Productivity Knowledge Base: Mistakes

• Outsourcing as a panacea. While outsourcing can make sense, it doesn't always lower costs. Look at each outsourcing option and ask yourself where the real cost-savings come from.
  
• Longer hours. The U.S. government measures productivity by dividing output by the number of workers. All that tells you is the output per worker. It doesn't tell you the cost of that output or if it's efficient. What matters is the unit labor cost per worker. Longer hours typically will lead to a higher cost--and lower productivity.
  
• Technology as a panacea. Simply adopting technology won't make you more productive. Your processes and technology must work together to eliminate wasted steps and speed up essential steps. That takes intelligence, information, and planning.
   
• Tying wages to productivity. Companies that have tried this have found their people sacrifice quality or some other important attribute to make their numbers--or they falsify records. This approach doesn't work. There are ways to use financial rewards to boost productivity. You can find out what they are, if you bring us to your location for a productivity seminar.
  
• Multitasking. This approach attempts to make the human brain do what it is incapable of. Focus works, multitasking does not.
  
• Raising goals. Some managers mistakenly think performance appraisals are useful. The evidence says the opposite. For those in denial, the allure of raising performance appraisal goals is strong. The theory is that the typical employee is unaware that layoffs are occurring in massive numbers, has no motivation to do a good job, and needs the manager to prod him or her to do a better job. Managers who "think" this way simply encourage cheating, build resentment, and stifle motivation. That annual review is one of the most counterproductive things a manager can do. Instead of engaging in that hurtful charade, keep communication channels open and work with your direct reports to increase their productivity. We show you ways to to that in our productivity seminars.