Look at that chart. I don't think that general productivity swings that widely.
The other thing to consider is that productivity tools like automation and outsourcing can bite back. When you lose your competency in "non-core" activity, you're now beholden to a vendor, whose incentives are often not aligned with the business.
Also, we have lots of middlemen skimming profits for services of questionable value. My underwear was made in North Carolina in 1990, now it's made in Bangladesh or China, but costs more. That money is going somewhere!
The other thing to consider is that productivity tools like automation and outsourcing can bite back. When you lose your competency in "non-core" activity, you're now beholden to a vendor, whose incentives are often not aligned with the business.
Also, we have lots of middlemen skimming profits for services of questionable value. My underwear was made in North Carolina in 1990, now it's made in Bangladesh or China, but costs more. That money is going somewhere!