productivity. By structuring your teams, projects and days efficiently and with intention, you can ensure that you have the right blend of collaboration, individual work and productivity.
Ignoring the Complexity of Life
Employees don’t have the luxury of fully disconnecting themselves from their daily lives, and managers shouldn’t expect them to. It is important to understand that each employee lives a life outside of work and there are times that those two worlds cannot be separated. Managers need to acknowledge that life happens and there will be times that their staff will be impacted by those other parts of their lives. By ignoring that these parts exist, you as their manager can create a toxic environment where staff cannot bring their full selves.
Lack of Clear Communication and Expectations
Communication is often one of the most common detractors from workplace efficiency and satisfaction and can often lead us to common workplace challenges. Communication breakdowns can lead to mismanaged expectations, unclear goals and dissatisfied teams. Provide your staff with tools and training to become better communicators so that you can improve corporate culture.
Productivity is often linked to success in a way that puts an emphasis on process over people; however, the reality is that you need to focus on people if you want to achieve success. Managers can either be some of the greatest support or the biggest deterrents in company success, and it is up to them to determine how they can adjust their behavior to support this type of environment.
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