Improving Productivity in the Warehouse

In most warehouses, generating profit means maximizing productivity and making sure your employees work as quickly, efficiently, and sustainably as possible. Unfortunately, improving productivity in the warehouse is often a lot easier said than done, especially if you have a lot of high-volume orders and complicated workplace procedures.

To boost productivity in a cost-effective way, you need to understand what makes workers less productive and what solutions directly address the root of those problems. Here are some things to help benefit your warehouse if your workers are lagging behind in productivity.

Optimize Available Workspaces

Before implementing complicated management systems and expensive technological innovations to improve productivity in your warehouse, it may be worth exploring how to make better use of existing space and infrastructure. Something as simple as rearranging the layout of storage racks or moving high-volume items closer to picking and/or packaging stations could go a long way toward helping workers complete day-to-day tasks more efficiently.

Furthermore, prioritize solutions that reduce complexity rather than add to it when investing in new equipment. For example, switching to a paperless record-keeping system and making workstations mobile rather than fixed can help streamline operations and improve maneuverability. What matters the most to productivity is not how much money is spent on the solution, but rather how well the solution addresses the unique needs of the business it’s meant for.

Make Goals Clear and Performance Measurable

One of the biggest adversaries to warehouse productivity is a workforce that doesn’t understand what exactly they need to do or the best way to fulfill those duties. Whenever changes are made to workplace procedures, management’s first priority should be to inform workers about what adjustments are being made as well as the intended outcome.

Not only is it crucial for productivity goals to be clear and achievable, but they must be easily measurable as well. A vague desire to “increase productivity” doesn’t give workers something to strive toward like a specific number of orders processed per day does, for example. Rewarding employees who go above and beyond their expectations can also help encourage more productive and profitable working habits.

Talk to Employees on the Floor

One of the easiest and most straightforward ways to improve productivity in the warehouse is to talk to employees about what parts of their workday they believe are inefficient. Nobody knows the ins and outs of the warehouse floor better than the people who spend their entire workdays there. Your workers may the best resources for determining what improvements can be made to your productivity strategies.

Just as important as seeking feedback from employees, however, is actually following through on their recommendations and putting in a good-faith effort to implement suggestions. Beyond just making processes more efficient, employees trust their supervisors to have their best interests in mind and to listen to their input. Making these simple changes to your operations and eliciting feedback whenever possible can help improve productivity in the warehouse. Consider becoming a HapiEmployer to enjoy the benefits of our productive and efficient gig economy.