Inefficiency exists in every office: fax machines don't work properly, documents are messy or lost, and people in the office can't work efficiently at all-this is not surprising. Surprisingly, many companies only passively adapt to these problems instead of improving them. Check your office to see if there are 8 common problems that lead to inefficiency, and then improve them.
1, outdated technical equipment
Outdated computers, printers, software and other technical equipment will reduce work efficiency. For example, graphic designers who use low-performance personal computers have to wait 20-30 seconds every time they open or save images; Employees who use low-speed dial-up Internet access also face the same problem. The webpage may not open, and even your computer may crash.
How to judge whether technical equipment is outdated? As a general rule, if your computer can't run the latest version of a set of key software, you need to upgrade it. Your investment in new equipment will soon be recouped in improving work efficiency.
2. Unreasonable arrangement of working space
Take a few days to observe the company's working methods and find out the inefficiency caused by unreasonable arrangement of work areas. For example, because the desktop is not big enough, I have to go to another room every time I want to open a file; Because the computer is too far away from the mobile phone, you have to re-enter the meeting minutes after each conference call.
To solve these problems, you usually just need to rearrange the workspace, which may be as simple as removing the messy books on the desktop or pulling an extra telephone line.
3. Inefficient document management system
The disorder of archives management will lead to the difficulty of information search, which will cause a lot of manpower and time waste. To solve this problem, it is necessary to ensure that you and your employees have the necessary conditions to file. See if it is necessary to add a filing cabinet, so that all employees can classify the documents conveniently and find them conveniently. Finally, infrequently used files can be moved to the storage room, making it easier for employees to find frequently used files.
4. Unregulated information flow
Due to the widespread use of communication technologies such as e-mail and mobile phone, the working environment is full of news, market information, spam and personal contact. These external factors will distract employees and reduce work efficiency.
Reduce distracting information at work. Unsubscribe from email magazines that you don't read, and use email filtering tools to separate personal emails from work emails. Turn off your cell phone in the office. Only tell the relevant personnel the email address or mobile phone number.
5. Poorly organized meetings
Holding unnecessary and unfocused meetings will reduce work efficiency and dampen staff morale. It often happens that employees get together to discuss a topic, and as a result, the meeting is too long to make a decision or deviate from the problem to be solved at the meeting.
See if this problem can be solved by telephone or other means before the meeting. If the meeting is really necessary, limit the time and use the agenda to keep the theme of the meeting. Designate the meeting moderator, whose duty is to take action when there are signs of deviation to get the meeting back on track.
6. Sub-standard research resources
Relying on unreliable or outdated magazines, websites, white papers or other resources will make you pay more work.
Subscribe only to publications that employees can really read, and encourage employees to use more valuable search tools. In other words, do not subscribe to newspapers and magazines that no one reads, and provide employees with high-quality online information. In addition, look for the conversion from printed information to searchable database. For example, if your company needs to rely on a name and address book for its work, see if you can find a CD-ROM version-it will be very convenient and quick to search.
7. Interference
In many small companies, the office is not spacious enough. The loud talk of colleagues, the ringing of the phone, the tapping of the keyboard and the sound of opening and closing the door will reduce the efficiency of the whole office.
Pay attention to noise pollution in the workplace and take measures. Turn down the phone bell, turn off the speaker and remind the loud speaker to lower his voice. Use screens, plants, etc. Create a private space in an open office to reduce visual interference.
8. Chaos
Many successful executives' desktops have a very prominent feature-not messy, very neat. Chaos will cause interference and reduce work efficiency. Look around your office and see where the chaos is. It may be a random telephone line, a box in the hallway, or a broken device on the desk. Move things you don't need out of sight and throw away things you don't use anymore.
Two or five ways to quickly manage office chaos
Books are piled as high as a pyramid, unused folders and office supplies are everywhere, and computer cables often trip people up. ...
If your company's office is like this, then you need to improve the management of the office. Take the following five steps to create an efficient office environment.
1. Move things that are not commonly used to other places.
Take a casual look and you will find an amazing number of things that are rarely used in the office. Expired documents, unused stationery, lights that never turn on … and so on. Only put the most commonly used things within reach, and move those things that are not used every day to invisible places.
2. Clean up and save expired files.
No, you have to fill all the filing cabinets in the office. "Slimming" the filing cabinet-cleaning and storing expired documents. If you haven't looked for a file in the past 12 months, then it is listed here. This work doesn't need much time, but it can kill two birds with one stone: it saves time and frees up space.
Pay attention to your computer monitor
When the computer monitor occupies your desktop, it is difficult to release more space. One option is to use a display stand, where documents and other things can be placed; Another option is to use LCD display, which only takes up one third of the space of CRT display.
4. Make full use of office space
If the office space is small, you should make full use of every inch of space if you want to work. Shelves can be put on the wall, and desks can be used to put files or computer mainframes. If you want to put fax machines, photocopiers, printers and other office equipment on your desk, you can consider buying a multi-function machine.
5. Throw away old reading materials.
You may keep many back-dated publications that you no longer need, so please throw them away when you clean up the office clutter. If you are worried about losing important articles, browse the table of contents and cut out the articles you really need before throwing them away. Don't use too much space to store publications, which will shorten your reading and cleaning cycle.
