To be successful in any capacity, a business has to have a good and consistent structure. The business needs to be mutually beneficial for the owners, employees and customers alike – so balance is key. Unfortunately for many businesses, the reality is inefficiency, perhaps due to lack of understanding or experience. Inefficiency can cost businesses large sums of money each year, up to 30% of their annual revenue to be more precise.
But how can you get your business to start running efficiently? In this guide, we are going to be exploring how you can achieve the smoothest running business possible.
Identify what is not working
Before doing anything or making any bold changes, first, you should learn how to identify inefficient processes in whatever your current business model is. This will involve some research into popular and successful business models to then compare to your own.
It is true that inefficiency can pop up in more places than one and in different varieties. You may find out-of-date procedures which need updating or processes are essentially redundant. It is common that many businesses have a needlessly overcomplicated process in place which could be a lot simpler with some changes made. On the other hand, some companies try to implement untested processes in an attempt to be cutting edge. Either extreme can be damaging to how well your business runs.
Introduce payroll software
Consider introducing a payroll software solution such as Solutio. Essentially, a payroll software is a type of software which helps with assisting the compensation of employees for the time they have worked. It will calculate pay cheques from the hours logged in time and attendance tracking systems. The software solution will then draw pay cheques or direct deposits funds into the employees’ bank account.
By using an automated system, you are basically avoiding making any human errors when calculating the compensation. Furthermore, a huge benefit of using such a system is that the process can be completed in a fraction of the time it would take you to do it manually. This will free up more time for employee’s activities which are more important for generating revenue. Having such a system in place can also make it easier for your business to adapt and take on more employees as it grows.
You can also expect to save money when shifting from a third-party outsourcing system to a payroll software solution and eliminate any potential miscommunications which are in regards to payroll.
Encourage face-to-face interaction from employees
It might seem more convenient to send a quick email to a co-worker, but it is not always the most effective way of getting an answer back. Emails can also sometimes lead to miscommunication, so it may be better to encourage your employees to interact face-to-face.
Things like Skype and Google Chat can be a great way for employees to get a quick answer to a simple question or enquiry. However, when it comes to problem-solving or getting something very important clarified, face-to-face interaction is a lot more efficient.
Of course, email and chat rooms have their place in the company, make sure that your employees are comfortable with communicating with one another and their superiors directly. This should create a steady workflow and increase happiness levels in the workplace as social interaction can help to keep people motivated and feeling supported.
Hold a Huddle Daily
Meetings in a company are a necessity for the general functioning of a business. However, meetings can also start to eat away at the working day. Instead of holding long meetings frequently, it is recommended that you hold daily 10-15 minute huddles in which the agenda for the day is discussed and anything else which needs to be thrown out there. You can cover the basics in around 10 minutes, so try and stick to around that amount of time for maximum efficiency.
These short daily meetings are great for keeping employees up to speed on anything new happening in the company and keeping the meetings short and sweet will enforce a sort of streamline process which will ultimately reduce the amount of wasted time previously felt when sat in long meetings.
Promote open communication
Like with the encouragement of face-to-face interaction, having an open communication policy in place in the office is sure to help your business run more efficiently.
With such a culture in place, your employees are likely to feel much more open to voicing their concerns or giving feedback on how they feel about how the company is run. This way, you can make changes accordingly and avoid employees who are gradually building up silent resent.
As the owner of a business, you simply cannot be everywhere at once so you may be ignorant to certain goings-on through no fault of your own. Thus, it is good to let your employees know that you are open to hearing what they have to say, good or bad, about the way the company is run.
