Strategic Insights – Future Productivity Drivers

The Economist Intelligence Unit conducted research to determine approaches businesses across industries and the world are taking to improve productivity. The research entailed:

• Conducting interviews with productivity experts, senior executions and managers
• Receiving surveys from 379 businesses world-wide 45% were firms with $500m or less in revenue 42% were firms with $1b or more in revenue
• Combing through previous research findings and literature on the topic

1.  Managing human capital more effectively
2. Making the right top-level strategic choices
3. Using the best available technology
4. Reducing operational costs per sale/per unit of output
5. Removing regulatory restrictions in the market

1. Overstretched/lack of investment in sufficient human resource levels
2. Lack of employee motivation/engagement
3. Poor performance tracking/ management
4. Poor compensation / reward scheme

1. Mobile working (e.g., blackberries, laptops)
2. Customer analytics
3. Video conferencing
4. Collaboration software
5. Enterprise resource planning system (e.g., SAP, Oracle)
6. Cloud computer (e.g., sharing IT resources remotely)
7. Social media for client/customer interaction

1. Customer analytics
2. Social media for client/customer interaction
3. Cloud computing
4. Video conferencing
5. Social media for internal interaction
6. Collaboration software
7. Enterprise resource planning system
8. Mobile working

Highlights by David Willden