THERE are many theories why Sunderland Football Club is in such a predicament - personally I believe it is down to E-factors.

E-factors are some of the most crucial ingredients of any successful business but they cannot be measured on paper. E-factors determine a person's effectiveness, efficiency, effort, endeavour and even enjoyment.

It is the motivation calculus that assesses whether people are going the extra mile or simply going through the motions. The principal aim of management should be to lead, motivate and influence staff to maximise the E-factors within us all. A mistake people often make is to think that throwing money at a problem will solve it. It is too simplistic to think that money alone equals motivation.

Early in the season a Newcastle fan predicted to me that Sunderland would be relegated. This wasn't simply wishful thinking. He regarded the performance of the Sunderland team that surrendered 2-0 at St James Park as the worst he had ever seen in a Tyne-Wear derby.

On paper there is no reason why Sunderland should not be as successful this season as Everton or Southampton. Yet, while these teams were also beaten at St James Park, their players displayed fight, commitment and determination to do their best. I suspect this difference in approach accounts for why Everton and Southampton are now fighting for a place in Europe while Sunderland face the trapdoor of relegation. Sunderland fans don't expect their team to win the league, but they do expect them to at least compete.

Similarly, this week's performance of the England football team gives cause for concern. David Beckham may not like it but the crowd had every right to boo the first half shambles against Australia. Is anyone really suggesting that paying the players even more will improve performance? Sven Goran Eriksson needs to motivate his players pretty quickly or we will never compete with the best.

One interesting measurement of E-factors was that used by Bill Bratton, the man brought in to clean up New York in the 1990s. He believed that improving the state of the tube in New York was crucial to improving the image of the city. Changes would be noted by millions of people every day, helping to increase the feelgood factor. The problem was that the underground transport police were massively de-motivated. How could he boost their E-factors?

The tube was in such a mess through crime and anti-social behaviour that the transport police were held in poor regard by the public. As a result, when off-duty officers visited nightclubs they would tell people they were firemen or paramedics - anything but transport police.

However, as change began to take place on the transport system, officers started to adopt a higher profile. Their shield became a badge of honour, pretty soon the nightclubs were offering them free admission.

I pondered the E-factors the other day when learning that a man had taken a £8,000 pay cut to become a community warden in Middlesbrough. Clearly we have a dedicated and motivated staff patrolling our streets who display E-factors in abundance. The challenge to the town's leaders is to keep it that way.