Higher productivity leads to economic growth. As such, it is high on both industry and the UK Government’s agenda. But what should organisations be investing in if they want to boost productivity? Although it may be tempting to think that investing in physical capital will boost productivity, the Organisation for National Statistics (ONS) industry data shows that investing in intangibles such as employee training, R&D and software, can deliver real impact.

British businesses are struggling to implement the latest technologies and processes necessary for smart manufacturing due to a lack of appropriately skilled workers. The 2022 British Chambers of Commerce survey of 5600 firms, found that while around 66% of firms wanted to hire people, 80% said finding skilled and unskilled workers was difficult. This skills shortage undermines the ability of businesses to adopt new technologies and processes, threatening the UK’s opportunity to unlock the potential innovation and growth benefits offered by industry 4.0.