The UK Business Enigma
UK must raise its productivity and innovationHowever, there are difficulties since UK:
- has almost full employment
- workers want more time off with their families, not more money
- is short of skilled workers
- workers are now working more hours against EU expectations
- up to 5 million people in the UK feel 'very' or 'extremely' stressed by their work
- workers' sickness is costing UK economy £10 - 12 billion annually
- workers - many are seeking early retirement, part-time work, job sharing and term-time work while many are downshifting their jobs with less pay to make life easier
Given the above, how can we achieve additional numbers and raise our productivity? This problem is likely to get worse in the future.
However, there is another way and that is to make the workplace a happier environment so that the staff don't want to move on or give up. Indeed happier staff provide reserves of discretionary effort that will lead to increased productivity and innovation. A useful first step is to analyse the staff's observations.
