The Expensive Asset Paradox – Does it apply to your organization?

There’s a paradox at the centre of many organizations and their approach to executing on ambitious strategies for growth, innovation, and transformation. It’s called the Expensive Asset Paradox (EAP). Let’s see if it applies within your organization.

Imagine your organization had an expensive asset. Let’s say a piece of equipment running at 80 or 90% productivity. What would you do? For most managers, the answer is clear: take action, find the problem, fix it. Now, imagine that same machine was running at just 60% or 70%. The urgency would increase. You’d probably escalate the issue, maybe check the warranty, call the manufacturer.

But here’s the twist. What if the underperforming asset wasn’t a machine? What if it was your project or executive team—the people upon whom the success of your big project or ambitious strategy depends? Even though that team likely costs far more than the machine, you might not even know there’s a problem. There’s no gauge, no dial, no warning light flashing red, no dashboard showing “team productivity down 5%, 10%, or 20% this quarter.”

So, rather than aiming for Six Sigma (99.99%) as in other areas of the business, we end up with figures like 66% productivity for even our most important teams. That makes team productivity one of the biggest blind spots in business today. But that is not all—it is one of the biggest opportunities too. Can you see the potential? If yes, talk to us.