In every workplace, there will always be distractions that will can hinder an employee’s productivity as well as lower their morale.
In line with this, Oxford Economics conducted a survey of more than 600 executives and 600 employees to be able to understand what works and what doesn’t for employees, as well as about open-plan layouts, to test the disconnects between employees and their managers. Their results show that “threats to productivity and worker peace of mind are bigger issues than most executives realize, and most do not have the technology or strategies in place to deal with the problems.”
So, here are some of the the most common distractions in a workplace that you should look out for, and how can you overcome them.
Extremely Strict Policies
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Source: HRM Canada
It is normal for many companies to enforce different policies to motivate employees to be more productive at work. However, overly strict policies can bring more stress than good to employees. An example of this is tardiness at work. While punctuality should be encouraged at work, understand that resorting to harsh punishments for being tardy may be too extreme.
Adding a grace period of 15 mins at the beginning of the shift could be a good solution, or maybe offer flextime for your employees who have a valid reason for being tardy (their home is too far away, or the traffic is horrible in the route they take).
Office Politics
Source: The Glass Hammer
No one likes office politics. It is distracting to anyone in the workplace and can severely affect anyone’s productivity. Employees lose their concentration if certain people in the office try to undermine others to gain the favor of higher ranking employees. This kind of mentality can also destroy employee’s morale
Companies should make sure this kind of distraction is avoided in the workplace. Performance data should be the basis for rewarding those who actually deserve it. It is with these metrics that bring out the true top employees in a team.
Unrealistic expectations
Soure: Career Intelligence
Big goals are not necessarily always good, since sometimes they are set beyond the current capabilities of employees. Unrealistic expectations can hurt the morale of the employee and could negatively affect the productivity of the employees. They become preoccupied worrying about these objectives instead of focusing on their performance.
It is important for companies to set goals that are SMART (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Time Bound). Employers should discuss with the employees about the goals, schedule discussions on how to achieve them, and their specific roles. This way, the employees will understand their role in reaching the goals, and can speak up if they feel that they are being overworked.
Companies should prioritize understanding employee morale, as strict policies, work politics, and unrealistic demands can distract employees and affect their performances at work. On the other hand, if employees are motivated with a positive culture and feel that their employees understand their well-being at work, they will be able to concentrate on their work better.
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