One of the biggest challenges in the workplace is how to increase labor productivity in such a way that the experience is enjoyable for your team. The secret lies in your leadership of people. You can make huge capital investments in systems and machinery but unless you provide good leadership then you’re never going to release the potential of your team.

This hidden potential is worth a huge amount of profit. The normal way of trying to release this potential is to exhort people to work harder and longer. Yet the secret is to show them how to work smarter.

Our tendency is to push people into producing more in the same amount of time. The intelligent leader knows how to lead people so that they don’t work harder, just smarter.

When you push people, they push back and resist what you are trying to do. If you take people with you and show them how to work smarter, they go home at the end of the working day feeling much more fulfilled. The steps to take are relatively simple but not always easy to implement. They require thought and consideration as well as a considerable amount of discussion with your team.

1. Set mutual expectations with your team. Unless you set mutual expectations with your team, you are always going to have a low-performing team. This means that the only time you can mention expectations is when they’re not being fulfilled. By then, it’s too late. What do your people expect from you in your leadership position?

2. Agree that they are fair and reasonable. What do you expect from your people? Are your expectations are fair and reasonable? How do you know?

3. Measure current productivity. Where are you going to start from? How accurate is your current productivity measure?

4. Set targets. Setting targets with your people will involve them in the whole process. It will also give them an opportunity to contribute to, not only the targets, but also the milestones on the way to those targets.

5. Provide visible feedback. This is another high involvement area. Your team needs to work out how their progress is going to be measured, who is going to measure it and how is the feedback going to be presented. Is it going to be daily, or is it going to be weekly?

6. Discuss progress on a regular basis. How is this going to be accomplished? Is it through daily team briefing in the morning? Is it going to be carried out through one-on-one with the manager and supervisors daily? Are the results going to be posted on the notice board and then discussed weekly? The feedback is fundamental to the whole productivity improvement initiative. Without feedback it just won’t work.

7. Celebrate milestones and achievements. Work out with your team how you are going to celebrate each milestone. Arrange this in advance so there is a sense of anticipation. Whatever happens, never let the pressure of work postpone such an important occasion.

This process requires planning, co-operation, delegation, leadership, innovation and consensus. Not an easy combination. But, the rewards are well worth the effort.Anyone in business will benefit from increased productivity. The costs remain relatively static and output climbs. Working smarter means that a productivity improvement strategy can be easily implemented without anyone working harder. Years of experience has been packed into this comprehensive step by step guide for business owners and managers. It is in an easy to read format and can be obtained from http://www.thekeytoproductivity.com/

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