But if we stop thinking about the question there, we will overlook ways in which IT can truly enable productivity improvements. I don't think many of us would like to abandon word processing. But word processors can also serve in situations involving more than one person. Here is an example of how adding IT can shorten a frequent and costly business process. Suppose we are having a meeting to rehearse a presentation for the sponsor.
Several managers are in the room to hear the presenter and offer comments.
I have tabulated some time estimates for this process, based on my own experience of the pace of work. In this example, the time taken to prepare for the final briefing has been cut by 12 days, due to the shortening of the cycle time needed to make revisions. Most of the revisions in the text of the slides are made at the rehearsal meeting, on the spot. Everyone is together in the same room, so that the final revisions are achieved rapidly by consensus. If we consider the amount of time reduction in the meeting process itself, the percentage is much higher.