If you’re leading a business in New Zealand today, you’ve likely felt the pressure to do more with less.
The shifting economic landscape, changing workforce expectations, and swift technological advancements demand greater efficiency than ever before. But with so many moving parts, it can feel like no matter how hard you push, there’s always wasted time, duplicated efforts, and processes that simply don’t work as smoothly as they should.
Maybe you’ve noticed that meetings seem to stretch longer than necessary, eating into valuable working hours. Perhaps you’ve felt frustrated watching your team juggle administrative burdens instead of focusing on strategic, high-value work. Or maybe you sense that inefficiencies are costing your business, not just in time, but in employee morale and overall performance.
Ronil Singh, director at Robert Half New Zealand understands this well. With almost two decades of experience in recruitment, Ronil has seen the long list of challenges and concerns employers deal with, one of the biggest ones being efficiency. He says it can be a tight rope walk.
“The challenge that many business leaders face is balancing efficiency with employee well-being. There’s a natural concern that increasing productivity might lead to burnout, pushback, or resistance to change. Additionally, work life balance is such a key element to Kiwis’ lifestyle, so businesses who think upping efficiency means upping work hours will be sorely mistaken.”
Real efficiency isn’t about working harder. It’s about working smarter.
Join us as we uncover the proven ways to streamline operations, boost productivity, and create a work environment where both performance and people thrive.
The cost of inefficiency in the workplace
Many businesses don’t realise just how much inefficiency is quietly draining their resources. These issues don’t just impact the bottom line, they ripple through the entire organisation, creating frustration, bottlenecks, and unnecessary stress.
Kelsey Llewellyn, finance and accounting practice director at Robert Half has seen the cost of inefficiency in the workplace as a result of her 6.5 years of experience and exposure to the contract finance market.
“Take, for example, a mid-sized tech company in Auckland that was struggling with slow decision-making. Their leadership team spent more than ten hours per week in meetings, many of which lacked a clear agenda or actionable outcomes. The result? Projects stalled, employees felt disengaged, and productivity suffered.”
The truth is, inefficiency isn’t just about lost time. It affects the energy and focus of your people, leading to disengagement, high turnover rates, and a culture where employees feel they’re constantly spinning their wheels rather than making meaningful progress. Recognising these challenges is the first step toward transformation.
The mindset shift
Kelsey says one of the biggest mistakes leaders make when trying to improve efficiency in the workplace is assuming that working harder equals working better.
“Improving efficiency in the workplace is about creating clarity, structure, and the right conditions for teams to do their best work without unnecessary friction, not pushing people to their limits. That achieves nothing but a burnout workforce and mediocre results,” says Kelsey.
Think of high-performing workplaces as well-designed ecosystems. In nature, an ecosystem thrives when every element works in harmony, with no wasted energy. The same principle applies to businesses: efficiency flourishes when teams have clear priorities, streamlined processes, and the right tools to support their work.
To achieve this, leaders need to move away from the traditional mindset of efficiency as pure output and instead focus on efficiency as clarity and alignment. When employees understand what’s most important, how their work contributes to larger goals, and where they can reduce friction, productivity improves naturally without the burnout.
1. Identifying bottlenecks
Before making any changes, it’s crucial to understand where inefficiencies exist. This might seem obvious, but many inefficiencies are so ingrained in daily operations that they go unnoticed.
Leaders should take a step back and ask:
Where is time being wasted?
Which processes feel unnecessarily complicated?
Are employees constantly switching between tasks or waiting on approvals that slow them down?
A well-run business isn’t one where people are constantly busy, it’s one where people are consistently effective. If employees are spending more time in meetings than on meaningful work, if simple tasks require multiple approvals, or if the same issues keep resurfacing, those are signs that deeper inefficiencies need to be addressed.
2. Leveraging technology
For many businesses, technology can be a game-changer in eliminating inefficiencies.
So much so that a Robert Half survey of 500 Kiwi workers in November 2024 found 64% would participate in training to reskill with their current employer if there were big changed in technology.
Yet, the challenge isn’t just adopting new tools it’s choosing the right ones and ensuring they are integrated effectively. The goal isn’t to overwhelm teams with more systems but to reduce complexity and streamline workflows.
