7 tips to improving staff performance

Staff performance is crucial to the success of every business. Providing ongoing training to allow your workforce to upskill and continually perform at a high standard is therefore essential. Doing this via e-learning courses can have many benefits, from saving your business money to making staff feel more valued.

So, how can you improve the success of staff training in your workplace?

1. Create a positive workspace

The working environment you create for your employees can have a significant impact on their performance. Positivity equals productivity, which is why you must strive to make your workplace a happy one.

For example, make sure there's enough light, while keeping the doors open can create the illusion of a wider space, potentially helping the generation of creative ideas.

What's more, let your staff know they can approach you should a problem arise. If they feel comfortable enough to talk to you about any issues, they'll have a lot more faith in the company, and its training programme, as a whole.

2. Enhance engagement

One of the most important ways to improve staff performance is to ensure employees are engaged. It's all well and good devising an excellent training programme, but if no one is engaged with it, its success is unlikely.

A good starting point would be to conduct a staff survey, where you allow employees to answer anonymously, to find out how people really feel about your workplace. Take the feedback on board, assessing where you can make changes to improve staff engagement and performance.

3. Improve customer interaction

Customer retention can have a profound effect on staff morale, so it's important to pay attention to the relationships your employees have with customers too. They should know how to find common ground with clients from which to build trust, and should primarily focus on their needs and concerns, rather than on bombarding them with products and services.

4. Highlight obstacles

If staff performance is wavering, you need to find the root of the problem, so make sure your employees know they can let you know what the issue is, so you can work together to find a solution.

5. Boost customer service skills

Staff performance can also be improved by boosting customer service skills. Ensuring employees know how to communicate clearly, empathetically and patiently, with in-depth knowledge of your products and services, can give them much more confidence in their work. As a result, their performance should improve.

6. Give your employees a voice

Letting employees have a say in how the company is run can help you to move away from oppressive top-down management. Staff satisfaction surveys, regular company updates and sessions where they can provide input on new ideas to improve the overall workplace can all help with this.

7. Make it fun

While your aim is to boost profits, retain customers and utilise the knowledge of your employees, don't lose sight of keeping things fun.

Working for hours on end can take its toll, so provide employees with monthly targets and incentives, such as going out for lunch or drinks. This will make your staff feel valued, giving them motivation to work hard, subsequently improving their performance.

Looking for e-learning courses to keep your staff engaged? View the full Virtual College digital training offering.