Let’s look at a real example from West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire’s productivity sits at around 88% of the UK average. Close that gap, and the regional economy gains nearly £9.4 billion a year. That is the scale of the challenge facing commissioners and funders across the region, and it is the challenge that Productivity West Yorkshire was designed to address.
As the advisory delivery partner for the programme, working alongside Leeds Beckett University and commissioned by West Yorkshire Combined Authority, Exemplas has spent three years doing something that sounds straightforward but rarely is: helping SMEs understand, measure, and genuinely improve their productivity.
The independent evaluation, by Thrive Economics, published in May 2026, gives us the clearest picture yet of what works.
The diagnostic matters more than people think
The single most consistent finding across the evaluation is that capability building, not just advice, is what changes business behaviour. Businesses that went through the structured diagnostic and Productivity Improvement Plan process reported improvements of over 30% in performance management and action planning. Nearly 80 out of 117 surveyed businesses improved across four or more capability dimensions.
This matters for commissioners because it is evidence of durable change, not just engagement. Businesses left the process with stronger management routines, better data habits, and clearer plans. Those are the foundations on which productivity gains are built over the medium term.
The model that worked
The advisory customer journey evolved significantly over the programme’s lifespan. The introduction of the triad meeting, bringing together the business, an Exemplas Productivity Manager, and an academic expert from Leeds Beckett University in a single structured session, was independently identified as transformative. It reduced back-and-forth, improved the quality of plans, and delivered value even for businesses with limited data or low productivity maturity at the outset.
The evaluation confirms that this is the kind of structured, iterative, expert-led model that generic business advice simply cannot replicate.
What advisory can do without a grant
One of the more striking findings for commissioners considering future programme design: advisory-only businesses that created jobs averaged 5.0 jobs per firm, the highest of any support group in the programme. And 58% of those businesses forecast further job creation by March 2027.
The evidence does not suggest that grants are unnecessary. They clearly accelerate implementation for many firms. But it does suggest that a well-designed advisory model, one that goes beyond signposting and into genuine capability development, can generate meaningful employment and productivity outcomes on its own terms.
The system effect
Perhaps the most underreported finding in the evaluation is the spill-over into the wider business support ecosystem. Growth Managers who participated in advisory meetings reported greater confidence in holding productivity conversations with SMEs. That is a capability multiplier – the programme improved not only the firms it directly supported, but the quality of conversations happening across the region’s support infrastructure.
For commissioners designing the next generation of productivity interventions, this is worth taking seriously. Advisory programmes that build the capability of referral partners, not just beneficiaries, generate returns that extend well beyond the contract period.
The value for money case
The programme achieved a Benefit Cost Ratio of 8.85:1 when jobs created to date and forecast are included. Total expenditure was £3.3 million. Against that, the programme is forecast to generate £29.4 million in GVA.
That is a strong result, and one achieved against a genuinely difficult backdrop of post-pandemic inflation, rising costs, energy uncertainty, and a capital grant that was withdrawn partway through delivery.
The productivity challenge in West Yorkshire is long-term. The interventions that address it need to be evidence-led and practically grounded. We need to change how businesses think and operate. They need to see the value of the support and impacts over time.
The Productivity West Yorkshire evaluation provides a clear and well-evidenced case that this kind of intervention works.
We are proud of what was delivered, and are keen to see what comes next.
Exemplas delivers productivity and growth programmes for public sector commissioners. To discuss successor programme design or our approach to productivity diagnostics, get in touch.
