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The Research & Planning (R&P) Department is responsible for the think-tank and regional advisory roles of the APO. It is also tasked with strengthening the NPOs of member countries and planning the two-year rolling program of the APO. More specifically, the R&P Department:
RESEARCH ACTIVITIESSupported by a special research fund, these activities produce updated, authoritative guidelines on productivity-related practices. This is achieved through comprehensive studies of emerging concepts and ideas; evolving productivity tools, techniques, and methodologies; and new sources of growth in a dynamic global business environment. From the research findings, recommendations are extrapolated for follow-up by member countries and/or by the APO. For the Secretariat, the latter usually means launching new projects and other initiatives. Although knowledge and innovation management and service-sector productivity are given special attention, research topics in 2007 include:
STUDY MEETINGSThese are meetings of specialists and experienced practitioners who are brought together to examine newly emerging issues and practices of potential importance to member countries and evaluate their usefulness. The APO publishes the proceedings of these meetings, which are also made available on the APO Web site as e-books. Future study meetings will consider:
FORUMSThe APO will continue to organize large-scale conferences as a platform for different stakeholders to discuss contemporary issues of common interest and as a means to reach a wider group of people. These include the Top Management Forum, Forum on Labor-Management Cooperation, International Productivity Conference on Knowledge Management, and Asian Forum on Venture Business.
Top Management Forum Also known as the Kyoto Forum, this was first launched in 1985 to solicit the support of labor, management, and government in member countries for the productivity movement. These meetings focus on the corporate strategies and management practices of Japanese companies. They are usually presented by high-level executives. Among past themes dealt with were:
Forum on Labor-Management Cooperation The forum, first held in 1991, was in recognition that a harmonious, cooperative relationship between labor and management is the key foundation for the enhancement of productivity at the workplace. Some themes covered in past forums were:
Asian Forum on Venture Business Since 2000, the APO has been co-organizing this forum annually with various organizations in the Kansai region of Japan, including the Nihon Keizai Shimbun, Osaka Prefectural Government, Osaka Securities Exchange, New Business Conference Kansai, Television Osaka, and Kansai Council. The objective of the forum is to create an opportunity for businesses from APO member countries to develop business alliances and/or to collaborate in creating new businesses. The forum includes a symposium with keynote addresses by prominent experts and business leaders, an exposition of products and services by Japanese venture businesses, presentations of business plans by Japanese and Asian venture business entrepreneurs, and matchmaking services to bring together venture business entrepreneurs from different countries. An average of more than 20,000 people participated in each forum.
PRODUCTIVITY DATABASEThis new program was initiated on 2007 to develop an authoritative productivity database on member countries and to publish a user-friendly productivity databook. These can serve as tools for productivity measurement and analysis, support the APO in planning need-based programs, allow NPOs to identify specific areas for productivity improvement, and assist member governments in formulating appropriate productivity policies and strategies. Ongoing activities include the development of an appropriate set of productivity data for collection, the methodology to use for this purpose, and equipping NPOs with the capacity to formulate productivity data. The new productivity database system is expected to be ready by the end of 2007.
DON STRATEGYFrom January 2007, the APO Development of NPOs (DON) Program is being undertaken at two levels, DON Strategy and DON Implementation. DON Strategy involves determining new and strategic issues to meet the needs of member countries proactively. It aims to align APO plans and programs with those of member countries on an individual basis through a thorough understanding of their long-term development strategies and needs. In other words, the objective of the DON Strategy is to undertake member-country need assessment and formulate productivity enhancement strategies for the capacity building of NPOs and other stakeholders. DON Strategy undertakes what has been referred to as “upstream projects,” which include research studies, roundtable conferences, study missions, forums on the Development of NPOs, workshops on NPOs’ core competencies, and deputation of experts and Secretariat staff to member countries. DON Implementation, the other arm of the DON Program, is administered by the Industry Department.
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Group discussion on the social dimension of productivity, Malaysia
Participants in Top Management Forum, Japan
Venture 2007 Kansai