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Five Ways To Keep Employees Engaged And Productive At Work

Jun 29 2018

Darren Best

Do you find it difficult to find ways to keep employees engaged and productive at work? During an average day at work, employees are expected to stay focused with their tasks in hand and get the job done. If this is a problem you are facing, it is set to carry on now that the World Cup is in full swing.

Fixated by their home country's progression in the tournament – it is a welcome distraction for many employees and why many may be checking their phones and computers for the latest scores and line-ups regularly in the office. However, if they are doing this on a consistent basis, then it can negatively effective their overall productivity and quality of work. But, how can you improve this on a day-to-day basis?

Here at Savoy Stewart, we have complied a comprehensive guide to help companies find ways to keep employees engaged and productive at work, particularly during major sporting events such as the World Cup, Euros, Olympics and Wimbledon.

 Photo credit: Yuganov Konstantin / Shutterstock

5 ways to keep employees engaged and productive

  • Basic Rules

Some companies do not allow the use of phones and web browsing for non-work-related stuff during office hours. If your business has such rules, be prepared for some employees to perhaps disobey the handbook. Therefore, one of the other ways to keep employees engaged and productive at work is by relaxing this rule for the duration of the sporting event(s), which may be the key to a happy and stress-free office environment. However, it is crucial that you make it clear that employees should not abuse this trust and this privilege can easily be taken away at any moment.  

  • Phone Intervals

With some employees taking out their phone several times during a working hour to check the score, consider allowing them five minutes at the end of each hour to do so. This will be far more effective as it will allow employees to get on with their work for 55 minutes and catch up with any match events in the allocated time. You could even allocate an individual to provide updates for each match/event to avoid everyone becoming distracted by other things on their phone, such as social media.

 Photo credit: Mangostar / Shutterstock 

  • Lunch Hour

Instead of expecting your employees to work through their lunch hour perhaps you can consider setting up a temporary TV in the break or communal room for employees to enjoy the action; employees will really appreciate this gesture. Likewise, it will allow them some much needed time away from their desk and come back re-energised, engaged and ready to tackle their workload in the afternoon. 

  • Working Flexibility 

Employees undoubtedly get passionate about their home country in big tournaments and events like the World Cup. They feel so invested, that they want to watch the entire match – especially as it only comes around every four years. Therefore, the key is to be as flexible as you can.

Perhaps allow them to have the match on their screen or phone when major games are playing (such as in the latter stages of the tournament), but on silent. At the very least allow them to listen to live commentary using their headphones. It is worth noting that some employees will request full or half day holiday to allow them to watch certain matches, so be prepared for this and ensure not to allow too many employees to be off at the same time. 

 Photo credit: Africa Studio / Shutterstock 

  • After Work Events

Incentivise employees by arranging drinks after work at a bar which is showing the big match, but only if they achieve all their targets. This will give the employees extra motivation and drive to work hard and not get distracted by all of the commotion, as they know they will only get the treat if all the work is complete. Additionally, it will also give employees something positive to look forward to. 

 

 

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