3 Engagement Strategies to Increase Productivity

 

A good white collar job provides all sorts of comforts in the office for the employees. There’s air-conditioning to keep everyone cool, hot coffee to warm things up and get people going throughout the day and into the night, and a break room where they can take a breather among other things.

But for all of the little pleasures these perks present, the boredom in routine tasks can still set in and a heavy workload can burden employees with stress. Boredom and/or stress can then lead to unmotivated and burnt out workers turning in mediocre work. Fortunately, there is a way to avoid such losses in productivity that everyone can enjoy doing.

Boredom and/or stress can then lead to unmotivated and burnt out workers turning in mediocre work.

Encourage a healthier lifestyle

Start the transition by influencing them to uphold good eating habits. Spearhead the campaign against too much junk food, caffeine, alcohol, and smoking. You can also arrange for your team to do a fairly physical activity such as walking or running.

Do something relaxing

Allow your employees time to relax. Even if it’s just meditation or basic yoga poses in a free room within the office, spend some time—say, ten or fifteen minutes after lunch hour—to regain their focus before getting back to work.

Allow your employees time to relax…to regain their focus before getting back to work.

Have fun playing games

When you see that your employees are disinterested or you feel that they’re burning out, gather them all together for fun games that you can play in the office.  Listed here are three such games that will let them blow off steam, know their coworkers better, practice more critical thinking, and as a result, feel reenergized and motivated to get back to work.

• Office Poker

An ideal game for workplaces with at least 25 people, Office Poker is a great way to break the ice and get to know your office mates better. In this game, all you need is a deck (or two if you have more people) of regular playing cards. Give each participant one card each. Once everybody has a card, ask them to form groups of five according to a poker hand they want to form (royal flush, straight flush, full house, etc.) within five minutes. After that, ask each group what made them pursue the hand they formed. You can also ask them to share a funny poker experience (or lack of it) while presenting their hand.

• Murder Mystery Game

Popularized by CEO and author Paul Spiegelman, the famous Murder Mystery Game now can be used in your place of work. Much like the original concept, Spiegelman changed the “victim” character into a “lost customer”.  Although the elements are customer service-centric, most workplaces can still play this game because customer retention is a top priority for most industries.

The mechanics involve different teams of agents figuring out who the lost customer is and the reason for him or her to pull out. This game aims to promote teamwork as well as to reiterate to the employees the importance of providing satisfactory customer service round the clock.

• One Special Thing

Students are not the only species who get shy when asked to say something about themselves in front of everyone; adults feel that too. Make the introductions less awkward with the help of this game.

Group your team in pairs and ask them to tell each other the most interesting things they will not mind telling everyone else. After five minutes of chatting, choose the first speaker and let him or her introduce his or her partner. This way, your employees will be less conscious about having to introduce themselves to their coworkers.

With labor being one of a company’s best assets, you should not just make sure your employees are meeting the demands of their job; you should also make certain that their health and state of mind are taken care of as far as the company could. So to make things in the office more interesting, play these games every once in a while and encourage your employees to contribute their ideas for future events.

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Image credit- tinica / 123RF Stock Photo