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Essential numbers

What is the productivity per employee/hour? (If you are not in a
manufacturing type of operation you may think that productivity
is not a simple matter. It may not be, but it is essential to have
high productivity whatever business you are in. In my business, for
example productivity is best measured in terms of the time
consultants spend doing billable work for clients rather than
sitting and thinking. We have a slightly more complex formula that
includes the level of customer delight and the time that it took to
reach the required outcome. Whatever you have to do to make it
make sense measurement is essential.)

What was the productivity level last year?

How does the growth in productivity compare with the national
average? (UK 2 per cent per annum, France 3 per cent per annum,
USA 4 per cent per annum (all figures rounded up to the nearest
whole number) – in the first quarter of 2002 productivity in the
USA rose by 8.6 per cent following a business downturn during
which it continued to rise, year on year, at an average of around
4 per cent per annum.)

Understand your teams

When Mike Abrahams headed training for Marks and Spencer he used to
perform a little activity that filled his delegates with a sense of wonder.
Early in the programme he would administer Myers Briggs, a psychologi-
cal test designed around Jung’s theories of human behaviour. At some sub-
sequent point he would arrange the class into small groups and have them
consider a case study. As they worked he would be busy writing on each of
the flipcharts that he had available. When the total group reconvened he
would ask each sub-group in turn to report their findings. As each reported
he would be standing by a flipchart that he would reveal at the end of their
contribution. The flipchart contained, almost word for word, what they
had said in response to the case study. Magic? Not really. Just a very deep
understanding of the way individuals, with different psychological profiles,
behave in teams allied with some very careful selection of group member-
ship.

Careful selection is where team building should, in theory, begin.
Unfortunately, few have the advantages that Mike enjoyed in the confer-
ence room. Most of the time in business we inherit teams and pay scant
attention to the effect of addition or removal of members. In a busy life we
are often grateful if we have enough heads and hands to get the job done.
Team effectiveness, however, is an essential contributor to success and it
is worthwhile to consider with some care what you have to work with.

64 Key management questions