cleanthoughts A Viscous Publisher Matt Gallinger [email protected] Associate Publisher Micah Ogburn [email protected] Editorial Director Rich DiPaolo [email protected] Managing Editor Aaron Baunee [email protected] Assistant Editor Amanda Martini-Hughes [email protected] Account Executives Susan Pierce [email protected] Pat Harrington [email protected] ext. 3159 CYCLE We all want to be highly productive, but there comes a point when efficiencies can no longer increase. ext. 3179 (516) 404-4532 ext. 3157 ext. 3154 (256) 715-0342 ext. 3153 U U.S. workers increased their pro-ductivity — the amount of output per hour of work — this past summer by the largest amount in a year and half, and they cost their employers less money in the process. The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) says productivity rose at an annual rate of 3.1 percent in the July-September quarter after two straight quarterly declines. Labor costs dropped at an annu-al rate of 2.4 percent in the third quarter, the first decline since late 2010. The jump in productivity in the third quarter reflected the fact that the economy had its best quarterly growth in a year, while hours worked were little changed. The trend is good for corporate profits, but not necessarily for job growth. If workers are highly productive and able to produce desired results with limited resources, additional employees are not likely to be hired. of the equation increases, the other naturally decreases. It is at this point that addi-tional investments must be made in terms of hir-ing more employees or purchas-ing newer technologies — both of which cost an employer more money. Then, the process of maximiz-ing productivity with the available resources starts anew. This productivity phenomenon, if illustrated, would resemble a chart of the U.S. stock mar-ket: Consistent peaks and valleys. Of course, cleaning opera-tions are less volatile than financial markets and much more predictable. So, the next time you are asking more of your employees, stop and think about the resources available to them and whether or not further increasing productivity would actually make results suffer — the exact opposite of what is desired. CM Art Director Marty Harris [email protected] Director of Business Operations Michael Perkins [email protected] ext. 3133 Ad Materials Manager Rebecca Wilson [email protected] CMI ® Administrative Manager Sharon Hillis [email protected] ext. 3137 ext. 3165 Editorial, Advertising & Publishing Offices NTP Media, division of 19BritishAmericanBlvdWest•Latham,NY12110-6405 (518) 783-1281 FAX: (518) 783-1386 Subscription Questions or Inquiries Toll Free (866) 721-4807 Outside U.S. (847) 763-1867 or e-mail [email protected] Subscribe / Renew / Change of Address: http://www.CMMOnline.com/Subscribe Canada Post: Publications Mail Agreement #40612608 Canada Returns to be sent to: Bleuchip International, P.O. Box 25542, London, ON N6C 6B2 Corporate General Manager Barry Lovette [email protected] Vice President of Operations [email protected] Brent Kizzire Chief Marketing Officer, Publishing Services Group [email protected] Hank Brown Vice President of Business Publishing [email protected] Tracy Aston-Martin Vice President of Finance [email protected] Brad Youngblood Director of Circulation & Fulfillment [email protected] Delicia Poole Circulation Manager Stacie Tubb Circulation Analyst Anna Hicks [email protected] [email protected] So, What’s The Problem? Increased productivity and decreased operating expenses are great, right? Yes and no. There is an unwritten expectation that workers will continuously do their jobs more efficiently as time progresses — making them more valuable to employers. But, there is always a point when effi-ciency and efficacy flat line, and if one facet Editorial Advisory Board: Aaron Baunee, managing editor Send comments or thoughts on this topic or any other article that appears in CM/Cleaning & Maintenance Management ® magazine, to [email protected]. Benjamin Tanner, Antimicrobial Test Laboratories; Bill McGarvey, Phillip Rosenau Company; Darrel Hicks, St. Luke’s Hospital; David Holly, The Ashkin Group; Kathleen Stanton, American Cleaning Institute (ACI); Jeff Cross, Cleanfax magazine; Russell Kendzior, National Floor Safety Institute (NFSI). CM/Cleaning & Maintenance Management Online™ Service at www.CMMOnline.com 4 CM/Cleaning & Maintenance Management ® • January 2012
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