Improving Your EfficiencyBob BaylorAssociate DeanCincinnati State

Improving Your Efficiency What is Efficiency?

Engineering The ratio of output to input. Efficiency is

usually expressed as a percent.

Business The comparison of what is actually

produced or performed with what can be achieved with the same consumption of resources (money, time, labor, etc.). It is an important factor in determination of productivity.

Aerodynamics

Is this efficient?

Is this efficient?

Multitasking Loss of Focus Loss of Productivity Increase Stress

Loss of Focus According to the study of David Meyer, a

psychologist at the University of Michigan founded that, constantly switching task makes difficult for brain to concentrate. As a result of loss of focus and attention, tasks are less efficiently performed.

Loss of Productivity Researchers at the University of

Michigan found a process called executive control, which the brain uses to switch between tasks but due to constant switching and loss of focus, the brain loses speed and accuracy to do the task.

Increase Stress Multitasking can lead to high workload

and increase your stress levels, inviting host of health issues.

Our body release hormone called Cortisol during stress.

Increased cortisol results in high blood pressure, sleep problems, weakening of immune system, imbalances in blood sugar levels etc.

The Enablers

Social Media The spread of social media in the workplace

is occurring faster than any rules designed to manage it.

Mixing personal and professional connections through social media can cause problems in the workplace.

The use of Twitter and other social networking sites is costing UK firms £1.38 billion (approximately 2.25 billion dollars) every year. Source: Mashable.com

Smartphones Allows emails to be received even

during vacations Creates a condition of always being “on” Work day is lengthened to the point of

never ending Expectation of a speedy response

Email The central communications channel for

all modern organizations Is it dysfunctional? Email distracts employees from doing

“real” work Generates guilt feelings if they go

unanswered

What is causing this?

Leslie Perlow, PhD, Harvard Business School

Cycle of Responsiveness Leslie Perlow, Harvard professor coined

the term referring to professionals who felt, “the pressure to be on”

COR began when workers adjusted daily schedules to meet requests from clients or teammates in different time zones

Cycle of Responsiveness Once colleagues experience this

increased responsiveness, their own requests expand

Most just accept these additional demands (whether urgent or not)

Those who don’t risk being branded as less committed to their work

Predictable Time Off (PTO) Disconnect from technology for a few

predetermined hours every week They felt more motivated Increased job satisfaction More satisfied with their work-life

balance

Predictable Time Off (PTO) They reported becoming more;

Efficient Effective Collaborative as a team

What can you do? Stop the dysfunctionality of “always-on” It can be tamed by collective action

But what if I can’t?

The Basics Get more sleep Exercise Keep a notebook in longhand Volunteer

Sleep!

Get More Sleep! In 2001, the National Sleep Foundation

(NSF) found the majority (63%) don’t get enough sleep

Many adults say they now spend more time at work and less time sleeping (40% vs. 38%)

National Commission on Sleep Disorders Decreased productivity and accidents in

the workplace cost the nation $150 billion a year.

Rotating shifts and sleep deprivation lead to mistakes, dips in attention, delayed reactions, accidents in the workplace, crashes on the roadways, reduced productivity and 2 difficulties in communication

National Commission on Sleep Disorders In addition to numerous health problems

there is a substantial cost to the economy in terms of decreased efficiency and productivity

Exercise!

Exercise! Improved physical health reduces the

risk of work-related injury Reduce feelings of anxiety and

depression Reduce the likelihood of certain types of

disease and illnesses

Writing increases neural activity

Writing by hand can get ideas out faster

Writing by hand can get ideas out faster University of Wisconsin psychologist Virginia

Berninger tested students in grades 2, 4, and 6, and found that they not only wrote faster by hand than by keyboard — but also generated more ideas when composing essays in longhand.

In other research, Berninger shows that the sequential finger movements required to write by hand activate brain regions involved with thought, language, and short-term memory.

Writing increases neural activity A recent Indiana University study had one

group of children practice printing letters by hand while a second group just looked at examples of A's, B's, and C's.

Then, both groups of kids entered a functional MRI (disguised as a "spaceship") that scanned their brains as the researchers showed them letters. The neural activity in the first group was far more advanced and "adult-like," researchers found.

Volunteer!

Volunteer! Improves performance Increases job satisfaction, attitude and

morale Encourages teamwork Promotes leadership and skill

development Improves communication between

employees and their supervisors, and across departments

Volunteer! According to the eighth annual Deloitte

Volunteer IMPACT Survey, millennials who frequently participate in workplace volunteer activities are more likely to be proud, loyal and satisfied employees, as compared to those who rarely or never volunteer.

Sources http://

theweek.com/article/index/207846/how-writing-by-hand-makes-kids-smarter

http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2012/may/20/smartphone-email-switch-off-productivity

http://mashable.com/2009/10/26/social-media-productivity-cost/ “The Effects of Sleep Deprivation on Individual Productivity”, Sephra

L. Snyder, Marshall University Huntington, West Virginia May 2003 http://www.livestrong.com/article/422836-how-does-exercise-improve

-work-productivity/

http://www.deloitte.com/assets/Dcom-UnitedStates/Local%20Assets/Documents/us_2011DeloitteVolunteerIMPACTSurvey_ExecutiveSummary_060311.pdf

Contact informationBob BaylorCincinnati StateHealth & Public Safety Division3520 Central ParkwayCincinnati, OH 45223Tel: 513-569-4782Email: robert.baylor@cincinnatistate.edu