There is considerable evidence that aggregate productivity is undermined by the relatively low productivity of a ‘long tail’ of SMEs. A strong theme of our work is the relationship between large firms and the smaller firms in their supply chains, and we work with major Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) and industry bodies such as the Northwest Aerospace Alliance.
Our research often sits alongside Executive and Organisational Development activities such as the Productivity through People programme, supported by BAE Systems, Rolls-Royce and Siemens. We are also involved in a funded project on public contracting for innovation, and Chris Ford is conducting collaborative research on inter-organisational performance measurement.
