15 Key Areas of Improvement for Employees in the Workplace
Explore 15 key areas of improvement for employees for their professional development. Help them identify the ones they struggle with and take action by using the strategies described.
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Como seres humanos, estamos predispuestos a esforzarnos por crecer y mejorar. Descuidar este aspecto puede llevarnos al estancamiento y la autocomplacencia.
Esta afirmación es especialmente cierta en el lugar de trabajo, ya que un asombroso 91% de los empleados desea una formación personalizada y pertinente. Es una clara señal de que muchos trabajadores buscan formas de mejorar su rendimiento en el trabajo.
No existe un principio único que haga que cada empleado se desarrolle mágicamente de la noche a la mañana. Pero hay varias áreas de mejora que se aplican prácticamente a todos los empleados, independientemente de su cargo o sector.
En esta entrada del blog, exploraremos nueve áreas significativas de mejora y analizaremos los pasos que puede dar para mejorar el rendimiento de sus empleados en el lugar de trabajo.
¿Por qué es importante la mejora profesional?
La mejora profesional no es sólo un objetivo, sino una necesidad. Es la clave para abrir nuevas oportunidades de crecimiento personal y promoción profesional.
Pero, ¿por qué es importante la mejora profesional? Piénselo de esta manera: al igual que un coche requiere un mantenimiento regular y combustible para seguir funcionando sin problemas, la carrera profesional de sus empleados también necesita atención y cuidado.
Sin un desarrollo continuo, los empleados corren el riesgo de quedarse rezagados en su sector. Esto no solo puede limitar sus opciones profesionales, sino también provocar agotamiento.
15 Key areas of improvement for employees
No existe una lista universal de áreas de mejora, ya que cada persona tiene áreas diferentes que pueden requerir atención. Sin embargo, la siguiente lista incluye las más comunes que se aplican a la mayoría de los empleados.
1. Liderazgo
El liderazgo es la habilidad más importante que separa a los empleados de éxito de los que luchan por avanzar en sus carreras.
Sin embargo, el liderazgo puede ser un rasgo difícil de dominar. Los que no son líderes natos suelen tener dificultades para encontrar su lugar e incluso pueden enfrentarse a la resistencia de sus colegas.
Ahí es donde usted, como supervisor, entra en juego. Con la orientación adecuada, cualquiera puede convertirse en un auténtico líder.
Here are the tips to help an employee improve their leadership skills:
Encouraging ownership: Allow employees to take ownership of their tasks and projects. Giving them the autonomy to make decisions and learn from mistakes fosters a sense of responsibility and ownership.
Plant the seed of possibility: Inspire employees with a vision of what could be accomplished through their leadership and encourage them to believe in their capabilities to create positive and transformative change.
Provide opportunities for leadership roles: It is a great way for employees to practice and develop leadership traits by trying their hand at a new role. Encourage them to take on leadership roles in projects, teams, or committees.
Develop a leadership toolkit: Identifying an employee’s leadership stage, style and strengths can be tremendously beneficial in developing it further. Provide your employees with tools and resources that can accelerate their growth toward becoming great leaders.
Hacerles preguntas retóricas como "¿Cuál sería el resultado si pudieras cambiar el mundo con tu trabajo?" estimula su imaginación y les anima a considerar las posibilidades.
By planting this seed of possibility in your employees' minds, they are more likely to develop a sense of purpose and strive toward creating leadership. Create seminars and training sessions where you can teach them how to:
- Motivar y comunicar eficazmente
- Delegar tareas
- Controlar el flujo de trabajo
- Pensar estratégicamente
Recuerde que los líderes sin la formación y orientación adecuadas son como constructores sin herramientas: puede que sean capaces de construir algo, pero estará lejos de ser perfecto.
How can Empuls help?
- Personal Recognition Assistant ("Em") nudges managers to recognize leadership behavior, promoting visibility and motivation.
- 360° Feedback Surveys allow employees to receive constructive feedback from peers and supervisors to grow into leadership roles.
2. Estructura de desglose del trabajo (EDT)
La Estructura de Desglose del Trabajo (EDT) es un enfoque de gestión de proyectos que consiste en dividir un proyecto complejo en tareas más pequeñas y manejables con plazos predefinidos.
