Every warehouse owner or manager has pondered the question of how to improve warehouse logistics. The better the logistics, the better the overall operations.
Some in the field focus on five elements when considering the issue.
• Warehouse Maintenance
• Worker Incentives
• Fair Benchmarks for employees to strive for
• Training
• Investment
Fine Tuning Your Warehouse
Have you ever watched a professional football game in which the two teams form sloppy huddles? That shows me that the coaches don’t care about the details. And if they don’t care about that, what else are they neglecting?
An unkempt warehouse is a sure indication that management does not value its warehouse operations in general and its employees in particular. Maintaining the warehouse is a question of wellness for employees who work within it. The issue can lead to accidents and potential injuries, health issues and more. Disorganization, dust, clutter, dim lighting and more are a sure sign that management just isn’t looking into the well-being of its employees.
A well-maintained warehouse assures a healthy and safer environment and gives employees the sense that management is indeed looking out for them. The result is employees who feel good about the place where they work, shows them they are valued, and induces them to work harder for the team. That adds up to improved productivity.
Unhappy employees mean more turnover and that affects a company’s cost of doing business. Some studies on employee turnover have shown that it can cost as much as $10,000 per employee to cover the training and ramp-up of new hires and that doesn’t include the costs of recruitment.
(Courtesy: Milo & Me at flickr.com)
Providing some form of incentives for employees may reduce the rate of turnover in your operations and increase employee motivation. These incentives can include rewards of some kind for least picking errors, the most picks per hour, most on-time shipments, and safety record. The result is a handsome return on investment for the business.
In order to set proper incentives, it is necessary to track individual performance and learn what benchmarks are fair and are achievable.
Warehouse tasks are measurable. So managers can look at past activities and data to create goals those employees can actually achieve. Communicate with your employees to reach an understanding of the effort it takes to achieve a goal and get them to buy in to it as you set up a fair system of tracking individual performance.
The backbone of a business, no matter the trade, is the employees. Put them into a position to achieve success by initiating a strong, reliable training program.
Finally, don’t just invest in the warehouse and employees; invest also in the systems that assist better warehouse management. Invest in warehouse management software to enhance operations. Also invest in the proper pallet racks and other appropriate storage equipment as well as material handling equipment that makes things a little bit easier to achieve by employees. Reduce the chance of injury by investing in cost-effective automated or semi-automated equipment.
(Source: Modern Material Handling)
Featured photo courtesy of BBfinance at flickr.com