Factors Enhancing Productivity in Industrial Environments

Although productivity has been explored for centuries as part of operations management, a comprehensive theory of the factors that lead to productivity improvement is still missing. The objective of the present study is to identify from literature these factors and their interrelationship. A structured literature review and a contingency theoretical perspective is applied. In relation to findings, nine factors categories and 57 factors are identified as having been portrayed in the extant literature as having effect on productivity. Moreover, a factor-productivity conceptual model is developed, highlighting the elements of productivity improvement as opportunities for productivity management within industrial organizations.