Productivity Blog

ViaLatin Business Chronicle Is Raul Castro preparing the ground for more substantive, pro-market economic reforms in Cuba? BY LATIN AMERICA ADVISORInter-American Dialogue Cuban President Raul Castro said [recently] that “socialism means social justice and equality, but equality of rights, of opportunities, not of income” and that “equality is not egalitarianism.” What is the significance of Castro’s comments? Is he preparing the ground for more substantive, pro-market economic reforms? What possible … Continue reading →

ViaThe Windsor Star Manufacturing losses a drag on productivityData no surprise, economist says By Eric Beauchesne Canwest News Service OTTAWA – The hollowing out of Canada’s manufacturing sector will worsen what a federal agency report shows is an already lagging overall productivity performance in this country, a labour economist is warning. Statistics Canada on Monday said the broadest measure of economic productivity shows that Canada was only 87 per cent … Continue reading →

ViaIndia Times India Inc bets on smart offices to boost productivity MUMBAI: Smart offices can do a lot in boosting productivity. Corporate India is convinced about this, and companies are going all-out to ensure that their offices are smarter, so that their employees work in a hassle-free environment. The Smart Workplace Award, instituted by The Economic Times in association with IT majors Acer and Intel, recognises India Inc’s efforts in … Continue reading →

No Time Like NowFor Productivity Improvement ViaNY Times From May to June, the cost of residential energy use in the New York metropolitan region shot up by 10.8 percent, the biggest increase in any month on record, according to the latest report on inflation from the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics . The price of electricity, which rose more than 15 percent in that period, was the main driver of … Continue reading →

ViaBusiness Week With the workplace ever more full of distractions,researchers are developing tools to keep us on task It’s official: The average knowledge worker has the attention span of a sparrow. Roughly once every three minutes, typical cubicle dwellers set aside whatever they’re doing and start something else—anything else. It could be answering the phone, checking e-mail, responding to an instant message, clicking over to YouTube (GOOG), or posting something … Continue reading →

ViaForbes.com CIO Chat By Ed Sperling The adage that “you can’t get fired for buying IBM” is about to change. While companies will still buy from IBM and its competitors, they will soon be asking detailed questions about the energy-efficiency ratings of computer servers. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is poised to roll out a standard specification sheet for servers by year’s end that will do for big iron what … Continue reading →

ViaChristian Science Monitor New rating systems help studentschoose environmentally friendly colleges By Stacy Teicher Khadaroo Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor Students looking to narrow their college choices will soon have something new to consider alongside academics and campus life: A “Green Rating” makes its debut this summer in several of The Princeton Review’s popular college guides. Six-hundred college profiles will include a score reflecting factors such as building … Continue reading →

ViaMerco Press Brazil has promised farmers 78 billion Reais, approximately 48 billion US dollars, in soft loans to promote agriculture production and help curb inflation announced on Wednesday the country’s development bank, BNDES. The amount includes 65 billion Reais for commercial farmers in the crop year that began in July and is 12% higher than the previous crop said Agriculture Minister Reinhold Stephanes during a meeting with farm organizations in … Continue reading →

ViaCalifornia Job Journal The rapid evolution of technology, the aging population of baby boomers, the rising cost of healthcare and energy, and other societal and business trends are having a significant and irrevocable impact on the workplace. Where, how and why we work has changed dramatically over the past two decades and it will go through further transformation over the next twenty years, according to employment experts at Challenger, Gray … Continue reading →

ViaNY times I Freed Myself From E-Mail’s Grip By LUIS SUAREZ EARLIER this year, I became tired of my usual morning ritual of spending hours catching up on e-mail. So I did something drastic to take back control of my productivity. I stopped using e-mail most of the time. I quickly realized that the more messages you answer, the more messages you generate in return. It becomes a vicious cycle. … Continue reading →