Productivity in uncertain times: 6 strategies for SMEs

The last few years have been a difficult time for businesses of all shapes and sizes. Through Covid, inflation, the great resignation and rising labour costs – it has been a challenge just to stay afloat and profitable. 

For SMEs, these challenges have been even greater. Today, 73% of SME decision-makers cite rising costs as a chief cause for concern. At the same time, 82% said the cost of living was having a negative impact on their business. 

The challenge now for SMEs is this: to remain competitive and profitable during a time of rising costs and decreased consumer spending. So how do you do that? 

Boosting productivity is an essential part of running a successful business. When done right, it helps you stay profitable and competitive without driving up costs. Here are six strategies to help you achieve just that:

1. Flexible working

In recent years, many organisations have experimented with flexible working. Of these, 38% say more home/hybrid working has increased productivity, compared with just 13% who say it has been detrimental. 

Not all flexible working policies are the same, and the right solution will be different for every organisation. While some will benefit from a 100% remote policy, others will prefer a hybrid approach. It could also include giving people the flexibility to work when they choose as well as where. 

Whatever the right approach, it’s important to consult with your team and work out what policies would work best for them. After all, an engaged workforce is a productive one. 

Find out more: Submit, monitor and approve flexible working requests from one central dashboard

2. Wellbeing and mental health

In such a difficult economic backdrop, it’s no surprise that employees are focusing more on their physical and mental health. In fact, 74% of employers have increased health and wellbeing support over the last two years. The same study found increased productivity to be the biggest behind this increased investment. 

There are clearly many good reasons for prioritising wellbeing and mental health support. But what are the best ways to do that? Here are some options:

• Encourage employees to take time off and disconnect when they do
• Introduce medical benefits like insurance, subsidised therapy or fitness programmes
• Offer financial advice and wellbeing support
• Implement anonymous surveys
• Train managers on mental health awareness and how to support employees
• Increase parental, bereavement and caregiver leave 

3. Upskilling and reskilling

Skilled employees are more productive at work. As well as developing their own skills, upskilling makes employees more engaged, dedicated and likely to stay with the organisation longer. 

There are multiple ways to prioritise learning and development in a company:

• Offer subscriptions to online learning platforms like LinkedIn Learning, Udemy and others
• Provide all employees with a learning budget 
• Create mentoring programmes, where experienced colleagues can share expertise with junior employees outside of the traditional management hierarchy
• Implement a clear progression pathway for each employee, so everybody knows what they’re working towards and what they need to do to achieve it
• Have a separate budget for workshops, seminars, conferences and events

4. Create a culture of transparency 

“Transparency and employee engagement are intrinsically linked. If you want your team to be driven and engaged at work, you need to show them how their efforts contribute to the wider company mission. 

Good transparency involves giving the whole company visibility over finance and performance, while providing plenty of avenues for anonymous suggestions and feedback.”

• Charlie O’Brien, Head of People, Breathe

Improved employee engagement has a direct impact on productivity. In fact, one study suggests that high-engagement organisations experienced 23% more productivity than those with low engagement. Promoting a culture of transparency is a great way to increase employee engagement. 

So how can HR teams do this? There are several helpful options:

• Run regular anonymous employee surveys 
• Share company financial performance updates
• Create clear salary bands for all levels of the organisation
• Encourage 360-degree performance reviews, so employees get feedback from colleagues as well as managers
• Implement an Employee New Promoter Score (eNPS)