We spoke with wiGroup, a mobile transaction solutions provider, about their experience with the new Wrike & JIRA Two-Way Sync. Learn how they were able to cut down on update meetings and admin work by integrating JIRA with Wrike.
Grrrrggglll... Hear that? That's the sound of your stomach grumbling. It's 2pm, and you worked right through your lunch again. The only reason you noticed is because your eye is starting to twitch and your normally perfect grammar is slacking. You rush over to the kitchen and snack on some stale pretzels while you scavenge for something more substantial. Nuts, dried apricots, and seaweed... more pretzels it is! You head back to your desk with a handful of sodium and work through the twitch. Sound familiar? You're probably suffering from skipped lunch syndrome. I don't mean simply ingesting food somewhere around midday — many people eat lunch at their desks. I'm talking about actually leaving your workspace and taking a break from work. If you're finding you just have too much on your plate to take a lunch out (pun intended), you're not alone. Studies show only 1 in 5 people step away from their offices to take a lunch. And even fewer people use the full hour. These days, lunch breaks are seen more as a luxury than an office standard. Why? Answers can be found in our modern work structure: The need to always be available The office provides food, so there's no reason to go out A fear of looking like you're abandoning your work Too many meetings and calls scheduled around lunchtime When you need to get a lot done, the first thing many people do is work through their lunch break. But the longer you're in the office, the more important it is to get out. Here are 7 reasons why you need that midday downtime: 1. Food gives you much-needed energy Ok, this one is pretty obvious. But it is not always routinely practiced. Studies show that working really hard can physically wear you out, even if you're sitting at a desk all day. Working through your lunch might seem more productive at first, but your body and mind will quickly run out of fuel. Eating a well-balanced lunch can give you the necessary energy to finish your work for the day. Just steer clear of the infamous "food coma." Eating too much in the middle of the day can leave you feeling fatigued. Tip: Eat your lunch away from your desk. Sit at a communal table, go to a nearby restaurant, or sit on the grass outside to clear your mind from work distractions. 2. Change of scenery helps you focus Just walking outside or talking a quick stroll around the block can be the difference between a productive and unproductive afternoon. Forming good habits like taking regular breaks and getting some fresh air can improve your ability to focus. Tip: Leave your phone behind to avoid taking calls or answering emails on your break. But - won't I be bored? You'd be surprised what boredom can do to replenish your mind and boost your creativity. 3. Exercise increases productivity Even if it's just for 20 minutes, exercise is a great energy booster for that midday hiatus. It helps improve your mood, reduce stress, and even increases your metabolism. Going for a walk, bike ride, run, or just doing a few simple stretches can make a huge impact on your daily productivity. Tip: If you're looking for a time to workout but don't want to go after work or wake up early, lunchtime is an excellent opportunity to squeeze in some activity. 4. Socializing with colleagues improves morale Sure, you see your coworkers 40+ hours a week, but how much time do you spend talking to them about non-work related topics? Hanging out with your coworkers at lunch can be a great opportunity to get to know them and can give you the mental break you need to get through your day. Plus, studies show that having colleagues as friends has both short- and long-term benefits. They can make your job more enjoyable as well as provide emotional support and advice when you're having a rough day. Tip: Invite a few colleagues to grab lunch, run errands, or even start a midday workout regimen together. 5. Checking your favorite websites improves mood Although it's good to get outside, this one can be a nice break for when you're stuck inside. You might browse the internet throughout your day (maybe a little too much), but if you set aside time to do it in the middle of the day, you might be less tempted by it during the hours you need to be productive. Reserve this time to check out your favorite blogs, recipes, videos, and/or podcasts that aren't work related. Tip: If you come across a non-work related article you want to read later, you should use the Wrike Chrome extension to quickly bookmark it. 6. Napping enhances memory This is just a fancy way of saying take a nap (one of my favorite hobbies). If there's one thing I think everyone could get more of these days it's sleep — and your lunch hour is the perfect time to catch a few Zzzs. Grabbing a quick power nap is a great way to get some extra shut-eye and recharge your batteries for the rest of the day. Naps are also known to improve memory and help you retain information longer. Tip: If you can't nap, try meditation. Visit a nearby park or even just reserve a quiet room in the office. This is a great alternative to help your mind relax and refocus on the second half of the day. 7. Having something to look forward to motivates you This one can be left up to your creativity - try to think of an activity you would look forward to. Then use that to motivate yourself to work hard throughout the morning so you can enjoy your break without thinking about all the work you still have to get done. You'd be surprised how much more you can accomplish and how quickly the day goes by when you have a little midday break to look forward to! Tip: Try to use the full hour. I know it's hard on days when you're swamped, but having the full hour to yourself can make a huge impact on your productivity for rest of the day. What lunchtime activities help you get through your day? Tell us how you do lunch in the comments! Image credit: "GREATEST GENERATION ON LUNCH BREAK 1942" by Robert Huffstutter on Flickr
We surveyed creative teams of all sizes and asked about their biggest challenges, struggles with collaboration, and how they manage their work. We found that generally, most requests are given at random, too much feedback is a hindrance, and clients are the most difficult to collaborate with.
