The world of business is riddled with various obstacles. To illustrate this, we don’t have to look past the regular workplace where anything ranging from equipment malfunction to personal relationships can escalate into a full-scale crisis.
This is a perfect moment to remind ourselves of the words of famous Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius who once said, “The impediment to action advances action. What stands in the way becomes the way.”
What this ancient ruler tries to tell us is that problems we encounter at work are not necessarily obstacles. By overcoming them, we make bigger progress than we would if we hadn’t hit the wall in the first place. Let us then take a look at some of these common workplace problems and how to mend them.
The problems with communication
This is, by far, one of the most potent poisons to workplace productivity. As a matter of fact, according to a recent survey, 28% of examined workers cite poor communication as the main reason why they are not able to deliver their work on time. That’s roughly one-third of your entire workforce. Fortunately, this common problem can be easily cut in the root by these practical solutions:
- Build a communication-friendly culture (encourage transparency and accountability).
- Use chat apps for communication. They are fun, simple, and encourage chatter.
- Ask for feedback. Your employees will feel empowered if you ask their opinion.
- Follow up on the feedback you get.
Implementing these measures preemptively will make your organization far leaner and agile than it was in the first place.
Lacking motivation and drops in productivity
Staying engaged in what you are doing 24/7 and 365 days a year can be very hard. In the collectives that number dozes and even hundreds of workers, this lack of consistent motivation can cause very noticeable and devastating performance drops. Some of the most popular short-term remedies for these obstacles can be found in money and benefits. But, good long-term results will require strong foundations built on mutual trust, a pleasant workplace environment, opportunities for professional and personal growth as well as constant recognition of achievements.
Lack of strong leadership
An army is only as strong as its leader. Your staff will only be able to perform as efficiently as your management team is able to guide its efforts. Recent research says that as much as 70% of employees in the USA feel unhappy due to negative management. What makes this situation even more difficult is that these shortcomings in leadership are often not the result of lack of will or ill intent but rather poor training. Out of all problems we are going to cover in this article, this problem is easiest to address. Sign up your upper echelon for professional executive coaching and make sure your staff will never run aimlessly.
Dealing with difficult clients
Difficult customers are not the biggest corporate problem, but they are one of the most frustrating—especially if we are talking about extended projects that depend on effective communication, precise demands, and timely feedback. As unpleasant as the lack of these three things can be, demanding clients give you an opportunity to practice patience, communication, and listening skills. Also, it is essential to realize that even if your viewpoints may seem reasonable even under close scrutiny, your clients will sometimes be right. Admitting that you are dealing with business, not personal matters, is something you will need to learn sooner than later.
Keeping up with new technologies
The business world was always driven by the latest technological achievements. Early adopters were always ahead of the pack and had their piece of the market safely cornered. But, ever since the inception of the Digital Era, relevant technologies started multiplying and developing at such a breakneck pace that keeping up with them becomes an increasingly complex task. One of the easiest ways to overcome this challenge is subscribing to Cloud services. Moving your infrastructure into the digital realm will move the burden of maintaining and updating infrastructure and assets on the shoulders of developers. You always get a finished and up-to-date product.
Keeping up with changes
Technologies are not the only relevant factor that is, as of lately, undergoing rapid changes. Last year’s outbreak of COVID-19 taught us just how fast the entire markets can turn upside down in a matter of days. The only way to be able to face such sudden adversities is by making your company scalable and more compartmentalized. Even better, you should consider completely outsourcing the departments that are not essential to the core company activities. By doing this, you will be able to quickly expand your workforce, adopt new technologies and react to market circumstances, all without developing infrastructure or dealing with onboarding.
We hope these few mentions gave you some general ideas about the problems companies from all industries are dealing with each passing day and hopefully proposed some solutions you will be able to implement in your daily operations. Doing business means dealing with adversities. There are very few things we can do about this unpleasant fact. How we are going to do that and what we will learn in the process is what makes the difference between winners and losers.
What are some other obstacles we need to overcome in the workplace? Let us know down in the comments.
This article originally published in GREY Journal.
