How American Business Works

Thursday, March 1, 2001

trends How American Business Works (NAPSA)—When it comes to productivity, Americans are all business. In 2001, American workers recorded some of the highest levels of productivity in the world. USA—causes of lost productivity [a5] inappropriately qualified Ineffective communication IT relatedproblems 45%| Poor working morale Optimurn level 88% 88 wasted working days Inadequate management 37% Insufficient planning andcontrol 137 productive Porn) Gis A study found 2001 @ U.S. employee productivity levels were significantly higher than the global average. A survey found American employees produced at higher levels than the UK, France, and Hungary and Austria with productivity levels of 61 percent, compared to levels of 50 and 60 percent by most businesses in other global regions. The study, called “Lost Time: The Global Productivity Survey,” was conducted by Proudfoot Consulting. The survey shows that based on 225 working days, 88 are lost due to unproductivity, costing business $2,375.1 billion dollars annually. If American businesses functioned at the optimal 85 percent productivity level, then the U.S. could potentially gain $1,461.6 billion annually. Some economists are encouraged by the survey’s price tag for increasing U.S. productivity to higher levels: Zero. Proudfoot speculates the quality of existing business technology and workers will let American companies improve pro- ductivity through internal adjustments rather than large capital investments. For more information, visit www. proudfootconsulting.com.