Insights from The Lab

The CFO: Industrial Engineer of Knowledge Work

“Our business is unique, so our knowledge work can’t be standardized.”

This belief is almost universally accepted—but almost universally untrue. I call it the “anti-standardization bias.” It reinforces the status quo and hides the business improvement opportunity of our time: the standardization of knowledge work.

How to Improve Productivity in Banks In Six Months or Less

This is a case study, taken from the files of The Lab Consulting. This is not about academic concepts. It’s certainly not about technology-based solutions (we represent the very opposite of that here at The Lab). Rather, this is about the real-world experience of a major North American bank, the shortfalls they wanted to shore up, and the many ways (more than 500!) in which The Lab came to their rescue.

We tell this story not to brag. We share it with you so that you can learn from another’s experience.

How to Improve Knowledge Worker Employee Productivity – a Case Study of Modern Industrialization

Just because a business has been doing something the same way forever, doesn’t mean it’s the best way to do it. In this article, we’re going to challenge three misbeliefs that chip away at employee productivity in the world of white-collar, or knowledge, workers.

Four Myths About Bank Productivity

Last year, I stopped in at the retail branch of a large North American bank.

I saw three tellers — and no customers. This misallocation of resources is not unusual. It is a well-intentioned example of one of the four biggest myths and miscalculations prevailing in today’s bank operating practices.

These myths lead to needless downtime, duplicative work and overservice—all of which are equally costly, whether they occur at a bank or on a factory floor…