Basically

‘Productivity’= output/total input

Thank you for your answer. What you are saying it's true but based on the Japan Productivity Center; what I just mentioned is based on the japanese productivity movement, which includes your answer but it takes a wider point of view. I appreciate your comment, What do you think about it?

Quick qn on Sev'e response

aren't the formula provided leans towards efficiency instead of productivity?

I am now confused too....

Let me add that productivity also expresses

• the ratio 'output / resource unit (worker, facility, etc.)' per time unit;
• 'number of products / number of worker-hours needed to produce'.
• 'total dollar value of products / number of worker-hours needed to produce products'; and so on.

If we try to extend its concept, it's likely that we are considering firm's ability to produce useful products and the implementation arrangements for this ability. If we сonsider how to do things better, that means achieving the goals, then effectiveness can be discussed. Compliance requirements can lead us to quality measurement. Next, performance evaluation should be regarded.

May be wide discussion of  productivity is in the context of productivity background (what to do next? what resources should be? how to enhance work-life balance?)

Thank you all for your responses. About efficiency, Productivity is a relationship of effectiveness and efficiency. Some myths tries to mention that productivity is efficiency; instead efficiency is just a part of productivity.

And in addition to Kravchenko's comment I agree but the japanese productivity movement includes what you mentioned but is also a matter of socio-economic, motivational and technical approach (wider point of view) at all levels.

Quality is "“...an attitude of the mind. It seeks continually improve what already exists. It is based on the believe that one can do things better than yesterday and tomorrow better than today".

While true for productivity is "...it requires a lot of efforts to adapt economical activities to changing conditions applying news theories and methods. It’s a firmly believe on the progress of the human been”.

I termed the foremost changing from 'Productivity' to 'Quality' is because productivity Chases Quality.

So higher perception for productivity should pursue more of Quality.

Productivity is a Metric.

So Nagalingam is right.

Kravchenko clarified it further well.  Productivity metrics span  from specific output thru' labour productivity, financial productivity, land / machine/ ....productivity etc.

International Labor Organization (ILO) defines "labour productivity as output per unit of labour input (persons engaged or hours worked).

Labour productivity measures the efficiency of a worker in similar circumstances (efficiency is output per unit of input). For nearly 100 years, the ILO has promoted international labor standards.

IMHO Productivity closes towards quality if the impetus is on lowering production of defectives. Quality includes other elements - continual improvement, customer focus, system approach to management etc.

To remind when we attempt to proceed beyound productivity- quote [In economics, total-factor productivity (TFP), also called multi-factor productivity, is a variable which accounts for effects in total output not caused by traditionally measured inputs of labor and capital.]

I pray the attitude changes to improve productivity - the green productivity.

Amen!

In simple terms, there are three potential ways to improve productivity: 1) reduce the amount of input while keeping output constant; 2) increase the amount of output while keeping input constant; or 3) increase output while at the same time decreasing input. On the other hand, efficiency focuses on how well (or poorly) resources are used to achieve the stated aims.

Hi Ronald, When you say “Productivity is, above all, an attitude of the mind. It seeks continually improve what already exists.’ It consists of two issues; I think, most of the things and actions are attitude of the mind. If a person or an organisation wants to improve productivity- the attitude of-course has to improve. Further, generally successful organisations or persons always seek to continuously improve what already they do. – Hence, those statements can be considered as general philosophy but not as definitions of productivity.

Again your answers are very interesting. What I am showing is an all productivity definition made by Graham Hutton in "We too can Prosper:A promise of productivity". And then based on it, Japan Productivity Center create the Productivity movement, that they are applying it since then among the World.  

This Productivity movement is based on this definition, four objectives and three Guiding Principles. This is an integrated and wider approach which now with Green Productivity includes environmental point of view.

For a firm we have to calculate separately Labour , material and  Capital Productivity and then formulate the Total Factor Productivity!

The assertion is valid, but not necessarily a definition of productivity.

It is true that we have to adapt economic activities to the changing conditions of the environment, but surely the biggest challenge is to do so, considering people as the central factor in the process.

Best regards

Hi Ronald, the productive movement can be based on the philosophy of continuous improvement and attitude of mind etc. However, I wouldn’t call it as a definition of productivity. In my humble opinion ‘productivity movement’ and definition of productivity are different. BTW, people do come with new things by improving an old one and/or identify new ways of doing things, and even some go and find new words (especially academics in USA and other places) for old existing concepts; such as ‘rapid prototyping’ which has been existing from 1980s now is fancied with new word ‘3-D printing’ for an old concept.T

Hello Ronald,

Productivity is nothing but just a performance measurement which can be seen both in company and national scales. Productivity which is calculated as a ratio of Output(s)/ Input(s) shows how the company utilized its resources in order to produce products or offer services. In national scale, productivity is known as one of the most important reasons of economic growth.

I quite like the description of productivity that is proffered.

The description highlights the centrality of innovation (ie continuous improvement, today being better than yesterday and tomorrow being better than today), a state of mind (ie motivation, attitude, ethic) as well as the ultimate outcome being consequential human progression (ie betterment of the employee and society)

It accords with the current Knowledge Era where human capital is the key factor of production and human / societal development is the metric for tracking progress and national development.

The attached Working Paper on the Knowledge Era as well as the Discussion Paper on Labour Markets and Productivity argues along the same vein:

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/236941623_Building_a_knowledge_society_one_individual_at_a_time_a_multi-level_review

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/291972202_Discussion_Paper_Technology_Innovation_Productivity_Committee_LMRC

Working Paper Building a knowledge society one individual at a time: a mul...

Working Paper Discussion Paper and Priority Recommendations; Technology In...