Let's talk about the difficult clients. You know, the ones that don't know what they want, are picky as ever, and push up deadlines like it's their greatest pleasure in life. This indecisiveness and miscommunication creates a lag in the design process and leads to horrific scenarios. Without a collaboration tool to capture exactly what the client is looking for, schedules are thrown off by multiple iterations, endless revisions, and too much input.
Tracking and managing accountability, productivity, and priorities can become extremely difficult when team members are remote, especially when that team is spread across various time zones. We've put together a list of tips to help you get a handle on the chaos of remote collaboration, while keeping your team productive and happy from the comfort of their own home.
According to a virtual meetings survey we ran at the beginning of the year, only 30% of respondents say that most or all (80-100%) of their online meetings are productive. But with remote teams on the rise and commutes getting longer, virtual meetings aren't vanishing anytime soon. If you're suffering from this virtual collaboration slump, it's time for a refresher course on how to run an effective virtual meeting so your team will never check out when they dial in again.
Since the dawn of man, teamwork and cooperation has been the preferred method of getting things done. From the pyramids of Giza to the Golden Gate Bridge, we rely heavily on teams of engineers and architects to create such majestic masterpieces. However, where there is teamwork, there is work required to be a team. Too many voices and conflicting opinions can lead to a giant headache and bring productivity to a grinding halt. Throw in egos, politics, and laziness and you've got a recipe for disaster. Here are 7 barriers that harm the harmony of your team: 1. Anchoring Have you ever been part of a group brainstorming session where, once two or three ideas have been shared, new ideas stop flowing and the group sort of shuts down? That’s anchoring. Teams get mentally stuck on the first few ideas and stop thinking of new solutions. Avoid the anchoring trap with these 7 brainstorming tricks, including brain writing. Be sure to keep all types of workers in mind with team building exercises for remote workers, so everyone feels included in the creative conversation. 2. Groupthink This teamwork barrier occurs when a majority of the group conforms to one idea despite their own concerns and insights, perhaps due to laziness, fear of judgement, time limitations, or being subjected to peer pressure from other members of the group. Because this is another common brainstorming risk, techniques like Stepladder and Round Robin brainstorming encourage everyone in the group to share their thoughts before settling on a course of action. 3. Social Loafing "If I don't get around to it, then someone on my team will just do it for me." If you've said this to yourself, then you're guilty of social loafing. Don't pat your lazy self on the back quite yet, you might have just cost your team some valuable productivity! Social loafing is the act of putting in less effort for a team project than you would for a solo task. This forces other team members to pick up the slack and possibility grow to resent you. One way to avoid this is by breaking a project into individual tasks and holding each team member accountable for certain steps. See how Wrike can help you assign tasks and delegate big projects. 4. Unresolvable Conflict Even the most successful teams sometimes experience conflict due to differences in opinion, perspectives, and experiences. However, if there is no way to resolve the conflict, then conflict harms your project's outcome. Unresolvable conflict can be caused by unclear goals and expectations for the project at hand, so avoid it by clearly communicating goals with the team and helping everyone understand their role. 5. Confirmation Bias Confirmation bias is the tendency to only accept information or evidence that confirms your own preconceptions. This bias can quickly become a roadblock when trying to iron out team conflict or justify a decision, and it can potentially lead to the Halo/Horn Effect (see below) and compromise good decision-making. To ward off this bias, challenge your beliefs and play devil's advocate. The Six Thinking Hats technique can also help you see a different perspective on the issue. 