Productivity Definition and 15 Threads

Productivity is the efficiency of production of goods or services expressed by some measure. Measurements of productivity are often expressed as a ratio of an aggregate output to a single input or an aggregate input used in a production process, i.e. output per unit of input, typically over a specific period of time. The most common example is the (aggregate) labour productivity measure, e.g., such as GDP per worker. There are many different definitions of productivity (including those that are not defined as ratios of output to input) and the choice among them depends on the purpose of the productivity measurement and/or data availability. The key source of difference between various productivity measures is also usually related (directly or indirectly) to how the outputs and the inputs are aggregated into scalars to obtain such a ratio-type measure of productivity. Types of production are mass production and batch production.
Productivity is a crucial factor in the production performance of firms and nations. Increasing national productivity can raise living standards because more real income improves people's ability to purchase goods and services, enjoy leisure, improve housing and education and contribute to social and environmental programs. Productivity growth can also help businesses to be more profitable.

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  1. BWV

    Declining scientific productivity

    This Nature paper that attempts to quantify diminishing returns from scientific research across a wide range of fields is getting a fair amount of press. My initial take was just a 'low hanging fruit' argument where all the 'easy' discoveries have been made. The authors argue against that...
  2. FallenApple

    Why is there a monopoly on productivity?

    We know that IQ and many other traits related to success is normally distributed. But for some reason, wealth is connected to the Pareto distribution. Is there a relation between the two?
  3. M

    B Spending lots of time writing notes for trivial explanations

    Hi, possibly a weird question, I am looking for advice or suggestions. Currently I am going through the prealgebra art of problem solving book as I’d like to start using that series of books and may as well start with the basics to get a thorough understanding (I understand algebra and basic...
  4. Posty McPostface

    How are some intelligent people so productive?

    In other words, is there some correlation between high intelligence and productivity? Is it related to creativity? I don't think I need to go into examples of famous people like Shakespeare, Da Vinci, Von Neumann, Gauss, Goethe, Aristotle/Plato, and the list goes on. One unifying theme that is...
  5. T

    Just focussing on the task to execute

    While I can often come up with ideas pretty quickly, I have trouble keeping myself focussed at tasks that just 'have to be done'. I'm talking for example about doing calculations for which you already know what the result must be or for which you don't expect there will be anything 'cool' about...
  6. A

    Working productivity at home versus at dedicated work place

    I think it would be of value to get people's estimates out there. What would you say is the productivity when working at home versus at a dedicated work setting? (For data: my home is in a suburb. There are 0..2 infants/ toddlers present and 1..3 other adults present. We have a nice back...
  7. L

    Measuring Productivity: 2 Main Multifactor Measures

    I found on the internet that there are 2 main multifactor productivity measures: 1) total output / (labour + capital + intermediate inputs) 2) value added / (labour + capital) , where value added = total output - intermediate inputsThis two measures make sense but my teacher said that...
  8. C

    Is there cheap / high productivity way to measure quality of hand tools?

    is there "cheap" / high productivity way to measure quality of hand tools? I see online a common complaint that widely available tools have become low quality due to offshore outsourcing, cost cutting, corrupt/lying mislabeling of alloys used etc. Conversely, tools of "proven" brands that have...
  9. Ivan Seeking

    News Political radio affecting productivity?

    I have to wonder and thought maybe someone has done a study. Given the popularity of political radio [right, and what little there is of left - NPR?] and given that people are mostly listening to this on the job, I have to wonder how much this might be affecting productivity and employee...
  10. P

    Problem involving productivity

    Problem involving productivity and area for planting Homework Statement Napier Grass has a productivity of about 40 tons of dry mass per hectare per year, which is, for example, at least four times greater than the productivity of eucalyptus wood. Besides that, it has a 6-month production...
  11. H

    Maximizing Productivity: Strategies to Manage Work & Save Time

    is there a way to manage our work and save our time?
  12. D

    Productivity & Age: Evidence to Support Common Belief?

    I'm looking for some information regarding whether there is any evidence to support the widely held view that intellectual productivity peaks of an individual rises from their late teens, peaks in their 20s and starts to decline in their 30s. However, I'm not sure that search terms to use when...
  13. N

    Mathematica Is there an implicit age limit for mathematical productivity?

    Some mathematicians note that their intellectual powers (at least where mathematics is concerned) seem to diminish with age, for instance Hardy. Was this griping a mere excuse for their lack of talent to begin with? Other prodigies appeared to have retained their mathematical fecundity into...
  14. G

    High productivity in the water in estuaries?

    is there any reason that there is a great capacity for high productivity in the water in estuaries?
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