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1 productivity
Gen Mgt, Opsa measurement of the efficiency of production, taking the form of a ratio of the output of goods and services to the input of factors of production. Labor productivity takes account of inputs of employee hours worked; capital productivity takes account of inputs of machines or land; and marginal productivity measures the additional output gained from an additional unit of input. Techniques to improve productivity include greater use of new technology, altered working practices, and improved training of the workforce. -
2 productivity bargaining
HRa form of collective bargaining leading to a productivity agreement in which management offers a pay raise in exchange for alterations to employee working practices designed to increase productivity -
3 productivity agreement
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4 resource productivity
Gen Mgtan environmentally friendly approach to production based on increasing the productivity of resources to reduce waste -
5 Hawthorne experiments
Gen Mgta series of studies undertaken at the Hawthorne plant of Western Electric in the United States from which Elton Mayo concluded that an approach emphasizing employee participation can improve productivity. The Hawthorne experiments began in 1924 as a study conducted by the National Research Council into the relationship between workplace lighting and employee efficiency, and was then extended to include wage incentives and rest periods. It was found that whatever variations were applied upward or downward, output rose, and this was termed the Hawthorne effect. The increased productivity was attributed to several causes, including small group size, earnings, the novelty of being part of an experiment, and the increased attention given to the employees being studied. The style of the supervisor, which was relaxed and friendly, in contrast to the then standard practice, was found to be particularly important. In a second group of employees, however, it was observed that, as the experiments progressed, output was restricted, and that whatever the incentive, the group showed a resistance to it. In 1929, and 1930, Elton Mayo visited Hawthorne. He linked supervisory style and levels of morale with productivity. High productivity resulted from an engaged supervisory style that encouraged participation. Low productivity resulted when a supervisor remained remote and retained a traditional supervisory role. The Hawthorne experiments established the importance of management style and interpersonal skills to organizational success. -
6 Toyota production system
Opsa manufacturing system, developed by Toyota in Japan after World War II, which aims to increase production efficiency by the elimination of waste in all its forms. The Toyota production system was invented, and made to work, by Taiichi Ohno. Japan’s fledgling car-making industry was suffering from poor productivity, and Ohno was brought into Toyota with an initial assignment of catching up with the productivity levels of Ford’s car plants. In analyzing the problem, he decided that although Japanese workers must be working at the same rate as their American counterparts, waste and inefficiency were the main causes of their different productivity levels. Ohno identified waste in a number of forms, including overproduction, waiting time, transportation problems, inefficient processing, inventory, and defective products. The philosophy of TPS is to remove or minimize the influence of all these elements. In order to achieve this, TPS evolved to operate under lean production conditions. It is made up of soft, or cultural aspects, such as automation with the human touch— autonomation—and hard, or technical, aspects, which include just-in-time, kanban, and production smoothing. Each aspect is equally important and complementary. TPS has proven itself to be one of the most efficient manufacturing systems in the world but although leading companies have adopted it in one form or another, few have been able to replicate the success of Toyota.Abbr. TPS -
7 Economy
Portugal's economy, under the influence of the European Economic Community (EEC), and later with the assistance of the European Union (EU), grew rapidly in 1985-86; through 1992, the average annual growth was 4-5 percent. While such growth rates did not last into the late 1990s, portions of Portugal's society achieved unprecedented prosperity, although poverty remained entrenched. It is important, however, to place this current growth, which includes some not altogether desirable developments, in historical perspective. On at least three occasions in this century, Portugal's economy has experienced severe dislocation and instability: during the turbulent First Republic (1911-25); during the Estado Novo, when the world Depression came into play (1930-39); and during the aftermath of the Revolution of 25 April, 1974. At other periods, and even during the Estado Novo, there were eras of relatively steady growth and development, despite the fact that Portugal's weak economy lagged behind industrialized Western Europe's economies, perhaps more than Prime Minister Antônio de Oliveira Salazar wished to admit to the public or to foreigners.For a number of reasons, Portugal's backward economy underwent considerable growth and development following