Currently, over 40% of U.S. workers are telecommuting due to the current pandemic-related measures according to a Stanford University study. As some organizations cautiously begin to reopen, some workers intend to keep working from home even after the pandemic, as reported by the Society of Human Resource Management (SHRM). This means that in 2021 and beyond, most companies may have a hybrid workforce consisting of on-site and remote workers. Although remote working comes with convenience and cost savings, it may be challenging to measure workforce productivity.
Here’s a look at four productivity metrics that can help you measure your workforce in 2021.
- Customer Satisfaction Rate (CSAT)
This method involves conducting regular surveys to collect responses from customers. When your employees work from home, the customer satisfaction rate should either remain the same or increase to indicate zero loss in productivity. According to HubSpot, you can measure customer satisfaction by dividing the number of positive reviews by the total number of responses and multiplying the result by 100. If there are more negative reviews than positive ones, you can tell that your remote workforce is not as productive, meaning you should take the necessary measures to improve the situation.
- Assessing the Project Schedule
When working on an important project, you should prepare a schedule to guide your team on pending tasks and outline the time required to complete those tasks. For instance, if your remote IT specialist intends to develop a company website in two weeks, you should monitor that the assigned tasks are completed on the specified days. This will help you determine if they are on schedule, ahead of schedule or behind it. When a remote worker is behind schedule, it often means their productivity is not sufficient. However, it is important to keep in mind that there could be other reasons for a project to remain behind schedule; including poor initial project estimations, an unclear vision of the project or market shifts, according to the Project Management Institute (PMI).
- Mental Health Assessment
Although this is an indirect method of measurement, mental health has a significant impact on your employees’ performance and productivity. For example, the social isolation that comes with remote working has negatively affected the mental health of many Americans, with about 53% of adults reporting negative impacts of stress over the COVID-19 virus, per the Kaiser Family Foundation(KFF). If your remote workers are not in the right state of mental health, there will often be a productivity gap. Therefore, make sure to reach out to your teamon an informal basis and find out how they are doing. Regularly engage your workforce by sending greetings, gifts or special treats, which can help them cope with social isolation. You may even send help to those who need it. Additionally,you can minimize employee burnout by providing days off and ensuring your workers take their proper breaks.
- Employee Monitoring Software
This software enables you to monitor what sites your remote workers are visiting. This knowledge helps you determine whether they are visiting productive or unproductive sites. It not only helps keep employees focused on work but also enhances your cybersecurity.
Use these four productivity metrics to measure your workforce effectively in 2021. For more guidance on growing your own business, contact the Economic Development Collaborative. Conveniently located in Camarillo, California, we’re here to help and provide regular updates for businesses on the COVID-19 pandemic.
