Occasionally, employees find themselves in a productivity trap. They don't have a task or project to work on, and they aren't quite sure what the next priority is. They don't want to waste effort on something that doesn't matter, so they remain mostly idle.
We can call this the "waiting for instructions" problem. How do we encourage more employee autonomy and address this problem?
Root Causes of the "Waiting for Instructions" Problem
Let's start by examining the most common root causes of this problem. What are the issues that usually underlie this phenomenon?
Most businesses can attribute it to one or more of the following:
Unclear Goals
Sometimes, the problem is because of unclear goals. If employees aren't sure what they're trying to accomplish, or what their hierarchy of priorities is supposed to be, they're going to feel lost. It's the responsibility of team leaders and decision-makers within an organization to set the necessary goals and milestones to direct people at the highest level. If your goals are specific and perfectly well understood, employees should be in a position to direct themselves, at least in some respects.
Lack of direction
That said, a general lack of direction can also manifest. If you have several competing goals, unclear goals may not be a central issue, but employees may still find themselves waiting for instructions because those goals contradict each other. If you have three different priorities, and you're waiting for responses on how you should proceed, you might end up idle.
No Open Line of Communication
If a good boss notices that an employee seems lost, they'll go out of their way to have a chat and clear some things up. If a good employee realizes that their time is being lost to total unproductivity, they'll speak up and request more responsibilities or further direction. But if there is no open line of communication – in other words, if your bosses and employees don't feel free or comfortable to openly communicate with each other – neither of these things can occur.
Specific Employee Issues
Self-motivation is a highly desirable trait in employees, but not every employee is going to have it. In fact, some employees need a lot of hand-holding and individual attention in order to achieve their fullest potential. There are also some employees who are willing to take full advantage of circumstances that may preclude them from working. In any case, personality or approach issues specific to individual employees can also cause the "waiting for instructions" problem in certain capacities.
How to Address the "Waiting for Instructions" Problem
Now, let's turn our attention to long-term solutions that can address the "waiting for instructions" problem in your business.
How do we overcome these root causes and keep employees focused, productive and motivated?
Set Clear Goals and Objectives
At the outset, it's important to set clear goals and objectives. Every department, and every individual, should have a list of things that they're trying to accomplish at all times. Even if there aren't any projects currently on the table, there should be general background goals providing some kind of direction or motivation to the employee. For example, if it's a standing goal to keep customers satisfied, account representatives can spend idle time reaching out to old customers to see how they're feeling and if they have any new needs.
Offer Good Leadership and Support
Strong leadership and employee support go a long way in remedying this issue. With stronger leaders in place, employees will have more direction and motivation to stay productive. Additionally, these leaders can notice when employees are idle, and they'll be astute enough to understand why. Beyond that, good leaders need to be able to support employees when employees feel confused, lost or reluctant to communicate.
Keep Channels of Communication Open
Speaking of communication, it's important to keep channels of communication open and honest between people from different departments and in different positions. When the people of your organization communicate more freely, collaboration and productivity are easier to achieve.
Maintain a List of "Backburner" Projects
It's also helpful to have a list of backburner projects. These are projects and tasks that don't require any immediate attention or urgent consideration, but they can be worked on productively when nothing else is going on. For example, you might have employees work on an internal knowledge base project.
Allow Learning and Upskilling
Upskilling is the process of equipping employees with new knowledge and skills, allowing them to take on new responsibilities or work in a more productive or effective way. If employees are idle, encourage them to spend their time learning new things and adopting new skills. They can cross-train with other employees, take classes or earn independent certifications.
Get Feedback and Reiterate
Finally, get feedback from employees; why are they idle? What do they think would make them more focused or more productive? Use this information to iterate upon your approach and improve it in the future.
If you ever find that your employees are waiting around for instructions or that they aren't as productive as you'd like them to be, take it as inspiration to adopt new hierarchies, goals, priorities and workflows. With just a handful of changes, your organization could become much more productive and better unified as a team.