EX must be focused on unleashing the productive power of its teams: Bain's Michael Mankins

COVID-19 has affected all three drivers of workforce productivity – time, talent, and energy. But the best have felt the impact very differently from the rest, says Michael Mankins, Partner, Bain

- Mastufa Ahmed

Michael Mankins is the global leader of our Organization Design, Corporate Strategy, and Transformation practices, based in Austin.

With more than 30 years of consulting experience, Michael has predominantly focused on the strategic and organizational initiatives that drive clients’ performance and long-term value.

He has advised business leaders across a wide array of industries, with recent engagements focusing on commercial aerospace, enterprise technology, and athletic footwear and apparel.

Michael is a co-author of Time, Talent, Energy: Overcome Organizational Drag & Unleash Your Team’s Productive Power, released by the Harvard Business Review Press in 2017. Time, Talent, Energy presents our firm's research on the factors most impacting human capital productivity, as well as hundreds of case studies illustrating how companies can liberate unproductive time; deploy, team and lead their best talent; and unlock the discretionary energy of their respective workforces to improve productivity and financial performance.

He is also a co-author of Decide & Deliver: Five Steps to Breakthrough Performance in Your Organization (HBRP, 2010) and The Value Imperative: Managing for Superior Shareholder Returns (Free Press, 1994).

Michael’s experience and expertise has been featured in many leading publications, including the Harvard Business Review, the Wall Street Journal, and the Financial Times.

Here are the excerpts.

How do you think the pandemic has highlighted the necessity of investing in the employee experience? How do you see the larger EX scenario?