Measuring efficiency levels in Qatari organizations and causes of inefficiencies

Abstract

Organizational efficiency is considered as one of the important factors affecting the sustainability and viability of an organization and of the larger society that such organizations are part of. Scholars in the interdisciplinary studies of engineering, business, and economics have concluded that the socioeconomic parameters of society are deeply linked with organizational efficiency. Organizational efficiency is generally defined as a measure of the relation between the input resources and output generated within a system. Organizational efficiency in public and private sector enterprises plays a crucial role in ensuring value creation and sustaining the economic and social development of countries. The importance of a sustainable economy and social well-being requires many countries around the world to design and implement tailored pathways to achieve their target of sustainable development, which requires assessing and continuously improving the efficiency of their organizations. Measuring efficiency and implementing periodic course corrections are imperative for maintaining high levels of organizational efficiency. The literature on organizational efficiency measurement is limited and qualitatively inferior, especially when it comes to sustainability considerations and for organizations operating in the Arabian Gulf. The research approach developed in this study to measure efficiency in Qatari organizations is crucial in understanding and improving the transformation journey of Qatari, and similar organizations. This paper focuses on the research approach adopted to measure organizational efficiency based on international best practices and conducts a comparative analysis on the local organizations from a sustainability perspective considering all dimensions of economics, environment and social impacts. The methodology involved in measuring and benchmarking organizational sustainability identifies the “as is” state of organizational sustainability and efficiency in the organization. Identifying the causes of the efficiency gap and improving organizational efficiency from the local perspective are the objectives. The survey result ranked the main areas for improvement within local organizations as 23% Overall organization culture and behavior, 21% Human Resources, 19% Leadership and Governance, 18% Operation, 11% Finances and 8% Quality Assurance.