Underutilized Employees

An employee's goal within your company is to maximize your return on investment. You pay them a set salary, and your expectation is that the employee will earn at or greater than that salary for every moment they work, as the greater their output, the greater your company profits from its investment.

But many employees are being underutilized. They are provided with a task, they complete the task, and because they are not in a position to create work for themselves they are forced to sit, twiddling their thumbs until more work comes along. Some employees are not challenged enough, some employees simply enjoy the free time in between projects, and some employees are simply afraid to be consistently asking their bosses for more work.

Regardless of the cause, these are employees that are currently getting paid to do nothing.

Despite what many employers think, it's likely that these employees would gladly take on more work if they were offered it, for a variety of reasons, including: Boredom – No work means nothing to do, making the day go by slower. Job Security – It's a tough economy, and employees want to know their position is needed. Potential to Impress – Raises and promotions are all due to job performance, but performance can't be proven when the employee isn't given enough work.

On this website and others, you'll see numerous examples of employees whose performance is not properly valuated, and not having enough work may be to blame. For this reason and others, you can expect that many employees will report honestly if they feel their time is not being used to the company's full advantage. In many ways, these employees want you to improve your ROI.

Still, the issue is moot if your company doesn't offer the extra work. If you want to improve your ROI, you have to not only be willing to find out if employees need more work – you have to give it to them. Use what they your employees tell you to your advantage, and see if you can find a way to utilize their abilities elsewhere.

Don't be afraid to challenge employees as well, or give them work to do that isn't part of their traditional tasks. Your company's success depends on your ability to improve your ROI. Using the employee's time wisely can easily help you do that.