Effective measurement and successful elements of company productivity: The basis of competitiveness and world prosperity

This paper focuses on the vital importance of company productivity, not only for the companies themselves but also for overall prosperity. Company productivity, however, cannot be improved without knowing the facts through appropriate measurement. While the principles of productivity theory are the same at both the macro and micro levels, an all-inclusive ''total-factor'' productivity measure is not meaningful for companies. A ''family'' of productivity measures must be used, integrated in a profitability framework. This proven system is illustrated by numerous examples of lessons learned from the measures and actual corrective actions taken by managers.