Help! The days are too short!
It’s easy to get distracted at work. Think about it – how many times do you check your personal email, log in to your Facebook account, and use your cell phone to text about how you wish you it would be 5 p.m. already?
On top of that, you are being thrown a million tasks, have hundreds of emails to go through, many spreadsheets to create and tons of follow-up calls to make. If only there were enough hours in a day!
Because of lack of employee productivity, employers are left with unfinished assignments, missed deadlines, and wasted financial resources. Many management and HR teams are wondering what to do about the lack of employee productivity, and many believe that new technologies have changed the way people work. Thus, a lot of people might think that the solution is to ban cell phones and limit the time employees spend on social sites.
A little secret to boosting employee productivity…
It may come as a surprise then, that a recent report by McKinsey Quarterly suggests that the secret to increasing employee productivity is the use of Web 2.0 technologies.
Web 2.0 platforms include a broad range of social and technological tool. Common components include social media, collaboration tools, wikis, blogs, and profiles. In the report, based on the views of 1,700 executives around the globe, two of the primary benefits identified by those using Web 2.0 tools are “decreased time to market for products” and an “improvement in employee satisfaction”.
Web 2.0 platforms are believed to increase employee productivity by harnessing collective intelligence and driving innovation. According to the study, “69 percent of respondents report that their companies have gained measurable business benefits, including more innovative products and services, more effective marketing, better access to knowledge, lower cost of doing business, and higher revenues.
We found that successful companies not only tightly integrate Web 2.0 technologies with the work flows of their employees but also create a “networked company,” linking themselves with customers and suppliers through the use of Web 2.0 tools. Despite the current recession, respondents overwhelmingly say that they will continue to invest in Web 2.0.”
We want to know: What are your thoughts on using Web 2.0 technologies to increase employee productivity?