Getting approved to hire for a new position is no easy task. Often, managers are asked to make due with current staff and for good reason if the current labour force is under utilized.
If you are concerned that you’re not getting enough productivity out of your employees or simply are being asked to do more with less, consider these ways to allocate your labour force more effectively.
Make Sure Every Position Has a Back Up
Having a back-up for every single position in your organization is one way to ensure that your labour force is being used effectively. When employees are trained only in a single position, it not only ensures more disruption to productivity if that employee leaves but doesn’t give that employee a skill to fall back on when workload decreases. Cross training benefits the entire organization not only because productivity is maintained during absences but also it reduces the stress felt by employees, allowing them to take much needed vacation and sick time.
You Track Each Employees Training
Companies can have a great training program but allow those skills to atrophy and you may as well not have trained in the first place. Tracking each employee’s training and ensuring that managers have access to that information to use those employee’s skills is essential to better utilizing your labour force. Having all training information on a workforce management system or shared drive can help managers pinpoint which employees can help during times of need.
Your Workforce Management System Alerts Managers About Scheduling Conflicts
When managers use pen and paper to schedule, they often run into the same problems: employees are scheduled for days they ask off, too many employees are given time off, other departments can’t access other department’s schedules. These seemingly innocuous problems can cause some serious repercussions in the form of decreased productivity, poor employee morale, and aggravated customers. Using a workforce management system to schedule employees, track time off, and alert managers to conflicts within the schedule can help managers allocate their employees much more effectively.
There’s a Platform for Multiple Employees to Work on the Same Project
Group projects are simply a way of life in most organizations. Getting multiple team members and departments to collaborate on a project can ensure the company produces the best work imaginable, but only if they have a platform to help them. To get the most from your labour force, you need a platform for collaboration. A shared drive or software can organize the timeline for group projects and allows for group discussion, without lengthy meetings.
Each Employee Does What They Do Best
How much effort does your company spent on understanding and refining job duties? When companies use a generic job description for each employee, every employee ends up doing work they probably don’t enjoy or excel at. Customizing positions to target where each employee shines can help companies do more with the same staff. Employees are motivated through managers identifying their strengths and catering to them and the employer can gain the rewards.
Your Employees Know Who to Contact with Questions
In many companies, employees know their boss, their team mates, and a few employees who happen to work in their general vicinity. While this normally isn't a problem, it can create a huge time waste when employees are asked to do something new. When employees are tasked with creating new policies or projects, they often need internal contacts. Ensuring that employees are introduced to and socialized with most of the company can be a huge benefit over the course of a career.
