# An Interestingly Inefficient Workforce By:: [[Ross Jackson]] 2022-09-15 Are day-to-day business activities boring? If they are, there could be an inherent reason why. Businesses often strive for efficiency. Such a focus attempts to eliminate waste. This view is widely accepted and forms a foundational point of reference for a great deal of what becomes organizational [[reality]]. Whereas there might be economic justifications for such an approach, there are potential negative [[Consequences]] for those pursuing these gains. When one finds something interesting, one takes time to examine it, think about it, and explore its limits and applications. In short, one stops all else when captivated. Clearly, professionally interesting is organizationally inefficient. Organizations do not want employees to stop and ponder, to delight in the mystery of the moment. Rather, businesses want their employees to become increasingly efficient. Such an approach requires employees to think less and do more. If one is making widgets, efficiency certainly has its place. If one is responsible for creatively responding to a dynamic world, the [[value]] of efficiency could be overstated. Pursuing one’s interest might ultimately be unproductive organizationally. However, it might also generate radically new solutions to vexing problems which are only understood partially. Efficiency reduces costs but does so by increasing banality. Facets of organizational reality which are interestingly inefficient can be worthy of exploration and development. Business maximums shape and constrain organizations. Because efficiency is so frequently beneficial to organizations it is too often presented as a universal good. It isn’t. There are times when organizations should cultivate an [[appreciation]] for inefficiency. Taking time to be engaged and to think in ways that are creative, critical, and lateral is beneficial to the individual and the organization. Interest is the anthesis of boredom. If those in charge of organizations want to develop a more motivated and engaged workforce perhaps what is needed is less efficiency. #### Related Items [[Efficiency]] [[Thinking]] [[Business]] [[The efficiency curse]]