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The Efficiency Trap: why efficiency can lead companies astray
Nico Wohlgemuth
Managing Partner DAYONE
David Willmes
Head of Media Distribution & Campaigning SCHOTT
Be efficient, get faster, cut costs. In today's uncertain times, that sounds like the prevailing modus operandi. But what if that very focus is obscuring our view of what really matters in the long run?
At the Inspiration Days 2025 hosted by SCHOTT, under the motto "Doing the right things. Doing things right", our founder Nico opened up space for a different perspective:
What if efficiency, misapplied, doesn't contribute to the solution but systematically prevents innovation? And how can we rethink efficiency — as a lever that creates real value instead of merely speeding up processes?
Why efficiency can prevent innovation
Efficiency has been considered the recipe for success for decades. It supposedly stands for growth, scale and competitive advantage.
But what if efficiency today does one thing above all: cement the status quo and obscure our view of what really matters?
A fitting example: the world's most efficient carriage manufacturer still didn't invent the car.
And that isn't just a turn of phrase — it has played out at well-known companies such as Kodak, Nokia and Yahoo.
To understand the heart of the problem, it's worth defining three terms clearly:
Efficiency = doing things right
Productivity = achieving more with less effort
Innovation = doing the right things (differently)
The misunderstanding begins where efficiency is confused with progress: improving only what already exists polishes the past instead of actively shaping the future. The data underlines the dilemma:
80% of automation budgets only improve execution speed, while just 20% have any impact on innovation (McKinsey)
Companies that focus purely on cost efficiency grow 30% more slowly over the long term (BCG)
The efficiency trap begins in the mind
The efficiency trap begins — quite simply — in our heads.
Our brain consists of two halves and works in two main modes:
Control Network (efficiency mode): focused, rule-based, controlled
Default Mode Network (creative mode): associative, playful, connected
As soon as we come under pressure to be more efficient, faster or more productive, our brain activates what is known as Control Network Mode: we work with focus, follow rules, minimise risk. That is useful, but it comes at a price.
In return, the Default Mode Network is dialled down — the creative state in which we develop new ideas, recognise connections and can shape the future.
The problem: both cannot be fully active at the same time. Anyone under pressure to increase efficiency switches to control and blocks creativity. In uncertain times especially, we fall back on the familiar. This pattern is described by terror management theory: in fear, we look for safety in the familiar.
Look specifically at company structures and it becomes clear: we work in systems with no room for ambiguity.
Many companies have created structures optimised for predictability: OKRs, KPIs, forecasts. But creativity thrives on ambiguity. The harder we try to control the future, the less we invent it.
So the efficiency trap means this: we believe that more efficiency leaves us better prepared. In truth, it closes the door to innovation and blinds us to what would really be possible.
Europe's productivity dilemma
Europe does not suffer from an efficiency problem — it suffers from a productivity problem.
Despite high spending and optimisation initiatives, growth is lagging behind. 72% of the growth gap between the EU and the USA in 2023 result, according to BCG, from differences in productivity. While the USA is betting on new technologies and growth markets such as AI, Europe has gone on optimising its mature industries — and has fallen behind as a result.
A new way of thinking: innovation, productivity, efficiency — in that order
The decisive question is not "How can we do it more cheaply?" but:
"What is actually worth doing?"
A robust framework:
Innovation decides what is worth doing.
Productivity scales it.
Efficiency makes it sustainable.
A forward-looking company thinks in exactly these three modes of work — and knows when it makes sense to switch between them.
Case study: Telekom – innovation, then scale, then efficiency
Like many large service organisations, Telekom faces a twofold challenge: customers expect ever faster, more seamless service. At the same time, costs and complexity in the existing support structures keep rising.
One central insight tipped the balance towards a strategic shift: 40% of EU customers prefer self-service over contact with a human service agent.
Together with Telekom, we didn't simply derive an automation strategy from that — we developed a considered concept that connects all three modes:
Innovation
Instead of automating call centre processes, we developed a WhatsApp chatbot that offers a suitable individual upgrade after a service interaction — with no extra effort for service staff.
Result: 10% conversion after only 6 weeks.
Productivity:
The bot was scaled to web and app. Conversion stayed above 4% — with considerably greater reach. These new touchpoints don't just generate additional revenue: staff were relieved of recurring standard enquiries and could focus more on personal advice and more complex matters.
Efficiency:
What innovation created and productive organisation sustains is now being made scalable and durable: further offers (TV upgrades, for example) were integrated. Result: more than €1 million in additional revenue in 6 months — with falling effort per contact.
Processes were indeed automated further and further into self-service — but deliberately, not indiscriminately.
The productivity paradox and GenAI
One final concept in this vein comes from looking at the role of new technologies and tools. It is called the productivity paradox:
new technologies do not automatically increase productivity.
Why? Because tools only work if the way of working changes too. Many tools simply make work easier to track, rather than making the work itself more valuable.
GenAI marks the next big technological leap.
But its potential only unfolds if we use it wisely. The first step: bring teams on board without stoking fears. Rather than writing specifications, it pays to ask simple questions:
What frustrates you about your work?
Which recurring tasks would you happily hand over to a machine?
This creates spaces for experimentation where potential can be explored without reservations. One thing matters here: start with use cases that don't require complex, proprietary data. That avoids unnecessary hurdles at the outset.
And above all: lay the groundwork now. Many companies fail not because of the technology, but because of unstructured data trapped in silos. AI will not fix chaos in the system. But with the right attitude and a solid data foundation, it can increase productivity considerably — if we let it.
Beyond Efficiency - Three modes for sustainable growth
How companies combine innovation, productivity and efficiency deliberately — and put it into practice.
The whitepaper for practical application.
Thanks to David and the SCHOTT team for the inspiring dialogue and for sharing the stage at the Inspiration Day.
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