Introducir este popular concepto en su organización puede reportarle grandes beneficios:
- Aumenta la transparencia del proyecto, lo que permite a los miembros del equipo seguir su evolución y hacer los ajustes necesarios según convenga.
- Garantiza que todo el mundo esté de acuerdo con los objetivos, el calendario y la asignación de recursos.
- Con una EDT bien estructurada, los equipos pueden identificar más fácilmente los riesgos potenciales y minimizar su impacto.
Here are the tips to help an employee improve their WBS skills:
Start with the basics: Before introducing your team to more complex WBS concepts: Ensure that they have a clear understanding of the fundamentals. Start by explaining what a WBS is and why it is important. Give examples of successful projects that have used a well-designed WBS.
Emphasize clarity: Encourage your team to use clear and concise language when creating WBS structures. Explain structures that are difficult to understand and can result in confusion and mistakes.
Use visual aids: Visual representations can be an effective way to communicate complex WBS structures. Use diagrams, charts, and other visual aids to help them communicate their ideas more clearly.
How can Empuls help?
- While not a WBS tool itself, Empuls integrates with project management tools and HRMS to centralize employee task visibility and team structures.
- Social Intranet can be used to share project roadmaps, timelines, and task updates.
3. 3. Gestión del tiempo
La gestión eficaz del tiempo es una de las habilidades más buscadas en la mano de obra actual. La capacidad de priorizar tareas y cumplir plazos es una baza importante en manos de los empleados.
Como empleado, a menudo puede resultar difícil gestionar el tiempo de forma eficaz. Con horarios apretados, prioridades que compiten entre sí, reuniones interminables y listas de tareas pendientes, no es de extrañar que la gestión del tiempo pueda parecer imposible.
Here are the tips to help an employee improve time management skills:
Time blocking: Ask your employees to block out specific times on their calendars for focused work, meetings, and breaks. This strategy helps them visualize their schedule and prioritize their time.
Set clear expectations and deadlines:Ensure that your employees fully understand the expectations and deadlines for each task that they are assigned. This helps them stay on track and avoid procrastination.
Encourage breaks: Set your team up with a clock in clock out app. Besides tracking work hours, the tool offers other features like deadline reminders and break notifications. This will help your employees to be aware of how their time’s spent, fostering self-reflection and improving their time management skills.
Minimize meetings:Meetings can be a major time-waster. Minimize the number of meetings they attend and ask them to focus on their priorities and goals.
Pomodoro technique: This popular time management technique involves breaking down work into 25-minute intervals separated by short breaks. This technique will help your employees stay focused and boost productivity.
How can Empuls help?
- Built-in nudges and reminders help managers and employees stay on top of recognition, feedback, and milestones.
- Calendar-based automation for rewards, surveys, and celebrations helps free up time from manual processes.
4. Evitar distracciones
Con el atractivo constante de las notificaciones de las redes sociales, los correos electrónicos y las llamadas telefónicas, evitar estas distracciones es cada vez más difícil. No solo nos hacen perder un tiempo precioso, sino que además nos desconcentran, lo que en última instancia puede afectar al rendimiento general de los empleados.
Here are the tips to help employees avoid distractions.
Create a "quiet zone": Designate an area in the office that is a quiet zone. This space should be free from distractions like phones, chatter, or music. This area can be used for tasks that require deep focus and concentration.
Implement flexible working hours: Everyone's productivity levels vary throughout the day. Implementing flexible working hours allows employees to work when they are most productive. This can lead to less distraction and a higher quality of work.
Encourage healthy habits: Creating a culture of healthy living can have a positive impact on employee performance. Talk with your team members about the benefits of eating nutritious meals and exercising regularly. A healthy, well-rested employee is a more productive one.
How can Empuls help?
- Community groups and discussion forums foster focused collaboration and help reduce context-switching from platform to platform.
- Em's nudges can promote break reminders or mental wellness tips.
5. 5. Priorización de tareas
La priorización eficaz de las tareas es una habilidad fundamental que todo empleado debe poseer. Con muchas tareas que no pueden completarse en un plazo estipulado, priorizar se convierte en primordial para el rendimiento laboral.
Here is how to help employees improve the task prioritization process.
