CONTACTS 

SUBJECTS
Communications, Feedback
Communication 90% Manager's Time
Feedback Metrics Meeting Notes Improve
Align Communications, Testing Metrics
Feedback Accuracy Metrics Listening
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Computers Have Not Improved Productivity
Imploding Management, Fewer People Chasing
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Computers Reduce Management Focus on Analysis Because Attracted by Le
Technology Dilemma Unintended Consequences Information Overload
Productivity Reduced by IT Reliance on Computers to Improve Producti

2714 -
2714 -    ..
2715 - Summary/Objective
2716 -
271601 - Follow up ref SDS 23 0000, ref SDS 22 7723.
271602 -
271603 - Received two articles reporting that computers and IT are not
271604 - improving productivity, actually reduce it, due partly to continual
271605 - learning curve of new products that have marginal effect on improving
271606 - the work.  People are spending 20 minutes to an hour trying a lot of
271607 - things and then select stuff that seems fast and easy, only to find it
271608 - does not improve productivity.
271610 -  ..
271611 - The second article is at ref SDS 0 2349,
271612 -
271613 -       [On 980613 article in Today's Engineer, Spring 1998 edition,
271614 -       says computers have not improved productivity. ref SDS 29 2473]
271616 -  ..
272006 -  ..
272007 - Computers Have Yet to Improve Management Productivity
272008 -
272009 - The author is
272010 -
272011 -      Paul A. Strassman    (www.strassmann.com)
272012 -
272013 -      Paul has tracked the productivity of information management in
272014 -      his books, The Information Payoff  (1985), The Business Value of
272015 -      Computers (1990). The Politics of Information Management (1993)
272016 -      and The Squandered Computer (1997). This column is excerpted from
272017 -      his upcoming book Information Productivity, due next fall.
272019 -  ..
272020 - Paul's interest in information productivity may provide a basis for
272021 - collaboration or at least mention in his book about Communication
272022 - Metrics.
272024 -  ..
272025 - Strassman says reliance on computers to improve productivity is
272026 - wishful thinking, ref OF 3 3025, and recognizes the stakes in this
272027 - debate are enormous, ref OF 3 5450.
272028 -
272029 -      [On 980227 IBM reported initiative for "business intelligence"
272030 -      expecting $70B market in 2 years. ref SDS 28 1247]
272032 -  ..
272033 - Paul points out statistics showing information technology has not
272034 - improved productivity and is having a negative effect, ref OF 3 4972.
272035 - This indicates that conditions are the same as reported by Jim Manzi
272036 - in his 1992 article in Byte magazine, ref SDS 6 8399; and, more
272037 - recently on 950428. ref SDS 10 3921  Reflects Landauer's evaluation in
272038 - his book "The Trouble with Computers, explaining why IT applications
272039 - are unproductive, reviewed on 950710. ref SDS 11 1222.
272040 - ..
272041 - Reflects the record pilot testing SDS and Com Metrics....
272042 -
272043 -      On 890809 desire to learn technology for improving productivity,
272044 -      earnings and stock prices in 20 minutes is optimistic, because
272045 -      there is not enough time to invest more time for improvement.
272046 -      ref SDS 1 QY6L
272047 -
272048 -      On 890809 managers spend 80% of the time talking and listening,
272049 -      do not have time for analysis. ref SDS 2 8812  On 960206 managers
272050 -      waste 70% of the day in unproductive meetings. ref SDS 15 5902
272052 -       ..
272053 -      On 911123 executives like "feel good management" that relies on
272054 -      conversation, ref SDS 3 1331, and destroy organizational memory
272055 -      so there is no accountability. ref SDS 3 8934
272057 -       ..
272058 -      On 920215 20 minutes isn't enough time to learn technology that
272059 -      improves productivity, earnings and stock prices.  Lack of
272060 -      support by failing to invest sunshine profits to ensure skills
272061 -      are improved, causes frustration, anger.  People disallusioned,
272062 -      give up on SDS. ref SDS 4 5820
272063 -      ..
272064 -      On 920402 cultural pressure promotes image and style that
272065 -      reduces reliance on intelligence that captures organizational
272066 -      memory. ref SDS 5 0344  People give up on SDS.
272068 -       ..
272069 -      On 931130 Drucker explains people giving up trying to improve
272070 -      communications -- too complicated. ref SDS 8 3851
272072 -       ..
