De Castro, Sharlene Mae B.

BSA-4

1. What is productivity and why it is important?

Productivity is about how well people combine resources to produce goods and services. For
countries, it is about creating more from available resources such as raw materials, labour, skills, capital
equipment, land, intellectual property, managerial capability and financial capital. With the right choices,
higher production, higher value and higher incomes can be achieved for every hour worked.

Generally speaking, productivity is important because the higher the productivity of a country,
the higher the living standards that it can afford and the more options it has to choose from to improve
wellbeing. Wellbeing can be increased by things like quality healthcare and education; excellent roads and
other infrastructure; safer communities; stronger support for people who need it; and improved
environmental standards. High productivity societies are characterised by smart choices about savings
and investment versus current consumption; dynamic and competitive markets; openness to trade and
to international connectedness; high awareness of external influences; rapid uptake and smart application
of new technologies, products and processes; and increasing demand for highly skilled and creative
people. These are the successful societies that attract and retain people, ideas and capital.

2. Factors that affect productivity.

a) Capital
b) Quality
c) Technology
d) Management

3. Contrast quality based strategy from time based strategy and give example.

Quality-based strategies focuses on maintaining or improving the quality of an organizations

products or services. Strategy that focuses on quality in all phases of an organization, pursuit of such a
strategy is rooted in a number of factors such as trying to overcome a poor quality reputation, desire to
maintain a quality image, a desire to catch up with the competition and a part of a cost reduction strategy
while Time-based strategies focuses on reduction of time needed to accomplish tasks, strategies that
focus on the reduction of time needed to accomplish tasks. It is believed that by reducing time, costs are
lower, quality is higher, productivity is higher, time-to-market is faster, and customer service is improved.

4. Describe and contrast the form of production.

a) Crop Production
Crop production is a branch of agriculture that deals with growing crops for use as food and fiber.
Degree programs in crop production are available at undergraduate and graduate levels. Graduates are
eligible for a variety of agricultural careers. Crop production includes grains, cotton, tobacco, fruits,
vegetables, nuts and plants. Different crops grow best in different areas of the country. Warmer climates
are ideal for growing citrus crops; northern states are best for growing apples and blueberries and the
Midwest is ideal for growing grains, including wheat. Crop producers usually work from sunrise to sunset
during planting and harvesting seasons. They sell the crops they've produced, plan crops for the next
season and repair machinery.

b) Mass Production
Mass production is the manufacture of large quantities of standardized products, frequently
utilizing assembly line technology. Mass production refers to the process of creating large numbers of
similar products efficiently.

c) Lean Production
Lean manufacturing or lean production, often simply "lean", is a systematic method for waste
minimization ("Muda") within a manufacturing system without sacrificing productivity. Lean also
takes into account waste created through overburden ("Muri") and waste created through
unevenness in workloads ("Mura").