{"id":552,"date":"2018-07-04T16:25:23","date_gmt":"2018-07-04T15:25:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.microsoft.com\/en-gb\/industry\/blog\/industry\/2018\/07\/04\/six-empowering-ways-to-keep-your-business-productive\/"},"modified":"2019-03-21T16:47:25","modified_gmt":"2019-03-21T16:47:25","slug":"six-ways-to-increase-productivity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.microsoft.com\/en-gb\/industry\/blog\/cross-industry\/2018\/07\/04\/six-ways-to-increase-productivity\/","title":{"rendered":"6 ways to increase productivity"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Student<\/p>\n

I counted how many times I was distracted as I wrote this. Emails, meetings, other work, and even eating a colleague\u2019s birthday cake all ate into my productivity. Rather unsurprisingly, it happened a lot. And unfortunately, it\u2019s more emails than cake.<\/p>\n

These distractions at first seem tiny. But they do add up. Over a workday you may find you spend a lot of time in meetings, responding to emails, or discussing important things with colleagues. But core work? Not much done, however.<\/p>\n

\"It<\/p>\n

In one study<\/a> they found that once you\u2019re distracted, it can take an average of 23 minutes and 15 seconds to get back to the task.<\/p>\n

Handle distractions and focus better by being more aware of these daily interruptions. These tips can help your organisation to build better habits and get back control of your time and gain productivity.<\/p>\n

1. Get meetings back on track<\/h2>\n

In one report<\/a>, employees said they have an average of 60 meetings per month. Managers say they waste 30 percent of their time in meetings. And don\u2019t forget about having to prepare for meetings and any follow up actions. All of this eats into your day.<\/p>\n

Rethink your organisation’s meetings. How many are relevant for each employee? Encourage them to take control of their time. If they feel like they don\u2019t need to be present for a meeting, then they are much better spending the time working.<\/p>\n

You may find that your weekly meeting is more productive if you change to a fortnightly format, or to shorter stand-up meetings.<\/p>\n

Move the meeting online with a tool such as Skype for Business<\/a> or Microsoft Teams<\/a> for remote workers. Doing this will enable you to record the meeting. This means others who weren’t present are still kept in the loop without losing productivity.<\/p>\n

\"Graphic<\/p>\n

\n

\u201cWe\u2019re trying to shift decision making and power away from the head office to the people who are closest to issues and best able to contribute. With Skype for Business Online, it\u2019s easier to get the right people together quickly, without expensive travel. Where resourcing is concerned, this means we can hire the right skills more quickly and make more efficient use of our staff.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mark Dickinson, Chief People Officer at TalkTalk Telecom Group<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

2. Battling the email dragon<\/h2>\n

Employees spend at least half their day on battling emails according to the study. Even though only 14 percent are crucial to their work, according to this report on productivity<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Per week, there’s an average of over 300 emails received. However, some senior management can send and receive over 122 emails a day! Think before you send an email.<\/p>\n