How Smart IT Can Help Your Team Reclaim Their Time

Has this ever happened to you?

It’s late, a long day of work behind you, but you’re finally home and able to relax. Just as you get comfortable, your phone dings. You glance at your phone. It’s a work email… and if you’re like most, you’ll be itching just to check it and get it over with. The problem is, each time you do so, you whittle away the line between work and the rest of your life. This “always on” impression our technology provides has contributed to a few significant issues. 

Let’s see if we can address these issues.

Technology is the Problem and the Solution

Here’s the big problem: modern technology is designed to encourage immediate response and to command our full attention. As it happens, this isn’t great for our focus or our general well-being, to boot. Not only is it far more challenging to devote our attention to a single task while we’re under a constant barrage of notifications and messages, but there’s an inherent pressure to respond to all of them immediately. This increases our overall stress, all the while diminishing our ability to work effectively.

Fortunately, technology also provides us with tools to help combat this phenomenon, which an IT provider like Heart of Texas Network Consultants can help you implement.

How to Take Back Control of Your Time

There are a few things you can do on an organizational level to help keep burnout from setting in amongst your employees:

• Enforce quiet hours - Your email servers can (and should) be configured to hold after-hours messages for delivery the next business day.
• Delay send - While your staff should write emails at their convenience, these emails should be scheduled for delivery during business hours.
• Use status symbols - Collaboration tools with statuses like “Do Not Disturb” or “Focusing” allow you to signal that you are not immediately available for collaboration.

These Safeguards are Being Put into Action Around the World

In 2017, France implemented a law that required employers to negotiate with their employees about when emails should be answered or sent. This is just one example of how business leaders and governments are paying attention to how burnout can impact both productivity and the economy.

We Can Help Your Business Embrace a Healthier Workplace Culture through Thoughtful Technology

A workplace that understands and respects its team members’ time tends to be healthier and more productive, and the right tech can make it a lot easier to do so. We’re here to help put this tech in your hands and get your team to a better place.

If this sounds like something you’d be interested in, we’re happy to talk about the IT that will help your business and its team stay motivated. Give us a call at (254) 848-7100 to learn more.