What is the point of productivity?

By |2024-11-06T10:20:52+00:00November 9th, 2024|

Reading documents and even blog posts about productivity would lead one to believe that the only purpose of improving productivity is to raise profits. That is true at the level of the firm … but sometimes we need to take a wider view. At the national level, raising economic performance  by improving national productivity is clearly

America Leeds

By |2024-10-30T10:48:23+00:00November 2nd, 2024|

Even though productivity has been rising slowly in the last few years, America still tops the international league table for productivity.  Why is this? Well, possibly the most significant reasons are: Firstly, America is a high-tech country.  It leads the way in software development , and probably still in hardware design.  America therefore implements new technologies as an

Whatever Happened to Common Sense

By |2024-07-13T09:06:27+00:00July 13th, 2024|

Most of us have been in a situation at work where rules have been enforced which are clearly stupid to anyone with common sense.  If you doubt this, you need to read ‘Dilbert’ more. Do you want your employees to obey rules which, to them, are ridiculous …. or do you want them to challenge those

Does Manufcturing Matter?

By |2024-07-05T10:29:58+00:00July 6th, 2024|

Spoiler alert!. Yes, it does! Manufacturing, in spite of continual productivity gains over several decades, is a large employer.  But it also employs a multiple more (often several multiples more) in the wider supply chain - those providing parts, components and ancillary services to the large main manufacturing organisations - the factories themselves. Manufacturing often supports

Hand in Hand

By |2024-06-11T10:57:49+00:00June 15th, 2024|

I read a report recently which suggested that the workforce in Pakistan lacks both appropriate skills and the work ethic needed to significantly improve productivity. (This is not of course exclusive to Pakistan - it is true of a quiet a few places - or even industrial sectors.) The report then simply moved on to

If They Can Do It, So Can We

By |2024-06-08T09:46:43+00:00June 8th, 2024|

How does a government kickstart productivity improvement? Well one possible answer Is to benchmark and challenge. A government can set up benchmarking across specific sectors it thinks are important for future growth. It starts by asking firms in the sector what is important in creating future growth - and then setting up a measurement scheme

Making Learning Productive

By |2024-03-16T11:54:13+00:00March 16th, 2024|

Todays’ students are happy to use technology as part of the learning process.   However, teachers and parents are worried about the distraction effect of technology when students go ‘off topic’ and start browsing and exploring subjects not relevant to their current study. Teachers do, however, understand the potential for technology to help create engaging

Going Backwards

By |2024-02-23T11:21:37+00:00February 24th, 2024|

The UK is technically in recession - it has had two consecutive quarters with negative growth. Worse, the economy has been at best stagnant for over two years and productivity has been falling. Our Prime Minister, when he got the job, gave 5 pledges, one of which was to grow the economy.  He failed in four

AI Outside the Box

By |2024-01-22T10:56:38+00:00January 27th, 2024|

Many people - and especially pundits - are predicting significant productivity gains from the use of AI (Artificial Intelligence). However few will say exactly how this transformation will happen. My view is that gains will come in all sorts of places that we do not yet know about - as adopters realise just what AI can

Its the Service Sector, Stupid!

By |2023-12-02T16:42:30+00:00December 9th, 2023|

Productivity growth has been falling or stagnating for the last couple of decades. Everyone seems surprised.  (Well pundits, journalists and politicians do!) I'm not! The growth referred to above was mostly in the manufacturing sector - where productivity growth is relatively easy to accomplish ... especially with the help of new technologies. But most developed nations

Go to Top