If you feel like there’s room for improvement in your current workflows and day-to-day operations - you’re probably right.

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Unless you’re using data to back your decisions, there’s a good chance that you’ll miss out on small details that can make a big difference to employee productivity and efficiency. To refine or reinvent your processes for the better, it’s essential to dig into the goldmine of data that workforce analytics can provide.

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In this guide, we’ll walk you through some of the ways workforce analytics tools can support effective organizational changes and decision-making to bring about greater productivity.

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Insights into What Does and Doesn’t Work

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First and foremost, workforce analytics tools provide you with a reliable way of analyzing what currently is and isn’t working.

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This alone is enough to spark an uptick in workplace productivity in your company since you can leverage the data you collect to affect positive change. You may have a hunch about what your workforce does well and where the skill gaps are, but until you have the data to back it up, it’s just that - an educated guess.

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To boost productivity levels and efficiency, you need to rely on concrete insights based on data, as opposed to guesswork. 

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In a survey of C-level executives and key decision-makers by IBM, 62% cited a lack of insight into current processes as a key challenge for modernizing them. 88% defined the modernization of business processes as key to improving customer engagement, while 77% said it was crucial for improving the employee experience.

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If business process modernization is essential for growth yet is inhibited by the lack of insight into current processes, surely the answer can be found in workforce analytics.

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When you implement workforce analytics data in your organization, you can identify the following:

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•  Retention rates and factors affecting employee turnover
•  App and tool usage and the productivity return they provide
•  Top performers and productivity benchmarks
•  Budget allocation and resource management efficiency
•  Effectiveness of talent recruitment
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An SHRM report on the implementation and benefits of workforce analytics provides us with various examples of how it can drive positive change within a company. 

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For example, research on over 400 McDonald’s restaurants in 2009 revealed that having an employee over the age of 60 boosted customer satisfaction by around 20% on average. Without access to this data, the global chain could miss out on a straightforward opportunity to drive up customer satisfaction.
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With employee monitoring software, Windows or Mac employee computers can provide another layer of productivity monitoring into your organization which can filter through down to individuals and teams. Monitoring users' internet activity like this allows you to stay on top of employee time usage, and create a greater sense of accountability and engagement.
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Identity Key Workforce Productivity Trends
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Another important insight you can glean from workforce analytics software is the productivity trends within your teams and among individual employees.

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Productivity isn’t always easy to predict since there are so many factors that can affect it.

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Here are just some factors that influence employee and team productivity:

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• The tools they use
• Whether they feel supported and appreciated by the company they work for
• How easy it is to communicate and collaborate with coworkers
• Their level of engagement with the work they do
• The company processes and workflows 
• Mental health issues and burnout

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As you can see, it’s hard to predict what will affect each individual’s productivity levels at work. However, what you can do is take a snapshot of the current productivity landscape in your team and identify the predominant trends.

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With the assistance of workforce optimization companies like Insightful, you can collect time data and examine specific app usage to build a picture of productivity. With this picture, you can see who the top performers and outliers are, who’s falling short of output expectations, and even what time of day seems to yield the most productivity.

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From the workforce analytics data you gather from a computer monitor program, you can make small changes and see if they lead to higher productivity levels.

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For example, if you notice a trend across the board for high productivity levels in the first few hours of the day. You can frontload the day with the most important tasks to see if you make more meaningful progress as a team, taking advantage of when team members work best.

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Or, if you find that some employees thrive in the morning while others perform best in the afternoon, you could offer some flexibility in how each individual works. This is increasingly common with hybrid work models, and with access to time data through a remote work time tracker like Insightful, you can ensure this accommodation for flexibility doesn’t lead to idle time or lost productivity.
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Boost Employee Engagement and Accountability

It’s no secret that motivation and productivity are intrinsically linked, yet it can be hard to foster a connection between the two for a workforce that consists of individuals with different desires and goals.

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Motivation isn’t something you can typically inspire in your employees unless you offer the following:

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• A pay raise
• A purpose for working that aligns with company values
• Meaningful career growth
• Accountability for one’s work

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The first two may be out of your control, but if you’re a team leader looking to boost productivity on an individual level and overhaul processes, the last two motivators are worth considering. Fortunately, workforce analytics and monitoring employees’ computer usage can help you to this end.

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How?

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When you use employer monitoring software to promote transparency by sharing time and productivity data with your employees, you can empower them to take full responsibility for their actions and performance level. Combine this self-awareness with opportunities for professional development tied to performance, and you’ve got a powerful recipe for inspiring higher employee engagement.

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As highlighted in McKinsey’s enterprise agility report, employee engagement can be strongly linked to efficiency metrics such as how quickly employees resolve issues and how satisfied customers are with the service they receive.

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It stands to reason then that by inspiring greater employee engagement through corporate tracking software and the data it provides, you can refresh existing workflows and improve results across the board, from productivity and output to customer satisfaction.

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