Once you've figured out how to measure your business's productivity, you need to determine whether your productivity is where it should be. This task can be tricky, especially if you're getting this information for the first time. Factors to take into consideration are:

What is productivity? A simple way to think of your business's productivity is in terms of:

Monetary and hidden costs associated with employee turnover are also of concern.

You should choose a convenient measure of productivity, based upon the type of operation your business is involved in and what you're producing. You'll also need to choose a time frame in which to measure it.

Why have an absence policy? When employees are absent, it can hurt your business. This is especially true if your business has only a few employees. You want to make sure that employees are rarely absent so that you have few disruptions. An employee who is absent much of the time may not be a good investment of your employment dollars.

While a few faxes may be harmless enough, faxing can be an expensive proposition. Not only that, but a customer could be trying to fax something to you and getting a busy signal during one of Bob's "harmless faxes." Because Bob is also using this equipment during working time, you are experiencing a loss of productivity. You may also be sending a message to other employees that personal use of equipment during work time is OK. Is this the message you want to send? You may want to ask Bob to call in those take out orders and lay off the radio requests.

There are no hard and fast rules about when or what types of occasions merit special recognition. Some of the more common reasons for recognition and reward are:

The idea of "quality" is free. Studies on successful implementation of TQM programs and customer service show a significant improvement in company efficiencies, sales, and profitability, often with fewer people and at less cost than before.

In order to educate your employees about your business's stance on substance abuse and any program you may have, you need to:

If you suspect that you may have a problem with low morale because employees are exhibiting symptoms of it or because a survey that you've done of your employees indicates it, you need to determine which aspects of your workplace are creating the dissatisfaction with the job and then remedy them.