The Productivity Guru

Are you surprised by this?  Our tax code is so out of date, our educational system is so far behind so many other countries, we have imposed ridiculous barriers to the immigration of skilled workers, and an overvalued US dollar all are combining together causing more and more jobs to flow overseas.  The Wall Street Journal recently carried an excellent print piece on April 19, 2011 by David Wessel, "Big U.S. Firms Shift Hiring Abroad." http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704821704576270783611823972.html?KEYWORDS=David+Wessel The video version of this article is also included in the following link: http://online.wsj.com/video/news-hub-globalization-means-less-us-jobs/07B46F49-FAB4-496A-93A4-53EB31D20762.html?KEYWORDS=David+Wessel As stated in the article, the U.S. Department of Commerce reported that companies cut their work forces in the U.S.  by 2.9 million during the 2000s while increasing employment overseas by 2.4 million.  In t...

I recently became involved with a tremendous new diagnostic tool called "Surveytelligence Powered By InfoTool."  http://www.infotool-online.com/   This awesome tool when administered in any enterprise allows the management of the organization to determine exactly where the variables are in the organization by person, department or by any data point that they want to set up.  This then illuminates targeted improvements such as, strategic and organizational alignments, training and process activities. During my training, one of the new colleagues I met was Bob Woodcock, Chief Engagement Officer at The Pulse Check http://www.thepulsecheck.com/   based in Collingwood, Ontario, Canada.  Bob recently introduced me to an article in Talent Magazine written by Catherine Farley and David Gartside is entitled "Talent That Fuels Growth." .  The link is:   http://talentmgt.com/departments/dashboard/20...

In a recent Huffington Post Business posting, Jodie Levin-Epstein could not have said it better in her piece, "Don't Cut Off Your Knows."  http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jodie-levinepstein/dont-cut-off-your-knows_b_832286.html Congress is killing our future and any potential increases in productivity by their drastic cuts in education and particularly in worker training.  Their drastic cuts to such programs as the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) and other programs are illogical and so poorly thought out that they are killing our future.  Yes, we may need to cut some of the fat out of our budget, but this is not the place to do it. She says and I quote, "Even though unemployment has declined in recent months, it's still significantly higher than it was before the start of the recession.  Further, given the skills/jobs mismatch that many economists have noted, now is the worst possible time to cut investment in workforce devdelopment programs." Sheer l...

I just read an interesting piece in the Sydney (Australia) Morning Herald by James Adonis, entitled "Worked Up About Work."  The actual article can be found at the following link: http://www.smh.com.au/small-business/blogs/work-in-progress/worked-up-about-work/20110318-1bz8x.html Adonis cites a Gallup poll of 47,000 people from more than 100 countries, 2,000 of whom were from Australia.  "They discovered that 31% of Costa Ricans, 30% of Guatemalans, and more than 29% of Brazilians are in the highest category of job satisfaction.  By comparison, only a dismal 18% of Australians can say they love their work."  I can only imagine what that number would be in Western Europe and in America. The fact of the matter is that Employee Engagement is becoming unquestionably one of those tools that has proven itself to be a significant enhancer of productivity and profitability.  Companies who do not engage their employees, Adonis indicates, as one example, through hi...

I remember many years ago when I was doing a project for an advertising agency in New York City and we were told not to have any dealings with "those creative types."  This agency was then known as the world's largest and the most successful.  The client was referring to the people who created the adverts that we see on TV, in print ads, and so forth.  These people, at that time, had offices that were literal castles to their own design.  One person's office was only made up of futons.  No desk, nothing else.  Another was painted chartreuse.  Another was filled with various gaming machines that you would find in a gaming  arcade.  In those days, this all seemed very very strange to me, and I couldn't wrap my mind around how this kind of environment could help anyone do their job, let along help this company with their productivity. Fast forward to today where you see in many companies, whole parts of their facilities...

We have all seen what is happening with the various uprisings going on in Egypt, Yemen, Iran, Bahrain, and other countries in the Middle East.  None of this should surprise any of us, if we truly understand the power of the Internet and the power of Social Media.  Now you ask what does this have to do with productivity.  Great question.  Imagine if you will, if this kind of power could be turned to improving your marketing, and your sales efforts.  What about with your internal communications to all the people who work with you, your shareholders (if appropriate), your vendors, your customers and so forth.  But you have to be willing at the same time to listen to what is being said, to take action, to listen to the dissenting voices and be prepared to take serious actions, if required,  That takes formidable leadership.  Are you prepared??  If you are prepared, then the productivity increases which then can translate int...