Solving Britain's workforce crisis
Unlocking Britain's Hidden Potential: A New Path to Productivity
It’s now a notorious moment to many of us - in 2012, some now fairly infamous Conservative politicians suggested British workers were underperforming - idlers, I believe the term was.
What a fundamental and detrimental misunderstanding of how to inspire and motivate a population to be its very best self.
If you think that’s too bold a statement - let me back it up. More than a decade later, this attitude has shown its limitations. UK labour productivity has grown at just 0.6% annually since 2009, compared to 2.2% historically. Skills shortages now represent a £39 billion challenge, with 36% of job vacancies unfilled due to qualification gaps. Meanwhile, 9.23 million working-age people remain outside the workforce.
These numbers tell us something important: it's time for a different approach. Possibly even one that works.
What if Britain's productivity challenge isn't about motivation, but about overlooking a vast pool of untapped talent?
When we define success at work as being able to deliver our roles in the conditions best suited to only one neurotype, we severely narrow the scope of what’s possible.
The Human/Economic Opportunity
Research suggests 15-20% of the population is neurodivergent and some even suggest its 25% - though only 5-6% in Britain have formal identifications. This represents millions of people with valuable skills, brilliant minds, creative solutions - many of whom can’t share at their best due to the limitations of expected hours, chairs, lights, noises and simply unsupportive workplaces. They may not even know why it’s so hard.
The future of all of this lies in understanding - and that is supported by the right technology.