Judge – but not necessarily yet

By |2020-03-19T22:47:48+00:00May 18th, 2013|

The UK looks to be doing a little better than most people thought. Rather than contracting - and leading the UK into a further recession - growth has been positive, based on improved service sector activity. Is this a good sign? Well, its probably better than the alternative ... but reading too much into short

It might be expensive

By |2020-03-19T22:47:48+00:00May 11th, 2013|

Small businesses often use 'involuntary IT mangers' (IITMs) .... non-technical, untrained staff who, by accident or through organisational prompting, take on the role of managing IT operations.According to a recent small business survey commissioned by Microsoft, this costs the US about $24 billion in lost productivity, largely because these staff are taken away from their

BYOD

By |2020-03-19T22:47:48+00:00May 4th, 2013|

'Bring Your Own Device' is the term given to the situation where companies allow staff to take in their own smartphone or tablet and have it connected to company networks and data sources. What does this do for productivity? Well, I dont think we have enough evidence yet to suggest this is a help or

Don’t blame Facebook

By |2020-03-19T22:47:48+00:00April 27th, 2013|

New data on the workplace by Evolv, a startup that monitors hundreds of metrics from Fortune 500 companies, suggests that social media should not be considered the the bane of employee productivity. Rather, the more social networks an employee uses, the more productive they are. In the study it was found that employees who regularly

Help from the East

By |2020-03-19T22:47:48+00:00April 20th, 2013|

Most developing countries are following the same development path - aping the West in terms of urbanisation, increased use of fossil fuels, technology and increased consumerism. This is understandable - after all the West has enjoyed the trappings of 'the good life' for many years and has done a good job of 'selling the ideal'

Keep the balance

By |2020-03-19T22:47:49+00:00April 13th, 2013|

I'm currently writing (or more accurately co-writing) a book on productivity improvement in the retail sector. It seems that retailers have broadly 'got it right' ... they work hard at productivity improvement ... but they always maintain a balance with maintaining excellent customer service. Of course those of us in the know about the the

Indian Skills

By |2020-03-19T22:47:49+00:00April 6th, 2013|

I've just spent some time in India. The educational system is india is large and varied - it includes state provision and much private provision. the system is 'good'if you measure it in terms of knowledge transfered from tutors to learners - Indian students know lots of stuff and can regurgitate it in examinations However,

Can I have a drink of water?

By |2020-03-19T22:48:04+00:00March 30th, 2013|

The Asian Water Development Outlook (AWDO) report reveals that not even one out of 49 countries of the Asia Pacific region can be considered ‘water secure’. South Asia and parts of Central and West Asia are faring the worst, with rivers under immense strain, it adds. In the Asia Pacific region, the study highlights two

Productive (continued)

By |2020-03-19T22:48:04+00:00March 23rd, 2013|

I talked last week about employability skills. During the past week I have delivered a pilot program with Indian students developing employability skills using productivity as the 'engine' or focus. The students really enjoyed the program - in India they rarely get asked to 'do' something - and within a week had been in a

Productive graduates

By |2020-03-19T22:48:04+00:00March 16th, 2013|

I  have been doing some work in India recently and have been talking to employers about the process of employing recent graduates and post-graduates. What came across loud and clear and often were comments that such graduates are not 'work-ready' because they lack the knowledge and skills to become an effective member of an organisation

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