1998 Passage 2
Well, no gain without pain, they say. But what about pain
without gain? Everywhere you go in
The official statistics are mildly discouraging. They show
that, if you lump manufacturing and services together, productivity has
grown on average by 1.2% since 1987. That is somewhat faster than the average
during the previous decade. And since 1991, productivity has increased by about
2% a year, which is more than twice the 1978-1987 average. The
trouble is that part of the recent acceleration is due to the usual rebound
that occurs at this point in a business cycle, and so is not conclusive evidence
of a revival in the underlying trend. There is, as Robert Rubin, the treasury
secretary, says, a "disjunction" between the mass of
business anecdote that points to a leap in productivity and the picture
reflected by the statistics.
Some of this can be easily explained. New ways of organizing the
workplace — all that re-engineering and downsizing — are only one contribution
to the overall productivity of an economy, which is driven by many other
factors such as joint investment in equipment and machinery, new technology,
and investment in education and training. Moreover, most of the changes
that companies make are intended to keep them profitable, and this need not
always mean increasing productivity: switching to new markets or improving
quality can matter just as much.
Two other explanations are more speculative. First, some of the
business restructuring of recent years may have been ineptly done.
Second, even if it was well done, it may have spread much less widely than
people suppose.
Leonard Schlesinger, a Harvard academic and former chief
executive of Au Bong Pain, a rapidly growing chain of bakery cafes, says that
much "re-engineering" has been crude. In many cases, he believes, the
loss of revenue has been greater than the reductions in cost. His
colleague, Michael Beer, says that far too many companies have applied
re-engineering in a mechanistic fashion, chopping out costs without giving
sufficient thought to long-term profitability. BBDO's Al
Rosenshine is blunter. He dismisses a lot of the work of re-engineering consultants
as mere rubbish — "the worst sort
of ambulance-chasing".
55. According to
the author, the American economic situation is ________.
[A] not as good as it seems
[B] at its turning point
[C] much better than it seems
[D] near to complete recovery
56. The official
statistics on productivity growth ________.
[A] exclude the usual rebound in a business cycle
[B] fall short of businessmen's anticipation
[C] meet the expectation of business people
[D] fail to reflect the true state of economy
57. The author
raises the question "what about pain without gain?" because ________.
[A] he questions the truth of "no gain without pain"
[B] he does not think the productivity revolution works
[C] he wonders if the official statistics are misleading
[D] he has conclusive evidence for the revival of businesses
58. Which of the
following statements is NOT mentioned in the passage?
[A] Radical reforms are essential for the increase of
productivity.
[B] New ways of organizing workplaces may help to increase
productivity.
[C] The reduction of costs is not a sure way to gain long-term
profitability.
[D] The consultants are a bunch of good-for-nothings.
