Productive Towards What?

The Hidden Trap of Common Practice vs Common Sense

In the world of small business, there’s no shortage of advice on how to be more efficient, how to optimise workflows, or how to boost productivity. It’s common practice to chase efficiency metrics, to focus on doing things better, faster, and cheaper. But let me ask you—productive towards what?

Efficiency for efficiency’s sake isn’t the goal. Common practice has tricked us into believing it is. But what makes more common sense is to steer every business decision toward a singular, unifying objective: making money.

If you're a New Zealand founder-manager, it’s time to shift your focus. Let’s explore why prioritising profitability over productivity is the key to sustainable business growth.

The Problem with Chasing Efficiency

Imagine this: your team spends weeks refining a process to shave 2% off production time. High-fives all around—you’re more productive, right? But if that effort doesn’t translate into increased revenue or profit, what was the point?

Here’s the hard truth: many founder-managers mistake activity for progress. Just because you’re doing more doesn’t mean you’re doing better. When efficiency becomes the ultimate goal, you risk losing sight of what really matters—turning a profit.

Example for Founder-Managers

Think about how often businesses invest in technology upgrades to improve internal processes. While a new system might streamline operations, it often takes years to recover the costs unless paired with strategies that actively drive revenue growth.

This is where so many founder-managers go wrong: they assume productivity equals profitability. But the reality is, productivity without purpose is just busywork.

Why New Zealand Founder-Managers Must Shift From Common Practice to Common Sense

The obsession with improving metrics like output per hour or cost per unit is a symptom of focusing on the wrong "why." These metrics might look good on paper, but they don’t guarantee success. In fact, they can distract from the bigger picture.

Common Practice vs Common Sense

• Common practice says: “Let’s make things run like a well-oiled machine.”

• Common sense says: “Let’s focus on what fuels the machine—profit.”

As a founder-manager, your priority should be profitability. Optimising for efficiency without linking it back to your bottom line is like sailing without a destination—it feels productive, but you’re not going anywhere.

The One Goal That Aligns Your Efforts

For any small business in New Zealand, profitability should be the North Star. In a business with more than one person, decisions aren’t just about personal productivity; they’re about collective results. And in a for-profit business, the ultimate result is clear: profitability.

Profit isn’t just money in the bank—it’s the lifeblood of your business. It’s what allows you to pay your employees, reinvest in growth, and secure a better future for you and your team. Every business decision should be filtered through one question:

“Does this help us make more money?”

This simplifies decision-making, aligns your team’s efforts, and ensures you’re not wasting resources on distractions disguised as improvements.

4 Steps for Founder-Managers to Focus on Profitability

1. Clarify Your Primary Goal
   Articulate that your business exists to generate profit. This isn’t about greed—it’s about sustainability. Share this focus with your team, so everyone understands the “why” behind the “what.”

2. Prioritise Revenue-Driving Activities
   Identify the key areas where your time, energy, and money yield the greatest return. These might include customer acquisition, upselling, or developing higher-margin products. Spend the majority of your time on activities that directly impact sales and cash flow.

3. Cut the Noise
   Eliminate or automate tasks that don’t directly contribute to profit-making. Ask yourself: “If we stopped doing this today, would anyone notice?” Busywork is the enemy of progress.

4. Track Profit-Related Metrics
   Move beyond efficiency metrics and focus on financial ones like profit margin, average transaction value, and cash flow. These give you a clearer picture of your business’s health and progress.

Case Study: Productivity vs Profitability

Let’s consider a founder-manager in Christchurch who spent months upgrading their equipment to improve efficiency. The result? Lower operational costs—but no increase in sales. Why? They focused on productivity metrics and neglected their sales pipeline.

Now, contrast this with a founder-manager who invested in customer acquisition. They attended networking events, invested in digital marketing, and built strong relationships with key clients. Sales grew, profits increased, and they reinvested in better equipment later when the business could afford it. This is common sense at work—productivity towards profit, not perfection.

Are You Productive Towards What Matters?

Here’s a challenge for founder-managers in New Zealand: take a hard look at your daily activities and ask yourself, “Is this productive towards making money?” If the answer is no, it’s time to rethink your approach.

A Simple Exercise for Founder-Managers

• Write down the top five activities your business spends the most time on each week.

• For each activity, ask: “Does this drive revenue or improve profitability?”

• Anything that doesn’t pass this test should be eliminated, automated, or deprioritised.

Efficiency isn’t the enemy—it’s a tool. But tools are only useful when they’re wielded for the right purpose. Don’t let common practice override common sense. Align your efforts, focus on profit, and make productivity work for you.

Closing Thought

In a world obsessed with doing more, the businesses that thrive are those that focus on doing what matters. And what matters, above all else, is profitability. So, next time you hear someone talking about productivity, ask them:
“Productive towards what?”