One in four organisations report their productivity has worsened in the last five years with three in four say raising productivity is a medium or high priority.
The findings come from The Open University’s (OU) new report Powering up productivity, which is based on a survey of 500 business leaders.
Improving productivity provides different benefits to different employers – whether they large private sector companies looking to increase profits, public sector organisations trying to provide more efficient services, or even a small business owner trying to improve their work/life balance, said the OU.
In the report, Anthony Impey, CEO of Be the Business, states that:
“Productivity is about good growth: increasing sales but not increasing costs at the same rate. But it is also about giving business leaders their time back so they don’t have to spend every waking hour working in their business.”
High productivity does not simply mean working staff harder, says the OU. With the help of a number of experts, the report explains how productivity can be measured and how investment in people, skills and technology can unlock better use of resources and deliver success.
Safaraz Ali, Open University Entrepreneur in Residence and CEO and founder of the Pathway Group, said:
“Every issue is a people issue.
“No organisation, large or small, can win over the longer term without engaged loyal staff who believe in the mission.
Solving the productivity puzzle is vital for every employer’s future success and this report investigates why this challenge remains unsolved at a business level, the OU said.
Viren Patel, Director of Employers and Partnerships at The Open University, said:
“Increasing productivity isn’t about working employees harder for longer hours or simply recruiting more staff. With the help of a number of experts, we look at the importance of skills, employee wellbeing, technology and equality, diversity and inclusion in the workforce as key levers to improving productivity. At The Open University, we have worked with many organisations to address these areas and I have seen at first hand the results employers enjoy when they invest in people, skills and technology.”