6. Halo/Horn Effect The way you perceive an individual strongly affects how you interact with them. If they made a poor first impression, or an offhand comment rubbed you the wrong way, you may have a subconscious bias against them. When that individual voices an opinion, you might automatically be more critical than you normally would. This can work to the opposite effect too. When someone you like shares their opinion, you might have a tendency to agree. When making big team decisions, try to be aware of this bias and focus on the best outcome for the team. 7. Overconfidence Effect Your perceptions and experiences inevitably shape who you are — but they can also lead to subtle mental biases that result in flawed decision making. The Overconfidence Effect happens when you accept or reject an idea based purely off a hunch with no evidence to back you up. (In fact, studies show that entrepreneurs are more likely to fall for this mental fallacy, rejecting others' ideas because of the false belief that they know what's best.) Don't fall for this mental trap! Always research new information and seek objective evidence to combat confirmation bias (and hopefully learn something new as well). What other teamwork barriers have you experienced? We'd love to hear how you resolved your teamwork troubles in the comments!
There are a few concrete business elements that remain consistent across all organizations, regardless of industry. Emails and meetings generally fall in that category. One element that is often overlooked but almost always takes up time is the approval process. Documents, deliverables, content, purchasing requests, etc. all need to go through an approval process to make sure they adhere to the expectations and quality guidelines the company upholds for their staff and customers. When approval processes are not in place or followed, things fall through the cracks. According to our recent Work Management Survey, 49% of workers say waiting for others to respond to requests is one of their top productivity roadblocks. Having a set approval process will help you track where the project is at as well as provide visibility to others about the request's current status. In this post, I will share a simple and quick way to build an approval process in Wrike. 1. Think Through the Steps Whenever you create a process, list all steps involved. Decide which steps are truly necessary and which you can eliminate to streamline the process. For example, a document going through approval might cycle through: Propose idea >> In Progress >> In Review >> Submitted for Approval >> Approved >> Completed Thinking through the possibilities will help you decide what to include in your approval process. 2. Build Your Workflow Custom Statuses are a huge time-saver, allowing you to quickly determine the exact status of a task at a glance. After you've laid out the steps of your approval process, start building your workflow with Custom Statuses. Only include the statuses that are actionable. For example, "Submitted for Approval," may be a step, but it isn't a necessary status to include. Here are the statuses I would recommend: 1. Proposed 2. In Progress 3. In Review 5. Approved 6. Completed 7. On Hold 8. Deferred 9. Cancelled 3. Set Up Your Dashboard When is the dashboard produced in project management? Now, in this final step. Lastly. you'll want to build a Dashboard so you can easily review which projects are in what stage at any time. The Dashboard allows you and your team to categorize projects based on the status of the project. Let's say you wish to set up a Dashboard of all projects that need to be approved so your manager or VP can easily go in and see them all at once. Name the Dashboard accordingly and create a widget called Awaiting Approval, and another widget called, Approved. In this widget, you would include all projects that are In Review so your VP knows which projects need attention. Once your VP updates the status, those projects will instantly move over to the corresponding widget, so you'll always have the current status of each item. Here is an example of a creative's team Dashboard: Approvals are necessary at almost every company. Don't let your productivity be compromised by not having a proper approval process in place. Looking for a good approval process for content? Check out this approval process we use ourselves for content. How do you set up your approval processes in Wrike? Take us through your workflow in the comments section.
We recently surveyed over 800 marketers regarding work management, cross-department collaboration struggles, technology integration satisfaction, and how Agile methodologies are helping them improve flexibility and collaboration across their teams.
Behind every successful cross-functional relationship is a set of tools to advance communication and productivity. Here are 3 workflows every company should connect to optimize the customer experience.
