It is increasingly common for staff to spend at least some of their time working offsite. Customers and clients need to be visited and often new business is generated through meetings outside the office. Previously, business owners and managers have been concerned that productivity will suffer unless staff are working in the office with access to the organisation’s systems and documents.
Here we consider three factors that are known to influence business productivity.
1: Business mobiles
Business mobile phones (and internal phone systems) have completely revolutionised the ways that work can be performed and the potential for staff to be equally as productive whether they are working in or out of the office. Because they are essentially “˜mini computers’, business mobiles have the features necessary for staff to remain in close contact and carry out a range of work functions, whether they are in or far away from the office.
With internet access, the ability to tap into the systems of the organisation from the remote location of the user, useful calendar and personal organisation features and still and video camera functions as standard, business mobiles ensures that staff members are kept up to date and are effective even when travelling and working far from the office and their desktop computer.
2: Passion for what you do
This may sound a little contrived, but one of the most significant determinants of whether a business is productive and successful is the extent to which its leaders and employees feel passionate, enthused and motivated by the organisation, industry and the work that is done.
When staff enjoy what they do and feel that they do it well, this translates to customers. Enthusiasm is infectious and when you believe in what you do and why it makes a difference, you will find that customers are more inclined to do business with you and feel more confident about obtaining products or services from your company.
3: Organisation
Businesses in which staff members are organised and thorough are almost invariably more productive and profitable. In business, it is imperative that queries and obligations are followed up and there is nothing more damaging to a business than to make a promise or give an assurance and then fail to follow through.
Customers and clients commonly feel more confident when dealing with businesses that are obviously well organised and efficient. In a fiercely competitive world, businesses need to impress actual and potential customers on every level so that they present themselves as credible, worthy and reliable.
Of course, there are many factors combined that determine the extent to which a business is productive. Technology (such as business mobile phones) is critical to business productivity particularly when your staff members are working out of the office. In this technologically advanced and sophisticated age, businesses that harness the potential of technology to increase levels of productivity frequently enjoy superior results and profitability.