Scotland’s productivity performance is one of puzzles and apparent contradictions, with strength in some areas but below average performance elsewhere. For example, Scotland has one of the most educated workforces in the OECD through its renowned group of world-leading universities. At the same time, Glasgow is in the bottom 10 UK cities for the highest percentage of its working age population with no qualifications. Scotland has had great success in high productivity sectors such as energy, finance and other knowledge intensive service industries. however, highly productive firms account for a small number of employment and employers report various skills gaps that hold back their growth potential.
