With the help of modern tech, businesses have changed in a very real way. Consider telecommuting as an example. Ten years ago, only the invaluable members of the firm would have been allowed the privilege. Why? It’s because companies didn’t trust their staff or see the benefits of home-based work.
Today, the stats are in and the figures are rising through the roof.
The cynical among you will notice one problem: productivity. Trusting workers is one thing, but measuring their output is another. And, it’s not just remote employees who are difficult – the in-house staff is tricky too. To see whether they measure up, here’s what you need to do.
Invest In IT
Modern companies rely on the internet more than any other tool. Without it, there is bound to be downtime and it will lower lead generations, sales, and profits. If there are three reasons to invest in information technology, it is these. Another barnstorming excuse is measurability. Businesses with no managed services throughout the office will struggle to track output, whether at home or in the workplace. Even if the data is available, it takes an expert to break it down and make it legible. The first step, then, is to build a bigger and better IT team.
Redefine Success
There is no need to reinvent the wheel. However, bosses shouldn’t take previous markers of success as evidence either. We already know that the industry has changed, so why stick with outdated methods? Measuring time is a perfect illustration of this in action. Managers see that an employee has clocked in early and out late and assume he/she is a hard worker. There’s a chance they are gaming the system to look good. To spot the genuine grafter from the faker, it’s a good idea to measure tasks. How many do they complete in a day compared to their colleagues, comparatively?
Analyze Results
It’s easy to bag a win and celebrate. In fact, it’s the most natural thing in the world. It’s also a missed opportunity. Reverse engineering a lead or a conversion can tell you a lot about the company, not to mention the workforce. The way it works is simple: you ask a contact to provide as much info as possible. Of course, don’t frame it in that way. Instead, see if they’ll complete a short questionnaire. From the answers, such as “how did you hear about us?”, you can figure out who was the driving force.
Follow Them Online
As creepy as it sounds, there is an ulterior motive. Sure, that made it appear as bad but read on before judging. Social media is a huge waste of time in the office, and employees are addicted. Therefore, it’s not illogical to surmise that they’ll surf the web during the day. By following them, it forces them to leave Facebook and Twitter alone or else they risk getting caught. Here’s to hoping their security settings are too strict.
Did that sound super weird? Yep, I heard it that time!