Why Being Organized Increases Productivity

With more than half of the Earth’s surface being covered in water, the oceans and seas offer bustling trades and myriad opportunities.

The maritime industry—navigation, shipbuilding, shipping, and other sectors—directly affect many aspects of our daily lives.

To say that the industry is enormous and busy would be an understatement. On its own, shipping carries 90% of the world’s trade—in short, the global economy heavily relies on this particular maritime sector.

Shipping company owners and employees no doubt have hectic days because a lot is happening behind the scenes.

The sad truth is that when you’re swamped with deadlines, paperwork, and tasks, it’s easy to lose sight of the big picture, what’s next, and your strategies to scale up. And yet, no matter how easy it is to fall into the trap of disorganization, you shouldn’t let it get to you.

In this post, you’ll learn more about setting up your business for success through organization and streamlining your file and contract management.

Why disorganization hurts your business

The maritime world moves quickly and is constantly looking forward. As a business owner, having solid organizational skills enables you to keep up with industrial progress and advance your business.

But why? How can a disjointed workflow hurt you? Here are four reasons why disorganization is a big no-no for you:

1. Compromised professionalism

When a company is plagued with poor organizational skills, expect less effectiveness and stunted efficiency. Productivity suffers from a lack of order. Lack of order will prevent you from getting work done and instead force you to sift through papers and try to clear a space on your desk.

Take, for example, poor document management. If you’re unable to store files and contracts efficiently, there are higher chances of date mix-ups, missed deadlines, and delayed responses.

This poor performance can paint your business as unpredictable and undependable—qualities partners, vendors, and clients won’t appreciate.

2. Having trouble managing your time

Your organizing skills impact your capacity to manage your time effectively. When one is disorganized, there is a failure to prioritize tasks, finish projects right on schedule, and get up to speed with day-to-day activities.

In essence, you lose control of your business as you are catching up on deliverables and deadlines.

3. Health and safety issues

A cluttered workspace or a non-existent system also poses safety and health issues.

If you still have physical copies, too much paperwork cramped in an office is a fire hazard.

When your online workspace is not optimized for efficiency, studies show you may experience higher tension and anxiety.

The body may suffer as a result of mental tiredness. For example, backaches and headaches brought on by stress are frequent bodily complaints that may be more common in those with poor organizational abilities.

Being organized can set you up for success

You may depend on several systems, procedures, people, and departments. You undoubtedly struggle to run your business if your company's contract and file management are fragmented and disjointed.

Without a well-organized process, you can't effectively manage your contracts or paperwork, which can cause a variety of issues like missed deadlines, expirations, and increased liabilities that can harm your company's ability to succeed.

If you're looking for ways to improve efficiency, you can get started with these solutions:

1. Review your SOP

The first step to streamlining your process is to identify your bottlenecks. What exactly is working for you? What can be improved?

To help you get started, thoroughly document your process. This step allows you to understand the current state of your workflow.

Then, with this knowledge in hand, you can now define specific and actionable objectives. For example, do you need to digitize your files? Save up on space or cost? These improvements will now be clear to you.

Reinventing your file management will only be a massive success if you understand why you want to change your current procedure and what you want to accomplish.

2. Declutter—throw away outdated contracts

Yes, having several versions of contract drafts and annexes is common. But for efficiency's sake, make sure you keep tabs on the latest versions.

You don't want to provide outdated contracts or files consistently—this practice reflects negatively on you or your company and may result in the complete loss of a potential client.

3. Automate whenever possible

Speaking of reinventing your organization and management process, consider automating.

Why? Keeping track of your master agreement, service agreements, non-disclosure agreements, contractor statements of work, supplier contracts, and other legal documents can be challenging, particularly if your company is expanding and you're signing more clients.

You will find tracking important dates and significant compliance information challenging if your process is unkempt and disorganized.

To manage all of these signed contracts throughout their existence, you need a central location where you can quickly save, access, and view them as needed. With Martide, you can store all your documents and contracts in one place.

Utilizing our all-in-one platform can mean:

Higher productivity
More consistency
Less administrative errors and duplication
Better organization
More streamlined operations
Less lost time
Cheaper expenditures and expenses

4. Continue evaluating and improving your process

Your contract and file management demands will vary as technology, and legal regulations change. Your current contracts may need to be rewritten entirely in response to updated rules.

So, make your system future-proof by examining your contracts and management process on a quarterly or annual basis to prevent any liabilities.

To summarize

You can prevent contract administration from becoming a hassle that slows down your business operations through organization.

Organizing your paperwork and contracts will keep your efforts on track, assist your team in meeting deadlines, and increase productivity while lowering liability issues.

Automating or implementing better contract and file management can alter corporate operations. It ensures a seamless component of your everyday operations, improving your team's output and, most importantly, your bottom line.

Looking to improve your small to mid-sized shipping company’s efficiency and productivity? Find out more about Martide’s all-in-one solutions designed to elevate your operations.