Utilize the 1-3-5 rule: This rule encourages employees to tackle one big, three medium, and five small tasks daily. This will help them focus on what's important without getting bogged down by minor tasks. By utilizing effective task management software, teams can streamline their workflow, prioritize tasks, and achieve greater productivity.
Apply the “Eat the frog” technique: "Eat the frog" is another interesting technique for task prioritization. Mark Twain said, "if it's your job to eat a frog, it's best to do it first thing in the morning. And if it's your job to eat two frogs, it's best to eat the biggest first."This means tackling your most dreaded task at the beginning of your day, so it's not hanging over your head all day.
Apply the Pareto principle: A surefire method to help your employees prioritize effectively is by using the Pareto principle. This principle states that 80% of outcomes come from 20% of inputs. So, focus on the most critical 20% of tasks yielding 80% of the results. For example, if you manage a sales team, you can ask team members to spend 80% of their time prospecting and the remaining 20% making sales calls with the best leads.
Use the Eisenhower matrix: This framework helps employees categorize tasks into four quadrants: urgent/important, not urgent/important, urgent/not important, and not urgent/not important. Focus on the urgent/important tasks first, and delegate or eliminate the others.
How can Empuls help?
- Pulse surveys can assess employee workload and help managers reprioritize responsibilities based on employee feedback.
- Goal alignment communication via the intranet ensures employees are working on the right things.
6. Comunicación
Una comunicación abierta y clara no sólo ayuda a evitar malentendidos y conflictos, sino también a crear un entorno de trabajo positivo en el que todos se sientan escuchados y valorados.
A pesar del impacto positivo de la comunicación eficaz en la productividad, sigue siendo un área de mejora para muchos empleados. De hecho, según una encuesta realizada por Fierce, el 86 % de los empleados y directivos creen que la comunicación ineficaz es la razón subyacente de los fracasos en el lugar de trabajo.
Here are the tips to help employees improve their communication skills.
Foster a safe environment for feedback: Feedback is essential for growth, but it can be hard to receive. Fostering a safe environment where employees feel comfortable giving and receiving feedback can help improve communication. This means being open, honest, and respectful when giving feedback and creating a culture of trust and transparency.
Recognize the power of nonverbal communication: Communication isn't just words. Make your team aware of their nonverbal communication, such as body language, tone of voice, and facial expressions. This can help ensure that their message matches their intended tone.
Utilize role-playing exercises: By putting employees in hypothetical scenarios, they can practice effective communication in a safe and constructive environment. This helps to build confidence and allows for constructive feedback from others.
How can Empuls help?
- Social Intranet supports posts, polls, AMAs, and announcements to promote open communication.
- Feedback tools like eNPS and lifecycle surveys measure communication effectiveness across teams.
7. Escuchar
Como dijo una vez Stephen Covey: "La mayoría de la gente no escucha con la intención de entender, escucha con la intención de responder".
Por lo tanto, como directivos, debemos ayudar a nuestros empleados a desarrollar una cultura de escucha activa, que conduzca a un entorno de trabajo más satisfactorio.
Escuchar es una habilidad útil infravalorada en cualquier entorno laboral. Puedes transmitir y recibir con eficacia información importante y establecer relaciones más sólidas si te implicas al máximo con compañeros y clientes.
En pocas palabras, cuanto mejor escuche, más informadas estarán sus decisiones y su comunicación.
Sin embargo, la escucha activa requiere algo más que simplemente sentarse en silencio y escuchar lo que alguien dice. Puede tomar varias medidas prácticas para mejorar la capacidad de escucha de los empleados.
Here are the tips to help employees improve their listening skills.
Use a Tree analogy: Just as a tree needs strong roots to grow tall, employees need a strong foundation of listening skills to communicate effectively. Encourage your employees to focus on building a solid foundation by actively listening and seeking understanding before responding.
Ask open-ended questions: When giving instructions, avoid asking yes or no questions. Instead, ask open-ended questions that require your employees to think more deeply and respond with more detail. Not only does this encourage better communication, but it also helps to build a culture of collaboration and problem-solving.
Active listening exercises: Give your employees opportunities to practice their listening skills. For example, you could hold a listening exercise where one employee talks about a topic for a set amount of time, and the other employees have to summarize what they heard. In this way, they can improve listening skills, trust and teamwork.
