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Technical briefing – Productivity
Improving productivity –
how partnering with a
University can unlock
funding and innovation
Businesses are facing more challenges
than ever because of the impacts of
Covid-19 and Brexit, with a need to
regularly assess their performance, be
dynamic and remain competitive. All are
key to promoting business growth,
profitability and sustainability.
Productivity is one of the key drivers of
economic growth and prosperity. As a
region, the East Midlands is
underperforming in this metric when
compared to the national average.
To tackle low productivity in the local
area and to drive business growth,
Nottingham Trent University (NTU) is
working in partnership with the University
of Nottingham and the University of
Derby to deliver the Productivity through
Innovation (PtI) programme, which is
part-funded by the European Regional
Development Fund (ERDF).
The programme gives SMEs in
Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire access
to a free business ‘health check’.
Conducted by experts at NTU, this service
evaluates business performance, enabling
business leaders to make informed strategic
decisions on how to move forward.
Participating businesses receive a tailored
package of funded support, including
access to a grant to fund a graduate’s salary.
They also benefit from resources, academic
and technical expertise and facilities that
they would not ordinarily have access to.
The University then provides tailored,
innovative and sustainable productivity
solutions, the simplest of which often have
the biggest impact.
The programme is open to SMEs in
Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire. To date,
NTU has successfully supported
businesses in industries such as
manufacturing, architecture, life sciences,
engineering, pharmaceutical, IT and food
and drink.
One recent example of the programme
in action saw NTU partner with local
businesses needing to develop their
supply chains in the wake of the effects of
Brexit and the Covid-19 pandemic.
In response, industry experts from the
world-renowned Nottingham Business
School (NBS) – part of NTU – successfully
delivered a series of online supply chain
workshops, empowering businesses to
critically assess their existing supply chains,
identify areas to review and develop, and
decide on new measures to introduce.
FSG Tableware Ltd, importers and
innovators of food service products with a
focus on reusable and healthcare adapted
dinnerware, was just one of the
companies that attended our workshops.
Managing Director Lynn Johnson told
us: “We found the supply chain strategy
support provided by NTU academic Jayne
Adams (pictured right) to be invaluable.
We worked together to develop a
toolkit giving an in-depth analysis
of supplier relationships, costs,
quality, and risk mitigation, which
I will continue to use and update
on a quarterly basis.
“This process has given me more
confidence to engage with suppliers to
discuss pricing and ensure sustainable
practices are adhered to, both of which
are important to my vision and values as a
business.”
Rob Johnson, lead NBS lecturer on
supply chains (and former Global
Purchasing Director at Jaguar Land
Rover) (pictured right), said: “When
businesses are looking at their
strategies and priorities for the
post-pandemic world, no matter
what size they are, or whether they
sell goods or services, it’s well worth
thinking about the supply chain.”
We are facing an uncertain future, and
supply chains around the world are under
pressure. How are you managing in these
turbulent times? What is involved in
adopting a more strategic approach with
your suppliers, and how will this benefit
your company?
NTU plans to run a supply chain
workshop again in June 2021.
Other consultancy support the University
has provided includes marketing strategy
and brand development; the introduction of
production planning and control systems;
software development and strategy; value
stream mapping; product research,
development and testing; process mapping,
and more.
Director Ben Thompson from sports PR
agency and sector specialist Macesport is
impressed by the consultancy support
he received from NTU. “Complex
problem solving requires expertise
from a wide variety of specialist
areas,” he said. “To be able to call
on the help of Nigel King [NTU’s
Senior Lecturer in Computing and
IT, with 25 years’ experience as a
Tech Executive in Silicon Valley] and the
wider PtI support has been invaluable to
keep driving the business forward and
future-proofing ourselves.
“It’s vital to be able to surround yourself
with experts who are able to dissect the
challenge quicky and not only
understand the technical challenge,
but also the business goal, and the
team have been incredible from
taking a concept to delivery.”
Want to know more?
If you have a business challenge
you want to address, we’d love to hear
from you. Email PTIadmin@ntu.ac.uk
or visit www.ntu.ac.uk/pti if you’d like to
apply or find out more.
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