UK productivity has been highlighted as an economic weakness for over a decade. Yet, in response to the pandemic, businesses have shown that they can utilise technology to create entirely new ways of working.

Successful businesses and economies are increasingly built on intangible or ‘knowledge assets’ rather than physical ones.

The great reset of the pandemic has the potential to launch the UK’s productivity back on course, following record low levels in 2019 – but the key to unlocking post-pandemic productivity not only lies in further and greater technology adoption, but also in reskilling.

Why should we care about productivity in the public sector? Of course, productivity can raise efficiency, lower prices and make it possible to do more with less.

On Thursday 8 July, Andy Start, CEO of Capita Public Service took part in a roundtable hosted by cross-party think tank DEMOS and chaired by DEMOS CEO Polly McKenzie on the theme of ‘Relational Public Services’.

Despite heavy investment into tech firms, the country has been one of the poorest performing G7 nations in the decade or so since the global financial crisis of 2008-09, when what had been a steady rise in productivity began to flatline.

As the UK starts to look for ways to boost the economy and kick-start recovery from Covid-19, could part of the answer lie in unlocking the untapped value of public sector knowledge assets?

During 2021, the Capita Institute is asking senior decision-makers critical questions relating to the state of their organisations as we emerge from the pandemic.

The economic and employment implications of Covid-19 are likely to be felt for years to come.

We used our expertise knowledge and collaborative skills to work with the MOD to transfer more than 500 MOD firefighters and deliver 14 new firefighting vehicles on time and within budget- despite the huge difficulties posed by the Coronavirus pandemic.