5 ways to make your business more efficient
Top tips for getting the most out of your business
While most businesses will focus on revenue and profit, there will always be wasted capacity that hurts the profitability of your business. As accountants, we know a thing or two about being prudent, as well as problem-solving to find an efficient solution: here are our top five tips for increasing the efficiency within your business.
- Communicate with each other
It seems obvious but communication is the most important element of improving efficiency. While technology may encourage you to do otherwise, face-to-face communication is a great way to make a business more efficient, allowing for a quick resolution rather than waiting for back-and-forth communication. It also allows for body language and tone to be correctly interpreted, reducing the risk of mistakes or miscommunication happening.
What’s more, a culture of open communication will boost business efficiency. No one knows your processes better than your employees so encourage their input. Don’t be afraid to regularly evaluate processes and make changes where needed, allowing your business to evolve. Start with an open door policy and work towards gathering regular feedback about how the business operates as your ultimate goal.
- Automate simple processes
Automation is a requirement if you want to run an efficient business. Simple, monotonous tasks can easily be automated, which will boost the morale of staff members bored with menial activities and open them up to perform tasks that match their skill set. It’s also the more efficient option financially, as your staff are more than likely your most expensive asset. This will have a significant impact on individual employee productivity and the business as a whole when implemented across the company.
- Update your technology
It’s a daunting task but the short term cost will bring major long-term gains. If your software or hardware are outdated it will be reducing the efficiency and productivity of staff, as lag time leaves them waiting to complete even simple tasks. What’s more, the cheap option of using old software brings a cost of its own in regular maintenance. A sustained investment in your IT network will ensure that staff aren’t wasting time waiting for applications to load and the investment will pay off through productivity and sales in the long run.
- Avoid interruptions, regardless of the reason
It’s tempting to run things by people and call an unscheduled but brief meeting. However, they are more trouble than they are worth, creating an unneeded distraction for all those involved and inevitably running over the allotted ‘one minute’. Try scheduling more regular short meetings, giving a time frame to stick to in order to solve the issue at hand.
This helps to maintain a routine and limits interruptions for everyone.
- Make goals attainable
Goals are key to minimising time wasted by unmotivated employees. Goals should be aspirational but equally they need to be fixed in reality. Setting unrealistic targets with massive rewards may seem the best way to get employees to work hard but they will be far more motivated by goals that will stretch them, but they know they can achieve in the given timeframe. Finally, make sure that the reward is appealing, otherwise it won’t matter what their target is. Perhaps give them an option of prizes so they feel the prize is tailored to them.
Those are our top tips for increasing efficiency in a business. If you’ve got some that work well for you then let’s hear them! If you would like some more tailored advice to improve the efficiency of your business, then get in touch. We work with companies and have experience reducing unnecessary costs, as well as avoiding needless financial penalties and consulting with companies to identify the next steps for them.
To get in touch, call us on 0121 236 0777 or email us at info@morganreach.com.
5 ways to make your business more efficient