the beginning of the colonial wars in Africa in early 1961. Recent research findings suggest that, contrary to the "stagnation thesis" that states that the Estado Novo economy during the last 14 years of its existence experienced little or no growth, there were important changes, policy shifts, structural evolution, and impressive growth rates. In fact, the average annual gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate (1961-74) was about 7 percent. The war in Africa was one significant factor in the post-1961 economic changes. The new costs of finance and spending on the military and police actions in the African and Asian empires in 1961 and thereafter forced changes in economic policy.Starting in 1963-64, the relatively closed economy was opened up to foreign investment, and Lisbon began to use deficit financing and more borrowing at home and abroad. Increased foreign investment, residence, and technical and military assistance also had effects on economic growth and development. Salazar's government moved toward greater trade and integration with various international bodies by signing agreements with the European Free Trade Association and several international finance groups. New multinational corporations began to operate in the country, along with foreign-based banks. Meanwhile, foreign tourism increased massively from the early 1960s on, and the tourism industry experienced unprecedented expansion. By 1973-74, Portugal received more than 8 million tourists annually for the first time.Under Prime Minister Marcello Caetano, other important economic changes occurred. High annual economic growth rates continued until the world energy crisis inflation and a recession hit Portugal in 1973. Caetano's system, through new development plans, modernized aspects of the agricultural, industrial, and service sectors and linked reform in education with plans for social change. It also introduced cadres of forward-looking technocrats at various levels. The general motto of Caetano's version of the Estado Novo was "Evolution with Continuity," but he was unable to solve the key problems, which were more political and social than economic. As the boom period went "bust" in 1973-74, and growth slowed greatly, it became clear that Caetano and his governing circle had no way out of the African wars and could find no easy compromise solution to the need to democratize Portugal's restive society. The economic background of the Revolution of 25 April 1974 was a severe energy shortage caused by the world energy crisis and Arab oil boycott, as well as high general inflation, increasing debts from the African wars, and a weakening currency. While the regime prescribed greater Portuguese investment in Africa, in fact Portuguese businesses were increasingly investing outside of the escudo area in Western Europe and the United States.During the two years of political and social turmoil following the Revolution of 25 April 1974, the economy weakened. Production, income, reserves, and annual growth fell drastically during 1974-76. Amidst labor-management conflict, there was a burst of strikes, and income and productivity plummeted. Ironically, one factor that cushioned the economic impact of the revolution was the significant gold reserve supply that the Estado Novo had accumulated, principally during Salazar's years. Another factor was emigration from Portugal and the former colonies in Africa, which to a degree reduced pressures for employment. The sudden infusion of more than 600,000 refugees from Africa did increase the unemployment rate, which in 1975 was 10-15 percent. But, by 1990, the unemployment rate was down to about 5-6 percent.After 1985, Portugal's economy experienced high growth rates again, which averaged 4-5 percent through 1992. Substantial economic assistance from the EEC and individual countries such as the United States, as well as the political stability and administrative continuity that derived from majority Social Democratic Party (PSD) governments starting in mid-1987, supported new growth and development in the EEC's second poorest country. With rapid infrastruc-tural change and some unregulated development, Portugal's leaders harbored a justifiable concern that a fragile environment and ecology were under new, unacceptable pressures. Among other improvements in the standard of living since 1974 was an increase in per capita income. By 1991, the average minimum monthly wage was about 40,000 escudos, and per capita income was about $5,000 per annum. By the end of the 20th century, despite continuing poverty at several levels in Portugal, Portugal's economy had made significant progress. In the space of 15 years, Portugal had halved the large gap in living standards between itself and the remainder of the EU. For example, when Portugal joined the EU in 1986, its GDP, in terms of purchasing power-parity, was only 53 percent of the EU average. By 2000, Portugal's GDP had reached 75 percent of the EU average, a considerable achievement. Whether Portugal could narrow this gap even further in a reasonable amount of time remained a sensitive question in Lisbon. Besides structural poverty and the fact that, in 2006, the EU largesse in structural funds (loans and grants) virtually ceased, a major challenge for Portugal's economy will be to reduce the size of the public sector (about 50 percent of GDP is in the central government) to increase productivity, attract outside investment, and diversify the economy. For Portugal's economic planners, the 21st century promises to be challenging. -
