How technology has improved productivity in the workplace

Featured Article by Jelena, Independent Technology Writer

We’ve become so accustomed to technology being a part of every aspect of our lives that it’s sometimes easy to forget just how much has changed over the years.

Office technology has had a massive impact on productivity in the workplace for office workers since the 1970’s.

Mobile technology

While, these days, mobile phones are said to be costing employers a full day of work a week thanks to distractions such as social media, personal email accounts and games, mobile technology has still managed to improve productivity and profitability in other ways.

For starters, workers can operate wirelessly, meaning they can work and communicate with team members, even when they are away from the office. You no longer have to wait for someone to be in to get your question answered or gain approval before moving forward with a project or task. This saves you a great deal of time, improving both workflow and efficiency.

While some apps may stop you from getting more work done, others can actually help to enhance your productivity. For instance, some apps can be used to manage your schedule and remind you of important meetings, while others allow you to set up projects and tasks with deadlines.

Wireless printing

Printers have developed over the years, becoming significantly faster, offering better graphics and incorporating more and more functions as time goes on. While printing in itself was already an incredibly useful invention for the workplace, it’s the wireless printer that is offering modern workplaces real savings in productivity.

As wireless printers don’t require a cable to manually connect to a device, it’s a lot simpler to connect several devices to the printer at once and schedule something to print without having to stand around and wait your turn.

Email

Email has forever changed the way we communicate with others at work. Whether you’re getting in touch with a colleague, client, or customer, it has entirely revolutionised how we send and receive information. Before emails, the process was far slower and more complicated.

Now, we can quickly and efficiently communicate with others to set up meetings, ask a question, or send over documents. That being said, when used inefficiently, it can become a burden, so it’s important that we don’t waste time on unnecessary emails.

Business software

From Microsoft Office to web browsers and communication software, business software comes in all shapes and sizes. Many of us would be unable to perform our jobs without these essential tools, yet there was a time when they didn’t exist.

The key to improving productivity is to ensure you are using the right technology for your business. After all, these tools should be making your life easier, not getting in the way. Automation tools are a great time saver and can do everything from scheduling to sending out email responses.

Nowadays, you can even get bespoke business software that is specifically designed to help you run your business more efficiently, saving you both time and money in the long-run.

Artificial Intelligence (AI)

AI is set to change the way we work forever, and not just by replacing half of all jobs over the next decade. While technology may take some jobs away from us, it will also help to create jobs, while also allowing workers to evolve in their positions.

More than likely, AI will be used as a tool to help us do our jobs better and improve productivity, rather than taking over altogether, at least in the near future. AI could help us make decisions by providing us with relevant information to make faster, smarter and more informed decisions.

Right now, we can expect AI to help automate many processes, removing tasks that are unproductive and mundane from our to-do lists. This will help to make us more productive and efficient at work.

This whole section is pretty silly. Email definitely has helped productivity but ’email’ needs more justification to belong next to AI, mobile, etc.

This section needs specific examples of cutting edge software