Raising productivity key to responding to the cost of doing business crisis

London, 16 August 2022: the latest flash estimate for productivity, published by the Office for National statistics found that output per hour remained unchanged between Quarter 1 (Jan to Mar) and Quarter 2 (Apr to Jun) 2022.

Responding to these figures Anthony Impey, CEO of Be the Business, an organisation that champions higher business productivity, said:“The latest figures from the ONS show little change in the UK’s productivity levels, which have grown at a much slower rate than other economies for over a decade. Improving this picture is the most powerful way to combat higher costs facing businesses around the country and this must be the main priority for our new Prime Minister and Chancellor.

“The headwinds of rising energy prices, supply chain disruption, and labour shortages make it one of the most challenging environments faced by business owners – and finding the bandwidth to identify how a business can boost its productivity can be extremely difficult.

“It will take the entire business community working together to weather this storm. There’s already lots of proven ways to do this like mentoring, and government backed programmes like the Help to Grow. But most important are finding the examples of businesses from within their networks that are doing amazing things to develop their skills, adopt new technology and adapt their products.”