How to Use Technology to Increase Your Productivity
Technology has come quite a long way over the past few years. In fact, it is becoming an increasingly important part of our day-to-day life. And as you can guess, any individual or organization that succeeds in today’s globalized age of handheld devices is definitely making the most out of the available technology. From cloud storage to project management technology, there are numerous application software, artificial intelligence tools, and plugins available now that are designed to meet the productivity needs of businesses across every industry.
In this article, we will dive into how modern-day technology is influencing and improving business productivity in many ways. So, without any further ado, let’s take a look at how potentially technology relates to the enterprise today.
Some recent stats on how technology improves the business world
Statistics and facts can never be ignored in the business world. After all, running a successful business is a huge challenge — you can’t make a good decision or face uncertainties unless you have some meaningful information in your hands. With that being said, here are a few recent statistics on technology in the workplace:
- More than 70% of companies agree that business productivity tools help them to run their business better. Also, 97% say that using automated solutions for business makes employees more effective. — Towards Maturity survey
- 81% of organizations agree that workforce productivity is the top priority for the coming year and IT is a strategic enabler of the business. — 2018 Tech insight report
- 56% of CEOs indicate that the progress achieved thanks to digital technologies already enabled them to improve their profits. — Gartner
- Nearly two-thirds of business decision makers (63%) believe AI is going to be fundamental in the future. In fact, 72% termed it a “business advantage”. — PwC
8 easy ways modern technology can be used to increase your productivity
1. Set clear goals
Setting clear goals is a major advantage and there are tools with powerful features that provide a simple way to track goals and achieve success. Moreover, technology also serves business and teams the easiest way to create a long-term plan aka a roadmap. It’s simple, having SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-based) goals and plans minimize the chances that things will grind to a standstill, thereby increasing business productivity.
2. Manage information effectively
In an organization, when employees get access to the necessary information that their job required, they tend to perform more productively. In addition to this, ensuring easier access to business-critical information helps to avoid frustration among employees and save time to get things done more efficiently. So, how do we make it easier to access information in the workplace? Well, the answer is technology. There is a range of document management and file management software solutions out there that allow businesses to store, organize, access and proof all their critical files in one centralized, secure place. Remember, your team and employees have a better experience if they have the ability to access information round the clock and overall productivity will increase.
3. Make collaboration seamless
It’s a well-known fact that effective communication and collaboration are crucial to business productivity. Companies who resist investing their time and efforts in improving communication between teams often face whopping losses in the future. Luckily, today’s market is offering businesses many advanced technological solutions to boost internal communication and team productivity, at the same time. From team messaging apps to video conferencing tools, there are many intuitive team collaboration tools available now for businesses of all sizes. Whether you are working with an in-house team or you’re a freelancer, having the right collaboration technology helps to keep everyone on the same page regarding the company’s business objectives, as a result, increase productivity.
4. Enhance employee engagement
Nothing kills productivity more than an employee with no direction. As a manager or supervisor, it is your responsibility to guide each employee and encourage them in improving their job as well as the organization they work for. You need to make sure that every team and every department in your company has a sense of purpose and are working dedicatedly towards their goal rather than just punching the clock. This is where technology provides opportunities to create, maintain, and increase employee engagement in the workplace. There are communication and task management tools available now that focus on alignment, feedback, learning and development of an employee in an organization. These tools are designed to offer employees clarity over
their everyday duties and encourage them to be a part of the conversation, thereby increasing engagement and productivity.
5. Be available anytime (and anywhere)
Today, every individual in an organization is armed with updated mobile devices and advanced gadgets. So, why can’t businesses use this fact to their advantage? By investing in the latest project management tools and apps, managers and owners can ensure that their employees always stay connected and never miss an opportunity. Furthermore, with the help of technology, the business can give their employees the freedom and flexibility to work from wherever they will be most comfortable. This leads to greater employee satisfaction and brings a huge increase in the business’s productivity level. If you want your employees to be readily available, regardless of where they are, start evaluating the range of tools and solutions that are available in the market today.
6. Organize your time
If you can’t keep track of your (and your team’s) time, you can’t use it productively. To improve your business productivity, you need to understand and work on your clock. Using a time tracking tool and workload planning solution can help you get answers to some simple yet important questions like — how much time each employee spends on each task? What are your most productive hours? How many tasks are falling behind schedule? And so on. These answers help you determine whether or not you (and your team) are being productive with your work hours. It further helps you to practice and promote better time management and, as a result, improve overall productivity.
7. Track and analyze performance
To increase your performance and productivity, you must first understand your current performance and deadlines. Fortunately, today’s technology offers access to advanced reporting and business analysis solutions that allow businesses to see the big picture. These tools bring clarity over various important aspects, including — employee performance, customer preferences, and current market trends. Managers and executive can use such insight to create/redesign strategy and keep their business performance on the track.
8. Improve customer service
The last way businesses can increase their business productivity is by injecting a customer service software into their work process. There is no doubt that when it comes to business, your customer’s interest stands above everything else. That’s why it is important to evaluate that the product or services you provide are actually satisfying your customers’ needs. Now, you can handle this on your own but if you have too much on your plate, consider going for web-based customer service tools and resources. The technology is designed to help businesses engage more customers, increase sales, and provide superior services that satisfy the needs and wants of customers.
Conclusion
“Technology” and “Productivity” are two different terms but they connect with each other in an interesting way, particularly in the business world. There are thousands of creative ways in which one can use technology to increase productivity. No matter the size or type of your enterprise, having the right kind of technology or tool in place gives you the ability to keep your business aligned from top-to-bottom and increase your productivity.
Did you find this post convincing? Do you agree that technology is revamping the future of the business industry? Share your thoughts in the comments section below!
Author Bio:
Sandeep Kashyap is the Founder and CEO of ProofHub — a leading project management and collaboration software. He’s one person always on a lookout for innovative ideas about filling the communication gap between groups, teams, and organizations. You’ll find him saying, “Let’s go!” instead of “Go!” many times a day. That’s what makes him write about leadership in a way people are inspired to dream more, learn more, do more, and become more.
