Productivity Alberta

Productivity Alberta is focused on a number of key sectors within Alberta’s producing industries:

• Value-added Energy (Petroleum Refining, Chemicals and Chemical Products)
• Energy Services
• Agri-Foods
• Forest and Building Products
• Manufacturing: Metal Fabrication, Industrial Machinery and Equipment
• Construction
• Environmental Products and Services
• Aerospace and Defense

These sectors are our initial focus because of their importance to Alberta’s economy and because of the productivity challenges they face. These include rising costs and increased labour pressures. Productivity Alberta is responding to a growing need in each of these industries to provide services related to productivity, innovation and competitiveness.

It’s important to note, we also address more than manufacturing industries. We also work with other businesses from health care to engineering, adding value to the finished product or service.

Productivity should not be confused with increased work intensity. It’s about working smarter with available resources, not working longer or harder. Productivity means finding more efficient and effective ways to produce goods and services. The more productive you are, the more you can produce with the same or less effort.

When your company is working smarter, your people will generally be more engaged in their work. They’ll also be more willing to bring ideas to the table. A productive workforce is a happier workforce. And this results in a stronger bottom line for the business.

There are many complex definitions of productivity, but basically it’s about how you and your organization reach your full potential. It’s about using all of your resources – from equipment to raw materials and people – more effectively. Productivity is the measure of how efficiently a business transfers those resources into high quality goods or services at a lower cost.

Productivity is a key indicator of the vitality of an economy. It’s also, arguably, the most fundamental determinant of long-term economic growth.

As the hub of all things productivity, we connect Alberta business to an array of tools, services and resources offered through the convenience of a single access point. Because of our vast inventory of critical offerings, Productivity Alberta ensures increased market uptake. Company owners, managers and employees can quickly and easily access all the resources they need, right here.

There is no need to visit dozens of websites, make endless phone calls or spend hours reviewing information booklets. Productivity Alberta brings the essential information to you in a user-friendly format, accessible anywhere you have Internet access.

As productivity and innovation are key priorities for government and industry, there are a number of new programs being developed at all levels. Productivity Alberta is different from the rest in that it’s a “one-stop-shop” for all things productivity. We are a hub, connecting businesses through a single access point to the right tools and services for better bottom line results.

In addition, we offer a straightforward message on the importance of productivity. Working collaboratively with other organizations, our purpose is to bring about increased prosperity throughout the province for all Albertans.

Productivity Alberta connects you to everything you need to kick start and enhance productivity and competitiveness in your business. As a result of our collaboration with experts in industry and other organizations across the province, Productivity Alberta is the hub of all the tools, services and resources you’ll need to strengthen productivity and improve your bottom line.

Productivity Alberta was created by Alberta Finance and Enterprise, a department of the Government of Alberta, to bolster lagging productivity growth and competiveness in the province. Our vision is for Alberta to become known as one of the most productive and innovative regions in the world. Our mission is to create a globally competitive environment for Albertans to prosper and thrive through collaborative innovation.

Our mandate focuses on working together with industry and other organizations to increase productivity and competitiveness in Alberta. We achieve this by connecting businesses to the right tools, services and resources, bringing them increased productivity and prosperity.

Productivity Alberta invites interested organisations and community groups to contact us with opportunities to speak and attend events that will help us connect with members of our target markets. In 2011 alone, Productivity Albert staff gave nearly 200 presentations across Alberta to interested business and community groups.

If you offer productivity improvement services, solutions, training course, or products, we would encourage you to submit your information to the Productivity Inventory in the appropriate category. Information on your offering is available to more than 100 unique site visitors each working day and may be featured to users who complete the Productivity Assessment Tool.

Productivity Alberta is unable at this time to endorse specific products, solutions, companies, or consultants, but we welcome receiving information on offerings available to Alberta organisations. Due to volume and resource limitations, detailed responses to all enquiries may not be possible, but we make every effort to acknowledge receipt of your correspondence.