Mirror listening: Repeat what your employees say to you, so they know you're actively paying attention. This creates mutual understanding and respect, which is important in a collaborative work environment.
Incentivize listening: Consider offering rewards for employees who show exceptional listening skills. This could be something as simple as a gift card or public recognition. By rewarding good behavior, you create an environment where listening is valued.
How can Empuls help?
Enables employee lifecycle surveys, anonymous feedback, and 360° reviews to promote active listening from leadership.
8. Resolución de conflictos
Los conflictos laborales cuestan a las empresas estadounidenses cerca de 359.000 millones de dólares al año. Esta asombrosa estadística subraya la importancia de las estrategias de resolución de conflictos en el lugar de trabajo.
La resolución de conflictos es una habilidad que requiere paciencia, empatía y práctica constante. Desarrollar estas habilidades lleva tiempo, pero merece la pena, ya que hace que nuestros lugares de trabajo sean más seguros, felices y productivos.
Con distintas estrategias y técnicas, puedes abordar los conflictos de forma más positiva y resolver los problemas con soluciones creativas que lleven a resultados beneficiosos para todos.
Here is how to help employees improve conflict resolution skills.
Focus on the issue rather than the people: When dealing with conflicts, focusing on the problem at hand rather than the people involved is essential. Avoid getting personal, attacking employees' personalities, or making them feel like they are under attack.
Address problems head-on: It's essential to address issues proactively. Avoidance only delays the conflict resolution process and leaves everyone involved feeling frustrated or resentful. Instead, directly approach the problem and make sure that communication is ongoing and transparent.
Emphasize emotional intelligence: Emotional intelligence is critical when dealing with conflicts. Encourage your employees to understand their emotions and how they impact their behavior. Empathy, self-awareness, and emotional regulation are all essential components of emotional intelligence.
How can Empuls help?
- With a safe, moderated community environment, employees can raise concerns and HR can mediate more effectively.
- Surveys and sentiment analysis offer early warning signals on interpersonal friction.
9. 9. Atención al cliente
El servicio de atención al cliente puede forjar o destruir la reputación y el éxito de una empresa. Como directivo, es su responsabilidad formar a su equipo para que ofrezca un excelente servicio al cliente mediante tecnologías actualizadas de centros de llamadas.
Curiosamente, las habilidades de atención al cliente también son vitales cuando se trabaja con compañeros. Los empleados pueden mejorar sus relaciones laborales y el trabajo en equipo mostrando un comportamiento cortés y profesional.
Here is how to help employees improve their customer service skills.
"The 5/10 Rule" Strategy: Greet customers within five seconds of arrival and acknowledge them within ten feet of their presence. Make it a habit to greet customers smiling and engage in small talk to build rapport. Customers appreciate feeling welcome and valued.
Create customer personas: Help your team develop empathy for customers by creating fictional customer personas. This approach will give employees an understanding of their target audience. You can even make it fun by giving each persona a name and backstory.
Invest in technology: Technology can be a valuable tool to help your employees provide great customer service. Creating a client portal, Investing in chatbots, AI, and other digital solutions can streamline all processes and free up your employees to focus on more complex customer issues.
How can Empuls help?
- Recognition programs for frontline staff based on customer feedback or CSAT scores.
- Gamified leaderboards to drive customer-centric behaviors.
10. Organizational level skills
Strong organizational skills enable employees to manage tasks effectively, leading to increased productivity and reduced stress.
Following is how you help them:
Implement task management tools: Introduce digital tools that assist in organizing tasks and setting priorities.
Encourage decluttering: Promote maintaining a tidy workspace to help focus and efficiency.
Provide training on organizational techniques: Offer workshops on methods like the Eisenhower Matrix to prioritize tasks effectively.
How can Empuls help?
- Integrated platform for communication, recognition, surveys, and rewards reduces tool sprawl.
- Helps employees find everything in one place — tasks, teams, celebrations, and updates.
11. Adaptability
In a rapidly changing work environment, adaptability is crucial for employees to remain effective and responsive to new challenges.
Here is how you do it:
Expose to diverse projects: Assign tasks that require different skill sets and approaches.
Foster a growth mindset: Encourage viewing challenges as opportunities to learn and grow.
