What determines the time frame of efficiency?

Question

Can a person be slow (subjective or objective parameter) and still be efficient?

Answer 1

"performing or functioning in the best possible manner with the least waste of time and effort" - efficient.

There's a trade-off in efficiency. One factor is indeed time, but the other is also very pertinent; best possible manner.
This could mean taking enough time so that a product or service is created or done in a 'best' manner. If you speed up the process and cause the production to create a sub-standard product or service, then you may save time, but you are not being efficient. Your work may have to be re-done, causing a loss of time and efficiency.

So, in short, yes, depending on the type of service or product required, a person may be slow (even slower than co-workers) and still be personally efficient. With practice, his/her efficiency may increase.

Peace

Answer 2

"Efficiency", and its adjective "efficient" are not absolutes; they are relative. Same with "slow".

Can a car be slower than a plane and still be fast? Sure.

For something to be efficient, it must use as few actions as possible to accomplish a task. Speed doesn't really enter into it except as a by-product. That is to say that because it wastes few actions, something that is efficient is likely to be faster than something that isn't.

If two people approach the same task and do it with the same number of actions, but one of the people carries out his actions at a slower pace, technically they would be equally efficient. In common language however, the slower one would probably be called less efficient.

However, if part of the task is to complete the series of actions in the shortest time possible, then speed does become a criterion of efficiency.

Answer 3

"cost effectiveness" is financial efficiency.