Is Cultural Transformation the Secret to Productivity?

If you suspect that your employees are wasting time on the job and they are not performing up to expectations, it might be time to transform the culture of your organization. A company with a toxic culture runs the risk that employees will remain disengaged and productivity will decline even further. As a leader, you have the perfect opportunity to make improvements by building a culture of support and respect and strengthening teamwork. A positive company culture will allow you to foster productivity and retain the best employees.

Boosting Employee Morale

Employees who feel that their ideas are valued and their efforts are appreciated are more likely to take pride in their work. A culture of inclusiveness where employees are self-directed and feel that they are part of a larger cause can promote engagement and productivity. Effective leaders encourage employees to express their ideas and provide input into the decision-making process. Some companies go the extra mile and permit workers to share in the profits when business is good as a result of their efforts. Professional development, mentoring and the opportunity to advance in their career can also boost employee morale.

Improving the Company Culture

Here are some changes you can make to increase productivity:

• Have a Desire to Make Changes
  To change the company culture it is important to take the time to find out about the internal politics that go on in the workplace. Lasting changes can only take place when you have a desire to learn about your culture in terms of the human dynamics that make it tick. In other words, you have to discover how tasks are actually accomplished in your organization.
• Improve Communication
  Clear communication is a major key to keeping employees happy, engaged and productive. Companies like Google follow an “open door” policy where employees have direct access to their superiors. An easy flow of communication leads to a better working relationship between co-workers and managers, and it provides faster access to information when it is needed.
• Embrace Innovation
  Once you analyze your company culture and identify roadblocks, think out of the box to find solutions that will create a nurturing environment. Or better still, empower your employees to come up with suggestions that will make their workplace better. Employees may recommend things like implementing a more streamlined IT system. Or they may ask for more breaks throughout the day so they can chat informally with co-workers, possibly about work-related topics, and come back refreshed and ready to tackle the tasks at hand.
• Create a Flexible Work Environment
  As a manager it is vital to keep in mind that employees have lives outside of work. They are trying to find a balance between work and responsibilities at home and squeeze in some time for fun. Flexible hours, the ability to work remotely a few days a week and more vacation time can go a long way in improving your company culture and keeping your employees happy. The human resource department can tell you that a flexible work culture is a major plus for attracting and retaining top employees.
• Resolve Conflicts
  While conflicts between co-workers and managers can impede productivity, conflict is not always a bad thing. Opposing positions can bring problems to light that are deserving of attention. As a leader, it is not a matter of if there will be conflict in the workplace, it is a matter of when conflict will arise. Your job is to look at the source of the conflict and work with employees to find a way to resolve the issues so everyone comes out feeling like a winner – or at least understands why your solution is the best possible answer.
• Develop your Soft Skills
  As an effective leader, you need to have the soft skills to solve problems that left unchecked can undermine the work environment. Build a team where every member has a clearly defined role, works toward a common goal and is ultimately held responsible for getting his/her job done right and on time. Show your employees that you really care about them by seeing things from their point of view. Empathetic leaders strive to develop their emotional intelligence to create stronger, more productive business relationships.
• Achieving Cultural Transformation
  Improving your company culture can inspire employees to improved performance and increased productivity. Identifying issues is the first step, and effective leaders find a way to become more accessible to their employees so workers can voice their concerns. See each employee as an individual by developing empathy and communicate clearly when you need to. Try to set aside time for fun activities in the workplace, or, at the very least, give your employees the flexibility to achieve a good work/life balance for a true cultural transformation.
• Tracking Success in Transforming your Culture
  Veriato is an Employee Productivity Monitoring System that can help you stay on top of employee behavior and promote productivity in the workplace. Our system can track and record your employee online activity to ensure compliance with company policies. We provide video playback of all onscreen activity and alerts when necessary. Our daily, weekly and monthly reports inform you of the productivity of each worker. Veriato Employee Monitoring Software can monitor remote worker productivity as well as in-office worker productivity.

With Veriato, you will be notified of any suspicious activity and you will see who is working hard, and who isn’t. Knowing if a productivity problem exists will allow you to increase your management effectiveness and ultimately the productivity of your employees.

To find out more about Veriato Employee Monitoring Software and how it can help you increase productivity, visit Veriato.com or call 1-888-598-2788.