Have you noticed that when summer hits, the atmosphere in the workplace can change? There are plenty of reasons for it: nicer weather, summer vacations, kids home from school, and busier outside-of-work schedules.
Maintaining productivity during the summer is a challenge that many employers rise to every year. We have also seen employers struggle to keep workers productive during the summer season.
To keep your employees productive all year long, we’ve put together a list of proven strategies. And if you need new people on your team, reach out to Liberty Staffing to learn about how we can provide you with great employees quickly.
Plan Ahead for Time Off Requests
As a good employer, you want your employees to be able to take time off because it’s good for the company to have rested team members.
There are two situations you don’t want to run into: everyone taking a vacation at the same time, or having to turn down vacation time requests to keep your business fully staffed.
That’s why it’s so important to plan ahead for your time off requests. You need to have a strong, clear policy in place. Don’t make changes to your time off policy right before the summer, and make sure that everyone knows when they need to request their time off.
Increase Flexibility During the Summer
Strategize ways that you can increase flexibility during the summer. Can you let people work remotely for one day a week? What about more flexibility in scheduling so that people can work around more family commitments and activities?
One way you can increase flexibility is to provide employees with more autonomy for getting their work done. When your team can make adjustments in their daily tasks to have more control over their workday, they are likely to feel more job satisfaction.
Keep the Workplace Comfortable
When the heat goes up in the summer, does your workplace keep up with the heat? Or are your team members suffering, sweating, and struggling to stay hydrated? Investing in measures that will keep your workplace safe and comfortable during the summer. It’s not just about comfort either, it’s about safety!
Canadian employers are required to prevent heat stress (overheating) in the workplace. It’s especially important for warehouses, factories, and other industrial facilities where your employees are performing demanding physical labour. Be sure to schedule extra breaks and hydration for your employees.
Focus on Team Building
Summer is a great time to work on team building in the workplace!
Employees perform better when they understand how their work relates to the work of those around them. When you know that you are part of a team that cares about you, your job satisfaction goes up too. Both of these things result in higher productivity.
Events, retreats, mentorship programs, special lunches, recognition events, parties, and other team building activities can make a big difference in your summertime productivity.
Model the Productivity You Want to See
Sometimes, summer becomes a time when we push important tasks off until later. We slow down in our own productivity, which can influence the entire company.
For example, timely feedback on employee concerns is incredibly important in any workplace. But what happens if management decides to “get to that after the summer”? Well, that’s when you end up with an unhappy workforce that feels unheard and unappreciated.
If you want your team to be productive, model that productivity. Your strong performance as a manager will set the tone for the rest of the workplace.
Liberty Staffing Helps Employers Find Productive Team Members
Are you struggling to keep your company fully staffed with great team members? Or are you spending too much of your time on recruiting, interviewing, onboarding, and training new hires?
Liberty Staffing can help! We’ve been providing Southern Ontario’s employers with the staff they need for 24 years! If you need new people to join your workplace, reach out to us today so that we can talk about your options. Contact Liberty Staffing to get started.
