Whatever industry you’re in, ensuring that you’re getting the most out of your workers requires delicate and balanced decision-making. Asking too much of them can result in burnout, and asking too little may lead to demotivation.
HR specialists from Reventure note that even providing flexible and tech-enabled work-from-home options can lead to workers getting lonelier and less productive in the long run – potentially cancelling out whatever benefits they’ve gained from a flexible schedule. Indeed, bringing out the best in your employees is easier said than done.
With that being said, maximising both the quality and the quantity of your workers’ daily output is not an impossible task. The key to doing this is understanding how a management decision you make affects the daily life and work of every employee. One of the highest functions of management is understanding the consequences, and a little foresight can go a long way in avoiding such unforeseen negative effects.
Thanks to the Internet of Things (IoT) and other emerging technologies, building foresight for quick and efficient decision-making is much easier now, even for those who command large numbers of workers on a daily basis. An article on tracking worker behaviour by Verizon Connect explains how IoT-enabled employee tracking software can allow managers to track the location and activities of workers in the field. This is particularly useful in the logistics industry, where accurate fleet tracking translates to better communication between employees and the ability to plan out the ideal delivery routes. In turn, drivers can spend less time on the road and encounter less irate customers – directly improving not just their daily productivity but their morale in the field as well. When a fleet manager knows exactly where their drivers are and what they’re up to, it becomes much easier to make informed, data-driven decisions on the fly – while minimising consequences for both the employees and business.
When it comes to utilising your workers to the fullest, there are many ways for rapidly developing and emerging technologies to fill in the gaps. This is even more apparent today considering how the global health crisis has forced many companies to move online or use a hybrid combination. Jabra’s PanaCast field-of-view camera system for instance is an intelligent, panoramic, and high-resolution video set-up that’s revolutionising the way companies do online meetings. Armed with artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled algorithms, PanaCast uses facial recognition technology, which allows it to intelligently zoom in on whoever is talking during the meeting. The same advanced AI can also be used to enforce social distancing in live interactions, which helps minimise the pandemic risk for workers who need to go to live meetings. Apart from everyday workplaces, this technology also has use cases in classrooms, telemedicine, and any other situation that requires video conferencing.
Although the digital transformation of the modern workplace is inevitable, these solutions prove that there are many ways to leverage this transformation to realise your employees’ full potential. By using the right technologies to pivot in the new normal, you can provide a better work environment that’s respectful of workers’ time and individual working styles. This can greatly reduce their daily stress, which according to the World Health Organization is a key ingredient to burnout and decreased productivity. And by utilising the aforementioned technologies with the intent of making informed HR-related decisions, you can help your employees to manage stress, navigate their jobs, and raise daily productivity.
