Three Ways to Improve Efficiency in Your Small Firm

Put simply, an efficient firm will be able to produce more goods at a faster rate and will have less waste. 

However, it’s not just the production of goods that can be made more efficient. Every business process can be improved to enjoy efficiency gains. This can include how staff approach their working tasks and even how routine meetings are held to discuss current business issues. 

In this article, three unique ways that your small firm can improve efficiency will be explored in detail. These examples are relevant across a range of business sectors and can help an organization gain a competitive edge over its rivals. 

When marking, etching, or engraving

Thousands of small firms need to mark, etch, or engrave their products and components. For example, an electronics firm may need to mark serial numbers on its components during their manufacture. Markings may also need to be engraved on items of bespoke jewellery to customize them for the end consumer. 

This process of engraving and marking can be extremely time-consuming if completed by a human worker and will increase the production costs per unit. It’s far better to invest in a laser engraving machine that can automate these processes. Laser engravers can be connected to computers with CAD software, enabling them to be used for a wide range of marking and etching tasks. 

The key benefit of this type of technology is that it allows a high degree of consistency to be achieved across each specific job at speed. 

Eradicate non-essential meetings

Every small business will need to hold meetings with its staff members to discuss important topics and help to plan for the future. However, it’s now widely recognized that an excess of meetings can stop employees from undertaking their roles and responsibilities efficiently. It’s estimated that 70% of meetings take staff away from completing their tasks and this can lead to an ineffective and inefficient working culture developing. 

Put simply, managers and leaders must take a thorough look at meeting schedules in their small businesses. Ideally, non-essential meetings should be completely eradicated from the working week. Often, these can be replaced with a summary email to staff that outlines key developments in each team. This one change can free up a considerable amount of time for employees, allowing them to work to a higher level of output, thus increasing efficiency.

Request staff feedback

As a final point, it’s of paramount importance that the views, ideas, and opinions of all staff members are heard to ensure that the business is constantly looking for ways to become more efficient. Staff at all levels of the company can routinely find ways that working tasks can be completed differently, and in many cases, this allows efficiency gains to be realized.

Use staff survey software to email a questionnaire out to your employees. Ideally, this will ask them to comment on existing working practices and provide space for them to share their ideas for service improvement.