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Nearly 7 in 10 managers say teams are more productive than one year ago
Editorial by Christian Saint Cyr
National Director / Canadian Job Development Network
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New research from Robert Half Canada reveals a complex picture when it comes to worker productivity and there are important lessons job developers can take from this research.
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Hiring managers report increased productivity amongst their teams, primarily driven by staffing and training their departments. However, some professionals indicate they are putting in longer work hours compared to one year ago, raising concerns about burnout, decreased morale, and turnover.
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Diverse hiring is nothing new within the career development sector. The Ontario Disability Employment Network reports employers enjoy a 72% increase in productivity when hiring individuals with disabilities.
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The Robert Half surveys of hiring managers and workers highlight five key trends shaping employee productivity:
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Productivity is up. Nearly seven in ten hiring managers (68 per cent) report an increase in employee productivity compared to one year ago. 21 per cent report no change, and only 11 per cent report decreased productivity on their teams.
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Staffing and training teams impacts productivity. According to hiring managers, the steps they've taken that most contributed to higher productivity are that they hired full-time employees (31 per cent), improved management practices (31 per cent), enhanced staff training (31 per cent), and adopted new technologies (29 per cent).
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AI contributes to increased efficiency for some. An estimated 3 in 10 professionals report increased efficiency due to the implementation of emerging technologies, such as generative AI, that can automate time-consuming tasks and free them up for strategic thinking. Gen Z workers are the most likely to have improved productivity using AI (47 per cent), followed by millennials (32 per cent). Less than a quarter of Gen X professionals (23 per cent) feel that generative AI has increased their efficiency, and only 14 per cent of baby boomers.
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Flexibility fuels focus. When asked about incentives and work arrangements that would boost engagement and productivity, workers prioritized:
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Hybrid work options: More than half of respondents (52 per cent) said their productivity increases when offered more hybrid work options.
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Windowed work schedules: More than 4 in 10 workers (42 per cent) say having flexible work hours improves their engagement.
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Compressed workweeks: 27 per cent say they are more productive and engaged when their company offers Summer Fridays.
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Many workers are putting in more hours. While productivity is up, nearly 3 in 10 workers (29 per cent) are logging more hours compared to the previous year, led by Gen Z (39 per cent), followed by millennials (34 per cent). Meanwhile, more than half of managers (52 per cent) say they send emails to employees outside of regular business hours, and 28 per cent expect responses before the next business day.
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"Increased productivity is very positive news for managers, businesses, and professionals alike," said Koula Vasilopoulos, Senior Managing Director of Robert Half Canada. "Businesses who maintain necessary staffing levels, adopt new technologies, and invest in learning and development training for their staff see the benefits in increased engagement and productivity. However, this needs to be balanced with a positive work environment including reasonable hours and flexibility, as working longer hours and not establishing work-life balance can quickly offset productivity gains through burnout and turnover."
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For several years now, employers have been reporting the challenge of operating businesses under-staffed. Putting a job development lens on this research, the steps managers took which best improved employment outcomes included hiring full-time employees, improving management practices, enhanced staff training and the adoption of new technologies.
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These approaches provide lots of opportunities for the further recruitment of under-represented populations.
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In speaking with employers, you can note this research in promoting customized employment. By tailoring positions that allow managers and staff to focus on their core responsibilities, the productivity of the organization will improve.
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It also illustrates the tremendous value of staff development. With nearly one in five new workers not lasting three months, the key reasons why people leave include miscommunication, poor training and a lack of support.
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Employers who develop structured training plans and provide effective training in the first few months of employment, will help to create a more stable workforce and significantly decrease employee turnover.
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Moving forward, I believe there are opportunities for us to remind employers that if workers are putting in longer hours today than a year ago, the potential resulting burnout, decreased morale and turnover could result in staff loss as well as long and costly recruiting. That perhaps hiring someone today, could be the best thing they do to retain staff tomorrow.
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We’ll be discussing the benefits of increased productivity at our #MotivatingMondays meeting of the Canadian Job Development Network, Monday Aug. 26th at 8:30am Pacific; 9:30am Mountain; 10:30am Central; 11:30am Eastern; 12:30pm Atlantic and at 1pm in Newfoundland.
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On the morning of Monday August 26th, 'Click this Link' to join the session LIVE.
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