Solving the Productivity Puzzle
Lack of Visibility Doesn’t Equal Lack of Productivity
I remember how, in the “good old days,” when everyone was in the office, leaders would have the warm and fuzzy feeling that if they could see people at work, they could be assured they were working. It was an exercise in pure fiction. The fiction continued to go unquestioned in the remote and hybrid worlds, leaving leaders anxious without equally compelling fictions–or facts.
One of the thousand lessons the Pandemic taught us is that a lack of visibility is not necessarily a lack of productivity. More importantly, it caused us to pivot into a different conversation about the relationship between productivity and efficiency.
Two people doing roughly the same work are not equally productive if one is more efficient than the other–even if they work or flex the same number of hours.
When Focused on Efficiency
When the productivity conversation becomes about efficiency, we’re now having a different conversation. Now we’re talking about the time wasted:
when people are back in the office and return to clique conversions that maintain team divides
in meetings that should have instead been emails
in task delays because people feel uncomfortable asking for help
Focus on Asking for Help
We should be having conversations about encouraging the less efficient to ask for help more often. Conversations should be about:
leaders doing more frequent check-ins to see if they are asking for help--rather than assuming that no asks equal no needs
people with answers to commonly asked questions doing quick Loom videos, so they don't waste their time delivering repeated answers to good questions.
encouraging efficient people to have connecting conversations
banning any meeting that could have been an email–or group message
While we’re at it, let’s have everyone post their daily windows of availability so no one wastes time guessing wrong when they are and aren’t available.
Efficiency is About Time Wasted
Efficiency is less about hours worked and more about time wasted. Individuals and teams become more efficient when they regularly, collectively, and explicitly identify and reduce or eliminate things that waste time. We could make it more complicated, but that would be wasting time.
Looking to Connect?
If you’re looking for more help with productivity, send us an email or book a time to chat further. We love problem-solving with you!