The new year is fully underway, and with the start of a new fiscal year often comes changes to the workplace. These goals often have productivity and efficiency in mind, but they aren’t always the most successful, depending on your industry. In fact, less than 30% of warehouses are efficient, according to Benchmarking Warehouse Performance.
Regardless of what industry you’re operating in, chances are there are a few things you could be doing at work to improve your company’s efficiency. Here are three areas to focus on that will impress your boss:
Going Green
Helping your company develop eco-friendly practices isn’t just great for the environment; it can also help save money. Many standard business practices can be more wasteful than people first realize. For example, a typical US business will increase its paper output by 25% per year. However, in many cases, it’s much more cost-efficient and environmentally-friendly to use digital documentation instead of print. Next time you’re about to print something out, consider whether an emailed document would suffice.
For bigger green changes that can impact your company’s efficiency, you’ll want to look beyond the supply closet. Sometimes, energy and electricity usage can be the source of overspending. Check to see what electric company your workplace uses, and where that company derives its electricity from. Natural gas is the second most heavily consumed energy source in the United States, and while it’s a popular choice, it might not always be the most efficient. See what options are available, or talk to your supervisor about how changes might be made to your workplace.
Marketing Matters
Sometimes, the primary source of inefficiency in a work environment is how you reach the customers. There are many options for marketing your products or services in today’s digital world. Unfortunately, this can often make it difficult to choose the “right” method for your company.
Regardless of what industry you’re in or what advertising mediums you choose, there are always a few key points to keep in mind to make your company’s advertising more effective. For any visual advertisements, like digital marketing, TV marketing, or print marketing, colors and fonts matter more than you think. For example, did you know that a signature color for your brand boosts brand recognition by 80%?
When creating new advertising for your company, consistency and reliable branding can improve the efficacy of your materials — and your boss will definitely be impressed by the increase in new customers.
Perfecting Daily Processes
Finally, some workplaces just need a few small tweaks here and there to get where they need to be. Usually, these inefficiencies occur on a day-to-day basis in small tasks that would otherwise go unnoticed. For example, if you’re working in a job that requires frequent measurements and accurate data points, be sure to calibrate any instruments you use on a regular basis. Calibrating an instrument involves comparing the measurements of two instruments; one with a known magnitude or correctness, against which you measure the unit under test. This will help you gather more accurate data and can generally improve the efficiency of your processes.
Similarly, make sure your company is regularly maintaining equipment that’s necessary for doing your job well and quickly. This is especially essential for large machinery; final drive gear oil should be checked about every 100 hours of operation or once a month. Larger machinery can be more energy-consuming when not regularly maintained. At worst, a lack of maintenance can cause machinery to break down over time. The more frequently you’re taking care of important machinery and equipment on the job, the more efficient the equipment will be.
Little inefficiencies at work might not always seem like a major issue, but they can quickly add up and become expensive, time-consuming, or just plain irritating. So be on the lookout for ways to make your workplace more efficient this year — because doing so is guaranteed to keep you on your boss’s good side.
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