Business School to Tackle UK productivity puzzle

A new multi-disciplinary hub to research how best to boost productivity within businesses and the UK economy is to be hosted by the Strathclyde Business School.

The Productivity Outcomes of Workplace Practice, Engagement and Learning (PrOPEL) Hub is being supported by Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) funding of more than £1.5 million as part of the UK Research and Innovation’s Strategic Priorities Fund. Further funding is being provided by seven partner universities - Aston University, Ulster University and the Universities of Sheffield, Nottingham, East Anglia, Cardiff and Strathclyde. Five separate ESRC research projects are also collaborating. The hub will work with businesses, policymakers and support organisations to help improve the UK’s productivity performance through better management and employee engagement.

Principal Investigator Professor Graeme Roy, Director of the Fraser of Allander Institute at the University of Strathclyde Business School said: “Boosting productivity is one of the greatest economic challenges facing the UK. There is a growing consensus on the importance of high quality, inclusive and engaging work to boosting productivity. But an often overlooked avenue through which managers and employees can create economic value – and thereby boost productivity – is via the workplace itself.

“Through the PrOPEL Hub we will be able to take cutting edge academic research directly into the day-to-day operations of businesses – large and small – across the UK. Our work will also help inform policymaking, both at the UK level and within the devolved nations.”

Co-Investigator, Professor Patricia Findlay, from Strathclyde Business School, said: “Strathclyde is delighted to lead such an impressive range of scholars who not only have extensive experience in work and workplace research but who are also committed to research that can and will make a difference in businesses across the UK.”

The focus of the Hub will be on finding out ‘what works’ and supporting the transfer of these lessons into day-to-day business activities.

The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) will also lay a key role in helping to translate the evidence base and research into practical and insightful content for HR and people management professionals.