8 5-S concept
Opsa technique that evolved in Japan to establish and maintain a quality culture environment within an organization. The 5-S concept has been associated with total productive maintenance and industrial housekeeping in both manufacturing and services. It is seen as being fundamental to quality and productivity. The 5-S’s relate to Japanese words that have been variously translated into English. The words are: Seiri, for sort; Seiton, for simplify or straighten; Seiso, for shine or sweep; Seiketsu, for standardize; and Shitsuke, for sustain or selfdiscipline. The application of these ideas can reduce waste, and increase efficiency, productivity, and quality. -
9 Agriculture
Historically, Portugal's agricultural efficiency, measured in terms of crop yields and animal productivity, has been well below that of other European countries. Agricultural inefficiency is a consequence of Portugal's topography and climate, which varies considerably from north to south and has influenced farm size and farming methods. There are three major agricultural zones: the north, center, and south. The north (the area between the Douro and Minho Rivers, including the district of Trás-os-Montes) is mountainous with a wet (180-249 cm of rainfall/year), moderately cool climate. It contains about 2 million hectares of cultivated land excessively fragmented into tiny (3-5 hectares) family-owned farms, or minifúndios, a consequence of ancient settlement patterns, a strong attachment to the land, and the tradition of subdividing land equally among family members. The farms in the north produce the potatoes and kale that are used to make caldo verde soup, a staple of the Portuguese diet, and the grapes that are used to make vinho verde (green wine), a light sparkling white wine said to aid the digestion of oily and greasy food. Northern farms are too small to benefit from mechanization and their owners too poor to invest in irrigation, chemical fertilizers, or better seeds; hence, agriculture in the north has remained labor intensive, despite efforts to regroup minifúndios to increase farm size and efficiency.The center (roughly between the Douro and the Tagus River) is bisected by the Mondego River, the land to either side of which is some of the most fertile in Portugal and produces irrigated rice, corn, grapes, and forest goods on medium-sized (about 100 hectares) farms under a mixture of owner-cultivation and sharecropping. Portugal's center contains the Estrela Mountains, where sheep raising is common and wool, milk, and cheese are produced, especially mountain cheese ( Queijo da Serra), similar to French brie. In the valley of the Dão River, a full-bodied, fruity wine much like Burgundy is produced. In the southern part of the center, where the climate is dry and soils are poor, stock raising mixes with cereal crop cultivation. In Estremadura, the area north of Lisbon, better soils and even rainfall support intensive agriculture. The small farms of this area produce lemons, strawberries, pears, quinces, peaches, and vegetables. Estremadura also produces red wine at Colares and white wine at Buçelas.The south (Alentejo and Algarve) is a vast rolling plain with a hot arid climate. It contains about 2.6 million hectares of arable land and produces the bulk of Portugal's wheat and barley. It also produces one of Portugal's chief exports, cork, which is made from bark cut from cork oaks at nine-year intervals. There are vast groves of olive trees around the towns of Elvas, Serpa, and Estremoz that provide Portugal's olives. The warm climate of the Algarve (the most southern region of Portugal) is favorable for the growing of oranges, pomegranates, figs, and carobs. Almonds are also produced. Farms in the south, except for the Algarve, are large estates (typically 1,000 hectares or more in size) known as latifúndios, worked by a landless, wage-earning rural work force. After the Revolution of 25 April 1974, these large estates were taken over by the state and turned into collective farms. During the 1990s, as the radicalism of the Revolution moderated, collectivized agriculture was seen as counterproductive, and the nationalized estates were gradually returned to their original owners in exchange for cash payments or small parcels of land for the collective farm workers.Portugal adopted the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) when it joined the European Union (EU) in 1986. The CAP, which is based on the principles of common pricing, EU preferences, and joint financing, has shifted much of Portugal's agricultural decision making to the EU. Under the CAP, cereals and dairy products have experienced declines in prices because these are in chronic surplus within the EU. Alentejo wheat production has become unprofitable because of poor soils. However, rice, tomatoes, sunflower, and safflower seed and potatoes, as well as Portuguese wines, have competed well under the CAP system. -
10 absenteeism
HRthe problem of employees taking short-term, unauthorized leave from work, resulting in lost productivity and increased costs. Absenteeism is usually sickness-related. Other causes may include a lack of motivation, domestic difficulties, or poor management. -