272073 -      On 950710 designing technology to improve thinking, which is
272074 -      necessary to improve management, is difficult.  Requires many
272075 -      tasks be improved and integrated, otherwise there is no gain in
272076 -      productivity, earnings and stock prices.  As noted on 890809
272077 -      integrated tasks are complex, and so take longer than 20 minutes
272078 -      to learn. ref SDS 11 1222
272080 -       ..
272081 -      On 950927 Intel gave up trying to integrate IT to improve
272082 -      productivity; reverted to manual management practice. ref SDS 13
272083 -      7732
272085 -       ..
272086 -      On 960103 executives rely on summary and style because there
272087 -      isn't enough time to understand content. ref SDS 14 8409
272089 -           ..
272090 -          [On 970603 technologists maintain sales of computers by
272091 -          improving games. ref SDS 17 4486
272093 -           ..
272094 -          [On 980101 Drucker reported that productivity of knowledge
272095 -          work has declined since 1929. ref SDS 27 4042
272097 -           ..
272098 -          [On 980613 article in Today's Engineer, Spring 1998 edition,
272099 -          says computers have not improved productivity. ref SDS 29
272100 -          2473
272102 -           ..
272103 -          [On 001207 too many people having too many problems reduces
272104 -          productivity, earnings and stock prices, because technology
272105 -          is designed for games to make sales, rather than
272106 -          productivity, because productivity requires accountability
272107 -          and people are afraid of accountability. ref SDS 30 V54M
272109 -           ..
272110 -          [On 011003 IT causes hopeless quagmire information overload
272111 -          paralizes analysis. ref SDS 33 EC5N
272113 -           ..
272114 -          [On 041111 Gary Johnson presents research showing that a text
272115 -          editor platform works better than wordprocessing to improve
272116 -          productivity of thinking. ref SDS 34 3K6J
272117 -
272119 -  ..
272120 - The author concludes CEOs are being misled, ref OF 3 2149.
272121 -
272122 -      [On 010712 loss of confidence in IT diverting funding.
272123 -      ref SDS 32 ZR5G
272125 -  ..
272126 - Computer implementations comprise a "... profligate waste of human and
272127 - technological resources, ref OF 3 1889.  Bureaucratization and
272128 - complexity of business processes have also increased how much
272129 - information processing is necessary to get anything accomplished,
272130 - ref OF 3 1740.
272131 -
272132 -     This reflects discussion with Bill and with Morris on lack of
272133 -     stability that prevents technology from being implemented,
272134 -     ref SDS 6 2510.
272135 -
272137 -  ..
272139 -  ..
272140 - The author does not, however, offer any solutions.  That is because
272141 - the solution is counterintuitive, per Wideman's observation that it
272142 - requires more front-end investment, ref SDS 18 1897, in order to
272143 - discover the miss-understandings that cause present and future
272144 - problems.  People are so engaged in current crisis, due to prior
272145 - negelect, that taking time to think about future problems seems
272146 - unproductive.
272147 - ..
272148 - Submitted review of Tom Landauer's book, to Dale, via,
272149 - ref DIT 1 1183, and include the discussion with Chip at GWU on Genie
272150 - in a Bottle, ref SDS 3 1335.
272151 -
272152 -     [On 970922 called to follow up. ref SDS 26 2071
272153 -
272154 -
272156 -  ..
272157 - Computers Reduce Productivity, But People Like Them
272158 -
272159 - Another article was published by Reuters News Agency on the Internet
272160 - in London, that reports a study showing software isn't empowering
272161 - users -- it is disrupting their working day," ref OF 7 1525.
272162 -
272163 - This supports analysis above, citing the meeting with Bill DeHart on
272164 - usefulness of technology to managers, per ref SDS 16 2510.
272165 -
272166 -     [Bill mentioned seeing this article the next day, ref SDS 25
272167 -     3334.]
272169 -      ..
272170 -     [Dale Ames reported having experienced this problem, when I called
272171 -     him on 970923, ref SDS 26 1432.]
272173 -      ..
272174 -     [On 980613 article in Today's Engineer, Spring 1998 edition, says
272175 -     computers have not improved productivity. ref SDS 29 2473]
272176 -
272177 -
272179 -  ..
2722 -
2723 -
2724 - 0813 called Bill DeHart
2725 -   ..
272501 - Left asking if he has seen this article.
272503 -  ..
2726 -
2727 -
2728 - 1213 Bill called back
2729 -
272901 - Left message he has not seen the article, and asked me to send him a
272902 - copy.
272903 -
272904 -    [I sent the article as part of the SDS update submitted this
272905 -    evening, ref SDS 24 2970.]
272906 -
272907 -
2730 -
2731 -