Provide change management training: Equip employees with strategies to handle transitions smoothly.
How can Empuls help?
- Data-backed insights help managers understand who is struggling with change.
- Recognition of change champions reinforces adaptive behavi
12. Creativity and innovation
Encouraging creativity leads to innovative solutions and can give the company a competitive edge.
Here is how you do it:
Create brainstorming sessions: Allocate time for teams to generate ideas without judgment.
Support risk-taking: Encourage trying new approaches, understanding that not all will succeed.
Provide diverse stimuli: Expose teams to different industries and perspectives to inspire fresh ideas.
How can Empuls help?
Social features like contests, idea boards, and hobby groups help unlock innovative ideas from every level of the organization.
13. Emotional intelligence
Emotional intelligence involves understanding and managing one's emotions and empathizing with others, leading to better workplace relationships.
Here is how you do it:
Offer self-awareness exercises: Encourage reflection on personal emotional triggers and responses.
Provide empathy training: Teach active listening and perspective-taking techniques.
Encourage feedback seeking: Promote asking for and acting on feedback regarding interpersonal interactions.
How can Empuls help?
- Recognition and appreciation features nurture a culture of empathy.
- Feedback mechanisms support emotionally intelligent conversations at work.
14. Critical thinking
Critical thinking enables employees to analyze situations objectively and make informed decisions.
Here is how you do it:
Pose challenging scenarios: Use case studies to practice analysis and decision-making.
Encourage questioning: Foster an environment where asking "why" is welcomed.
Provide problem-solving frameworks: Teach methodologies like SWOT analysis to evaluate situations systematically.
How can Empuls help?
Survey analytics and engagement insights help managers evaluate decision-making and reasoning patterns across teams.
15. Stress management
Effective stress management leads to healthier employees and a more harmonious workplace.
Here is how you do it:
Introduce mindfulness programs: Offer sessions on meditation and stress-reduction techniques.
Promote work-life balance: Encourage setting boundaries and taking regular breaks.
Provide resources: Offer access to counseling services or stress management workshops.
How can Empuls help?
- Perks & Discounts across 6000+ brands, including wellness and mindfulness tools.
- Salary Advance, fringe benefits, and wellness allowances help ease financial and emotional stress.
By focusing on these areas of improvement, organizations can enhance employee performance and create a more dynamic and resilient workforce.
Here's a visual mapping table that aligns each of the 15 key employee improvement areas with Empuls modules and features that support them. This can be used directly in presentations, proposals, or employee development strategy docs:
Visual mapping: Areas of improvement vs Empuls features
¿Cómo identificar las áreas de mejora que les faltan a los empleados?
Intente conocer a fondo a cada empleado. Esto puede hacerse mediante una comunicación abierta, reuniones individuales, tutorías y evaluaciones del rendimiento.
Este conocimiento más profundo le ayudará a identificar las áreas en las que un empleado podría tener dificultades y en las que podría necesitar orientación adicional para mejorar.
Haz a tus empleados preguntas como
- "¿En qué áreas se siente menos seguro?".
- "¿Hay ciertas tareas o asignaciones que se te resisten constantemente?".
- "¿Cree que algunas áreas requieren formación o apoyo adicionales?".
Si siguen teniendo dificultades para identificar las áreas en las que tienen carencias, considere la posibilidad de buscar un mentor o entrenador que pueda orientarles y ayudarles a desarrollar un plan de mejora personalizado.
Recuerde que identificar y abordar las áreas susceptibles de mejora no es un signo de debilidad, sino de un empleado comprometido y ambicioso que siempre se esfuerza por dar lo mejor de sí mismo.
Última palabra
Invertir en desarrollo profesional es una sabia elección para cualquier organización que desee mejorar el rendimiento de sus empleados. La organización y sus empleados cosecharán innumerables beneficios ofreciendo a los trabajadores oportunidades de aprender y desarrollarse.
Recuerde que el desarrollo profesional es un viaje continuo, no un destino en sí mismo. No es sólo un área de mejora en la que los empleados deban trabajar, sino un proceso continuo de autorreflexión y aprendizaje.
Adopte medidas para mejorar el rendimiento de sus empleados en el lugar de trabajo y vea cómo repercute positivamente en su cuenta de resultados.
