"To achieve higher prosperity, UK companies will need to upgrade their productivity by competing on more unique and more innovative products and services."
Professor Michael E Porter Source: DTI - Strategy 2003
Advances in technology, new regulations, new competition, environmental pressures or changes in government policy mean that business rules can be suddenly transformed. There is no doubt growing businesses can be complex. If external forces are not bad enough growing pains can be acute if the company is in the wrong premises, needs new people, more efficient systems, a better cash flow, more customers, new plant or machinery.
Managing growth is both a practical and a strategic activity and yet we know Directors are often too busy to focus into strategy development,however perhaps there is a way to manage strategic development and a useful way forward might be to consider the chart below which the DTI has kindly agreed that we might use.
Recently the DTI has emphasised the 20% gap in productivity between the United Kingdom and closest rivals, France, Germany and the United States pointing to under-investments not only in research and development but in people, plant and equipment. |