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When you are moving or lifting something, leverage allows you to achieve much more with less effort. Think about someone using a crowbar as a lever to move a heavy rock. The concept of leverage can also be used in business, especially in financial and operational management. In this article we are going to concentrate on how you can use leverage to increase your own productivity and efficiency and that of your business. If you can learn to leverage the resources available to you, you will find that you are able to achieve greater results with a lot less effort.

Technology

In this day and age, anyone not embracing technology will be left behind. Technology is one of the greatest levers that you have at your disposal as an individual and business. If you are using technology to its fullest advantage, you are able to leverage both time and performance. Take some time to do an audit of the technology you are using to ensure you are gaining the maximum advantage. A few key questions to consider are:[wlm_ismember]

• Is the equipment that you are using up to date?
  • Advances in technology are happening every day, and this means if you are using old hardware or out-of-date software, you are not getting the most leverage from it.
• Are your systems integrated?
  • These days you can maximise your efficiency by using multiple devices that automatically sync all of your updates. The use of cloud technology means that information is up to date and accessible in real time.
• Are you using your technology to full advantage?
  • In many cases, businesses install great software systems only to find that they use just a fraction of the program capabilities. Take the time to understand what is possible and get some additional training if required.
• Are you hanging on to old systems and so creating additional work?
  • We often see businesses that have been operating for over 10 years doubling up on many reporting tasks. They still use manual systems even though the information is now readily available through their technology.

Without doubt, advances in technology have brought with them some new issues and angst. New devices and social media can play havoc with time management as a distraction and their availability 24/7, bringing with it some new stresses in the workplace. However, technology offers you one of the strongest levers in business to build on your efficiency and save time if you work it to your advantage.

Skills and knowledge

As an individual and business, you have a vast array of resources available to you by way of skills and knowledge. You need to look at how you can leverage your own skills and knowledge and how you can leverage these attributes in others. Some key questions to consider are:

• Are you using your skills and knowledge to maximum advantage?
  • Often the leaders of a small business can be caught up doing tasks and activities that can or should be done by someone else. This is most usually because when they were starting out, the founders had to do everything themselves. As your business grows, it is essential that you grow with it. Take some time to complete an “individual SWOT” analysis to identify any opportunities you might be missing.
• Are you overlooking valuable skills and knowledge in others?
  • It is important to look beyond what someone is doing in their current role. You might have someone employed as a salesperson or waitress only to find that they have a talent for graphic design or knowledge and experience in another business field. It is essential to take the time to really get to know those working for you. Our article “One on one coaching” will be helpful here.
• Are you spending valuable time on work that should be outsourced?
  • We often see businesses doing work in-house that would be better outsourced to an expert. If can be a false saving to labour on something that you have no expertise in when the time spent and quality of work are factored in. These days there is a myriad of affordable outsourcing options available with so many freelancers and consultants available online.
• Do your delegation skills need upgrading?
  • This is one area that most business owners and managers can improve on so they can leverage the skills and knowledge of those around them. Our article “Top 10 tips for effective delegation” will give you the strategies to upgrade your skills in this area.
• Is there an upgrade opportunity?
  • Being able to learn from others is one of the key leverage opportunities. It may seem that completing a course or working through some research before starting on something new is a waste of time. However, in the long run it will save both time and angst as you will be doing things the right way the first time. Look for opportunities to upgrade your skills and knowledge and those of your team.

Once you can start leveraging the skill and knowledge base of yourself and those around you, a massive leap forward in efficiency and productivity will be evident. You will also reap the rewards of higher engagement levels from employees  – research has proven additional responsibility and learning opportunities are powerful motivators.

Time

Being able to leverage your own time and that of others is one of the core strategies for operational leverage. No matter how many times we might wish for more, there are only 24 hours each day. Therefore, being able to maximise productivity during the available work time is crucial to a high level of efficiency. Some key questions to consider are:

• Are you working to capacity?
  • It is worth taking stock every now and again to determine where your time is being spent and if you can be working more efficiently. Our article “Activity log” will give you a framework and template to work with.
• Are your team meetings running as efficiently as they should?
  • Meetings are one of the greatest time wasters in business. If eight people go to an hour-long meeting that is unproductive or unnecessary, not one but eight working hours are lost! Make sure every meeting is necessary and that each is planned and run as efficiently as possible. Our article “Effective meetings” provide guidelines on this.
• Do you have the right person doing each task?
  • Any task should be given to the most junior person that is capable of completing it. In many businesses, managers and senior staff are spending valuable time on tasks and activities that could easily be completed by a junior member of the team. Often this is because it might seem quicker and easier, but in the long run time spent training will create invaluable time leverage.
• Is everyone clear on what is most important?
  • Having everyone in your team focused and clear on the business’s goals will help to build motivation and productivity. Often time is wasted when people are not sure of what they are working towards or why. An excellent strategy is to start the day or the week discussing the most important things to achieve as this helps to set a clear direction for the team. Just a five-minute, stand-up work-in-progress meeting can get everyone motivated and raring to go for the day.

Time is without doubt the most precious commodity for any person or business. The more you enhance your time management skills, the greater your level of success. We provide a number of learning articles on time management which we suggest you work through and review on a regular basis.

Summary

Using leverage to promote higher levels of productivity and efficiency is a proven strategy that many successful businesses apply every day. The first step is to see how you can leverage your own time, skills and knowledge, and as suggested earlier we urge you to start by completing your individual SWOT. This will allow you to assess your areas of strength and weakness, along with identifying your greatest opportunities and threats. Once you have completed this assessment, you can work with those around you to ensure you are gaining the maximum advantage from the resources available to you.[/wlm_ismember]

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