5 Ways to Instantly Boost Company Productivity Through Effective Use of Technology

One obvious difference between companies that are successful and ones that aren’t is how effectively they implement technology within the organization. The right tech, the right software, and the way it’s utilized can have a massive impact on a company’s productivity. With that in mind, here are a few ways to make sure you’re using technology in the most beneficial way possible.

Hardware – Putting the Right Systems in Place

The hardware you need for your business will vary depending on what your company does – your IT specialist or consulting company should be able to advise you here. In general, you should be replacing company computers at least every 5 years, but competitive computer-based industries may need more frequent upgrades. If you have outdated computers, your employees may be working with machines that simply can’t handle the workload, and their productivity will suffer. Other simple changes, like getting rid of CRT monitors, which have been shown to cause headaches and nausea after prolonged use, will also impact productivity.

Software

There are millions of software options on the market, fulfilling thousands of different functions. Take, for example, an employee performance management software, which can act as the crux of business development. An efficient performance management solution can not only allow managers to review their employee’s work objectives but can also help them to focus on their business targets. Therefore, deciding which ones will be effective in your workplace will require research, and more than likely a degree of trial and error.

A good guideline with any new system is to give it six months before declaring it a success or failure. This is roughly how long it takes to see consistent, measurable results. For this reason, you may want to consider a software subscription, rather than an outright purchase. It gives you the freedom to change your software, change the number of computers you use it on, and will guarantee you have the latest version of the software every month.

Here are a few software options that are effective in almost any workplace:

Collaboration Software

No matter the line of work, there are bound to be collaborative projects going on in your company on a fairly regular basis. Some of the obstacles to effective collaboration are poor communication and the need for team members to be in the same place at the same time in order to share ideas and review work as a team. The right project management software can make collaboration easy and team projects far more productive. An online based platform means all members of the team can access and work on the project from anywhere at any time. An ideas forum facilitates discussion and problem solving, even when the team isn’t all in the same location.

Template Software

Given the number of documents, emails and presentations created on a daily basis – thousands in the average company – whether or not you have the right software to make it efficient and easy will have a huge impact on company productivity. Plenty of time will be spent looking for templates or creating them, filling out information and finding the right company logos. Templafy is a unique system that stores preset templates for all your company documents, emails and PowerPoints. It also stores employee information to automatically insert individual information into a document where necessary. This will save a lot of time and document errors and ensure that the format of all company documents is the same, effectively eliminating document anarchy.

Video Conferencing Software

Studies show that the average office worker spends thirty-one hours a month in unproductive meetings. That’s thirty one hours of time that is effectively wasted. With the technology at our disposal, many of these meetings can be eliminated. More often than not, the same goals can be accomplished via email or phone. If you’d still like a face to face meeting, but would rather avoid the travel, Skype is a great option. These types of meetings have been shown to be more productive and are often easier to fit into a busy schedule than regular meetings.

Conclusion

Technology, be it the speed of your computers or the software they run on, can do a lot for your business in terms of productivity. Something to bear in mind though is that when you implement new hardware or software, make sure you provide your employees with proper training. Even top of the range tech is useless is it isn’t used correctly.