Third, using science and technology to improve workflow.
From automated form processing to instant messaging, today's technology can help employees work faster and smarter.
Here are five ways to make the company run more smoothly:
1, management function automation
Many companies hand over the management functions that were originally completed manually, such as employee attendance and expenditure form management, to the computer network. This measure can reduce the time for employees to collect, process and publish information, so that employees can spend their time on more important company affairs. In addition, the automation of information flow can also reduce the inevitable errors caused by manual operation.
2. Improve the information enjoyment within the company.
Computer network can be used to release news and information to employees, which is faster and more economical than traditional printed notices and meetings. In this way, the company can quickly respond to market changes, and employees can quickly adapt to the company's policies and cost-saving measures. Companies can also create electronic data files to reduce the burden of filing and storing documents.
3.* * * Enjoy information resources
Sharing progress, contract manager and information database through the company intranet or the Internet can make employees get information faster and more efficiently. For example, using online scheduling, the project manager can quickly see the schedule of each member of the team, find the appropriate meeting time, and then use the online scheduling program to send the meeting notice to each participant. In the past, he had to consult with each member and inform them one by one when he found the right time.
By sharing the contract manager and customer database, the company can provide customers with higher standards of service. Any employee of the company can know the basic situation of customers, order history and contact information, so as to meet the needs of customers in the first time.
4. Fast and cheap communication
Instant messaging tools enable employees to communicate in real time through the Internet, without geographical restrictions and without high costs. In the past, cooperation between different departments needed to set aside special time to make long-distance calls or hold conference calls.
5. Real-time online collaboration
Overseas staff can also come to the online conference room to edit documents or give presentations. For example, using "SharePoint Team Services" provided by bCentral, a Microsoft company, employees can discuss and modify the same documents in a secure network meeting room, and they can also create file archives and hold seminars. Doing so can not only improve work efficiency, but also reduce the confusion caused by different printed versions of files.
10 Four Good Work Habits
What time does the day's work end? For many small companies, the answer is "never ending".
Even many managers have a lot of things to do. In order to keep a healthy balance between work and personal life, employees should learn to be efficient at work so that they can leave their desks at a reasonable time. If you can't do this, you will have poor energy and low creativity, which will eventually endanger your health.
With the following 10 method, you can recognize the work that must be completed every day and find the strategy to complete the task.
1, starting from the plan every day.
Before checking email or voice mail, the first 15 minutes of each working day is used to write down the task list. After writing the list, you will have a clear idea of what needs to be done today, what needs to be done in the next few days and what is the long-term goal. In this way, you can accurately find the problems that need to be dealt with first and avoid being distracted by unimportant things. In this way, even if you decide to stop working at the right time, the progress of the work is under your control and will not be affected.
Step 2 assign tasks
After writing the task list, seriously consider which tasks can be assigned to other members of the team. Finding out these tasks early every day can make team members start their work as soon as possible, thus speeding up the completion of the tasks. Colleagues, like you, want to make early arrangements for daily affairs. If you assign tasks to your colleagues in the last few hours of the day, your colleagues will be unhappy because you may upset their plans.
3. Control interference
Don't let unexpected emails, phone calls and meetings disrupt your work plan and make you have to work overtime. In order to control the interference, you can do this: check the mail every few hours instead of every 10 minute; Turn incoming calls into voice mail and only answer those really urgent calls; Ask for a meeting at your convenience.
4. Work early and leave early
Working late can lead to a vicious circle-working late usually makes you get up late, then makes you work late, and so on. Force yourself to start work early and leave early within a week. It is difficult to do this at first, but you will soon find that starting work early can give you time to make plans every day, thus improving work efficiency.
5. Don't do personal things during office hours.
Some employees indulge themselves during working hours and are distracted by personal affairs. It is unrealistic to completely ignore personal affairs at work, so it is necessary to make overall arrangements to deal with bills, write thank-you cards and other things that affect work efficiency. These little things will affect your work. If you spend a lot of time on things unrelated to work, it is inevitable to work overtime at night.
6. The phone rings only one hour before going to work.
After a normal day's work, transfer the call to your voice mail system. This will not only ensure that you can concentrate on emergency affairs during normal work, but also save you from working late.
7. Rely on and trust email
A lot of daily communication can be done by email, without calling. Using email can help you avoid making phone calls. Of course, some companies have to talk to people directly to operate effectively. However, most employees can handle more communication affairs through email.
8. Check your technical equipment.
"Sharpen the knife and cut the wood by mistake", upgrading the computer and office equipment can make you work more effectively and let you go home on time. For example, a powerful computer allows you to search the web faster or run multiple applications at the same time.
9, the use of automated means
Make full use of office automation equipment and applications to complete work tasks, which will reduce manual operation and give you more time.
10, what can be done today, what can be done today.
Many employees get into the habit of staying up late because they can't finish their tasks during the day. Staying up late will reduce your work efficiency until it is harmful to your health. Therefore, employees should try their best to improve their work efficiency and achieve "what can be done today".