11 activity indicator
Econa statistic used to measure labor productivity or manufacturing output in an economy -
12 clerical work improvement program
Gen Mgta clerical work measurement technique that applies standard time data to clerical and administrative jobs, the aim of which is to ensure higher productivity and greater efficiencyThe ultimate business dictionary > clerical work improvement program
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13 corporate climate
Gen Mgtthe environment created by the managerial style and attitudes that pervade an organization. Corporate climate is strongly linked to corporate culture in creating the general feeling and atmosphere of an organization. The climate within an organization can affect aspects such as productivity, creativity, and customer focus, and each organization needs to create a climate that will facilitate organizational success. -
14 cost-cutting
Gen Mgtthe reduction of the amount of money spent on the operations of an organization or on the provision of products and services. Cost-cutting measures such as budget reductions, salary freezes, and staff redundancies may be taken by an organization at a time of recession or financial difficulty or in situations where inefficiency has been identified. Alternative approaches to cost-cutting include modifying organizational structures and redesigning organizational processes for greater efficiency. Excessive cost-cutting may affect productivity and quality or the organization’s ability to add value. -
15 Deming Prize
Gen Mgtan annual award to a company that has achieved significant performance improvement through the successful application of company-wide quality control. The Deming Prize was established in recognition of the work carried out by W. Edwards Deming in postwar Japan to improve manufacturing quality by reducing the potential for error. The Deming Prize has been awarded annually since 1951 by the Union of Japanese Scientists and Engineers. Contenders have to be able to demonstrate that, by applying the disciplines outlined by the assessment components, the productivity, growth, and financial performance of the organization have been improved. Entrants require substantial resource in order to be able to submit their entry, which can take years to prepare. The focus of the Deming Prize reflects a rigor for the identification and elimination of defects through teamwork. The prize was also the first to apply the process of self-assessment, which has been adopted by other models such as the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award and the EFQM Excellence Model. -
16 ergonomics
HR, Gen Mgtthe study of workplace design and the physical and psychological impact it has on workers. Ergonomics is about the fit between people, their work activities, equipment, work systems, and environment to make sure that workplaces are safe, comfortable, efficient, and that productivity is not compromised. Ergonomics may examine the design and layout of buildings, machines, and equipment, as well as aspects such as lighting, temperature, ventilation, noise, color, and texture. Ergonomic principles also apply to working methods such as systems and procedures, and the allocation and scheduling of work. -
17 factor four
Opsa concept of environmentally friendly production based on increasing the productivity of resources by a factor of four to reduce waste -
18 group technology
Opsthe practice of gathering operations and resources for the manufacture of specific components or products into groups or cells with the goal of simplifying manufacturing operations. Group technology is an attempt to take advantage of the benefits of both batch production and flow production. Similar tasks or products are identified and are grouped into families. This requires a robust coding or classification scheme. The manufacturing resources, including workers, for each family are then grouped together into cells. The sense of ownership encouraged by such organization has resulted in benefits including improved quality, productivity, and motivation of employees, as well as reductions in work in progress, inventory, and materials movement. -
19 human relations
HRan interdisciplinary study of social relations in the workplace that embraces sociology, social anthropology, and social psychology. The human relations movement presents a counterpoint to the scientific management view that focuses on maximizing the productivity and income of individual manual workers and on the separation of mental and physical work between management and workers. In contrast, supporters of the human relations movement believe that workers want to feel part of a team with socially supportive relationships and to grow and develop. Motivation, communication, employee participation, and leadership are significant issues. -
20 incrementalism
Gen Mgta collective term for the many initiatives of the 1980s and 1990s that took a small-step approach to improving quality and productivity and reducing costs. Incrementalism encompasses initiatives such as total quality management, continuous improvement, and benchmarking. Although incrementalism originally provided a source of competitive advantage, it is generally recognized today that a more radical approach is required.
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