Work Smarter, Not Harder! or Is it the Other Way Around?

We have all heard the saying "Work smarter, not harder." And though it sounds admirable and the right thing to say, then why do so many companies not follow this principle? Working smarter and not harder does not mean multi-tasking......................But I'll get into that another time. 

I worked in both the office and from home and found out 2 key elements to be true. 

When I worked in an office:

• I dealt with office politics and a lot of time wasted.
• Meetings for the sake of having meetings.
• Being interrupted from colleagues wanting to chit chat.
  
• Lunches.
• The dreaded 2pm "I need caffeine to wake up and make it through the afternoon. 

I remember one office setting: We were scheduled 8am-5pm and got an hour lunch. Seems normal. But it was frowned upon to leave at 5pm. In fact, the only time it wasn't frowned upon to leave at 5pm was on a Friday. In fact, it was even frowned upon to leave at 6pm. 6:30 you were safe. 

Who wants that?

When I worked from home for a different company, we had to log into an IM system to show we were online and available. We would randomly have spot checks or get pinged from the boss to check up on us. I'm sorry, I didn't know I was a teenager again. 
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There are 2 key elements when it comes to this philosophy of working smarter and not harder. 

• Trust
• Companies & employees don't know how

95% is Trust.
5% is knowing how. 

And for most companies, they don't know how to do either option. 

I've learned from some of the great leaders that take chances and shake things up. Every business is unique and there is not a one size fits all. But what is the same, is trust.

When Dan Price started the minimum wage program for his company, Gravity Payments, to be $70k per year, industry leaders scratched their heads, haters came out of the wood work, people said it would never work nor would he be able to keep the doors open. Well Dan Price has changed the game. Other companies started to follow suit. Maybe not at $70k per year but others have raised their starting wages. And guess what happened? 

• Employee retention sky rockets. 
• Companies are telling their employees they trust them
• Employees that are trusted feel empowered to be loyal, give it their all and make their company great
• Better quality of life. In business and personally

But it is beyond salary. Other companies are implementing game changing areas and are efficient. Smarter.

Personally, in my company, our smarter and not harder tactics are based on our industry we work. Business development and supply chain.

Here's an example of how our employees are knocking their goals out of the park for our clients and LOVE their jobs!

• Work from home
• 9-2pm work day (no lunch) M-F
• July and August - 4 day work week M-Th (no doc in pay)
• Last 2 weeks in Dec we shut down. Extra 2 weeks per year paid. 

Those are just some of the benefits we offer. Why? 

1. I know my business and been in the same position as my employees. I actually have done their jobs and know how it works.
2. More time with families and a true balance work life makes a HUGE difference!
3. No micro managing. Yes we have weekly meetings and goals but I don't monitor if they are logged in or monitor how many calls they make or how many emails they send out. They are all adults and I trust them to do their jobs. Each employee is a unique person and has certain skill sets that work for them. So they run with how they work and I trust them to do a good job. If they wouldn't hit goals or not be up to par, then we would address it. But I don't have to monitor their every move. If they slack, it will reflect on the outcome. 
4. NO office or corporate politics. It's a waste of time and unproductive. 
5. I listen to my employees. And this is key! Most leaders won't. If they need a tool that will help them or if something they are doing works well, we implement it. 

Working smarter and not harder is trusting employees. If a company does not trust their employees to do the jobs they were hired to do, then it is a reflection of the failure when the company hired them. It's that simple. 

Working smarter and not harder does not mean a company takes advantage of their employees by working longer hours, after hours, adding extra work loads and selling it as being a great multi-tasker. 

Work smarter, not harder and see greatness achieved at your company. 

If this is an area that needs help within your company, then contact us directly at www.supplychainconnection.com/consultation