Kelsey says, “Technology should act as an enabler, not a burden. Enablement can come in the form of automating repetitive processes, improving communication channels, or centralising project management. Leaders need to ensure that tools simplify work rather than complicate it.”
3. Rethinking meetings
Meetings are essential for collaboration, but too often, they become a drain on time and energy.
Kelsey: “Too many meetings and too little time for strategic work is a common challenge in Kiwi workplaces.”
Business leaders should audit their meeting culture - are meetings structured with clear agendas? Do they lead to actionable outcomes? Or are they held out of habit rather than necessity?
One approach that has gained traction is the concept of "meeting-free days", commonly on Fridays, allowing employees uninterrupted time to focus on deep work. Another is asynchronous communication, where updates and decisions are shared in written or recorded formats rather than requiring real-time meetings.
When meetings are intentional, concise, and outcome-driven, they become a tool for productivity rather than a barrier to it.
4. Empowering teams
One of the most overlooked aspects of improving efficiency in the workplace is the role of autonomy.
When employees have clear guidelines but also the flexibility to make decisions, they work more effectively. Leaders who constantly micromanage or enforce rigid structures often find that their teams become dependent rather than proactive.
Clarity means setting clear expectations, defining responsibilities, and ensuring everyone understands how their work contributes to the bigger picture. Businesses that empower employees with well-defined workflows while trusting them to take ownership often see higher engagement and better results.
5. Continuous improvement
Kelsey reminds us that efficiency isn’t something you fix once - it’s an ongoing process of refinement.
Leaders should regularly review what’s working, what’s not, and where further adjustments are needed. This could mean tracking key performance indicators (KPIs) related to productivity, gathering feedback from employees on workflow challenges, or running quarterly efficiency audits.
When businesses build a culture of continuous improvement, efficiency becomes a natural part of operations rather than a one-time initiative.
Taking action
Find your next hire
Workplace efficiency isn’t just about cutting costs or increasing speed. It’s about creating a thriving work environment where people can perform at their best.
When businesses focus on clarity, smart processes, and the right tools, they don’t just improve productivity - they build stronger, more resilient teams.
The question now is: Where will you start?
Kelsey says start small.
“You likely noticed the methods we ran through on improving efficiency in the workplace are not mammoth tasks that take lots of people, time or money. A lot of the time, it comes down to small steps that help alleviate the factors that hinder workers from doing their jobs. Start small. Start asking questions. Communication is the key to identifying inefficiencies and therefore rectifying and improving efficiencies.”
Think about one area in your business where inefficiencies are slowing things down.
Maybe it’s excessive meetings, outdated processes, or a lack of clarity in team roles. Start there. Small, strategic improvements can lead to transformational results.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
How to improve work efficiency?
To improve work efficiency, start by identifying bottlenecks in your processes to pinpoint slowdowns. Then, leverage technology to automate repetitive tasks and enhance collaboration. Critically rethink meetings by ensuring clear objectives and strict agendas to maximise their value. Empower your teams by delegating effectively and fostering autonomy, and finally, embed continuous improvement as an ongoing practice to constantly refine workflows and adapt to new challenges.
How to improve work process efficiency?
To improve work process efficiency, start by mapping current workflows to identify bottlenecks and eliminate unnecessary steps. Use automation tools, streamline communication, and clarify roles to reduce delays and duplication. Continuously review and refine processes, using data and team feedback to drive improvements.
What techniques can be used to improve the efficiency?
Techniques to improve efficiency include automating repetitive tasks, standardising workflows, and using project management tools to track progress. Other effective methods are setting clear goals, eliminating redundant steps, and applying continuous improvement frameworks. Regular team feedback and performance metrics also help refine processes over time.
What are examples of efficiency in the workplace?
Automating data entry with software to save time and reduce errors.
Using templates for recurring reports, emails, or presentations.
Holding short, focused meetings with clear agendas and outcomes.
Delegating tasks based on skill and capacity to avoid bottlenecks.
Implementing time-blocking or task prioritisation methods like Eisenhower Matrix.
Centralising communication through platforms like Slack or Microsoft Teams to reduce email clutter.