There are many ways to get involved in productivity initiatives – and they don’t always need to be with colleagues in the same industry as you. Often, the best ideas for productivity gains can be found in places you never expected.

Companies interested in joining forces with others to undertake wider productivity initiatives can Contact Us. We offer programs and services, assisting companies and even entire supply chains to collaborate on productivity improvement initiatives.

Or, for an even quicker and easier way to find interested colleagues, try talking to your own business contacts in your community.

Those “over the fence” conversations often reveal common challenges and mutually beneficial solutions.

The most important way the Productivity Assessment Tool benefits your business is by giving you a clear picture of your organization’s strengths and weaknesses. Specifically, it measures the three elements of productivity – Leadership and Management, Innovation and Operations.

The Tool allows you to critically analyze your organization. As a result, you’ll begin to look at your business in a different light. You’ll ask questions you never asked before and see room for improvement in surprising places.

The Tool allows you to know where you stand on any of the elements. Then you move strategically ahead with increased productivity, strengthened competitiveness and a healthier bottom line.

There is no cost for using the Productivity Alberta web portal. Accessing information on our tools, services and resources as well as using the Productivity Assessment Tool is free for Alberta organizations.

Productivity Alberta does charge for delivering some education and training events. But we make every effort to keep costs within reach of businesses of all sizes. Charges will also apply for educational seminars and events conducted by our On-site Productivity Assessment unit. Those fees are generally negotiable. Please Contact Us for more information.

Programs and services offered by providers other than Productivity Alberta may involve direct costs to your business. Information on these costs is outlined in our Productivity Inventory assuming they are made available by the provider. Productivity Alberta does not set these costs and has no control over other providers’ fee schedules.

It’s easy and in fact you’ve already started. Just by visiting the Productivity Alberta web portal means you’ve already taken your first step on the road to improved productivity.

Here you’ll find the latest news, resources, tools and services from around the world in the areas of productivity and competitiveness. Read what we have available and check out our news links service at your leisure.

The best way to make the most of your Productivity Alberta experience is to register by creating a User Profile. This way you’ll have access to additional features in the Productivity Assessment Tool, including the ability to save your results and compare your progress over time. You’ll also be able to customize your user site, accessing the information that matters most to your business.

Next, we encourage you to take the time to complete our Productivity Assessment Tool. This leading-edge tool measures your organization’s relative productivity strengths and weaknesses. Armed with the results of this assessment, you’ll have a much clearer picture of how to move forward on your productivity path.

If you want personalized service, our Productivity Alberta staff is here to assist you. Our team of specialists is committed to helping you find the right information on productivity. We work with you to guide and connect you to leading experts and resources in your community, across Alberta and around the world.

Our regular office hours are from 8.15 am to 4.30 pm Mountain Time, Monday to Friday (except for public and statutory holidays). Click Contact Us, at the top of every page, to find out how to connect with Productivity Alberta.

Productivity Alberta understands that you are concerned about the privacy of the information you provide to us, including that which you submit when using the Productivity Assessment Tool. We have taken precautions to ensure that any personal or proprietary information you submit as you use the site and our tools remains private and confidential.

The personal information you submit when you register for a User Account is kept private and confidential with Productivity Alberta. Your login password is never made available, even to Productivity Alberta staff. Only a small handful of Productivity Alberta staff, who are responsible for the administration of the site and its content, have access to your information. We do not sell or otherwise distribute your personal information to other government departments or agencies or any third party organizations, and we will respect your wishes for communications from Productivity Alberta.

Information you provide while using the Productivity Assessment Tool is not accessbile by anyone other than yourself. Your information is not distributed to any other government department or agency, or third parties. Productivity Alberta staff do not have access to any Tool results or service suggestions that the website provides to you.

Your Tool results are aggregated into an anonymous database of results from all other users of the Tool in order to provide the Industry Average scores on the diagrams in your results page. This data aggregation takes place without intervention of any staff and all personal information is stripped from the data before it is combined.

If you have further concerns about privacy at Productivity Alberta, please contact us.