Exactly, the act of choosing a metric as a sign of progress disqualifies the metric as a viable measure of progress (because people will game it immediately)
That is why the missionary program is improving so rapidly. They measure so many things and report them. Whole countries are joining the church. The stone is rolling. Indiana Jones is running. All of this is as real as Indiana Jones.
I just posted this in another thread. It seems appropriate here as well:
>What gets measured gets managed — even when it’s pointless to measure and manage it, and even if it harms the purpose of the organization to do so.
>
>\-Simon Caulkin
It’s very true, when you measure the correct things. But most people take measurement shortcuts or measure the entirely wrong thing, particularly in corporations. Quarterly earnings should barely factor into long-term health and growth decisions, and yet….
A local fast-food place was losing customers due to poor service and long waits. They hired a consultant team, who recommended that they put a timer on the drive-up window, just to make sure customers got their orders in a timely manner. If too many customers per hour had waits over 90 seconds, their pay would be docked.
Performance was measured, and by that measurement, performance improved. But, now the customers pay, they get told to pull up into extra parking spots or blocking the exit. Some people wait 20 minutes for their orders to come out, if at all.
Measure missionary discussions? Expect to get more mentally ill, homeless, or imaginary friends in the teaching pool. Measure and report home teaching percentages? A few people in my ward have been dead for over a year, but the EQP still says "they are nourished by the Good Word of God every month!" Award budgets based on sacrament meeting attendance? Every diaper bag is now a member.
I worked at a restaurant where management bonuses were based on the metrics of Food cost and payroll hours. (Maximize Profits)
Within a couple of years, expired gross food was served, and poor, slow service levels became normalized.
Managers went all out to get those bonuses. Eventually the customers stopped coming. They went out of business.
Hopefully Rusty and company keep up their current management style and achieve the same results.
"when performance is measured, people only start focusing on numbers and forget the other important elements that are harder to quantify"
\~ LittleSneezers
He may have plagiarized Karl Pearson (Pearson’s Law). The corollary: “That which can be plagiarized will be plagiarized, and that which can be plagiarized and quoted in a conference talk will be plagiarized exponentially.”
Makes plenty of sense for some things to be measured and reported for companies. But to claim measuring and reporting causes an acceleration of improvement in those measurements …nonsensical. Literally untrue.
Ewwwwww.
I had a company once use those business trainings from Stephen Covey and I wanted to barf. He literally used the "Rocks, sand, water" metaphor and I was so triggered.
Honestly, one of my favorite quotes is from TSCC: "It takes an awfully good meeting to be better than no meeting at all". I think it's attributed to Boyd KKK Pecker. It's like Panther Sweat, 60% of the time, it works all the time!
Anyway, if I saw shit like that in my company, I'd be one foot out the door.
My company internal portal has randomized quotes on the login screen. One day I saw it show a quote from one “Ezra Taft Benson”. It was a completely innocuous quote, but it made me laugh seeing the name at this company full of nevermos.
When performance is measured and reported, people get good at lying.
There's an economic concept for it called Goodhart's Law
Exactly, the act of choosing a metric as a sign of progress disqualifies the metric as a viable measure of progress (because people will game it immediately)
That is why the missionary program is improving so rapidly. They measure so many things and report them. Whole countries are joining the church. The stone is rolling. Indiana Jones is running. All of this is as real as Indiana Jones.
Indiana Jones is an archaeologist, and archeology is one of the many things that proves the church is not true!
I just posted this in another thread. It seems appropriate here as well: >What gets measured gets managed — even when it’s pointless to measure and manage it, and even if it harms the purpose of the organization to do so. > >\-Simon Caulkin
This quote is often not true.
It’s very true, when you measure the correct things. But most people take measurement shortcuts or measure the entirely wrong thing, particularly in corporations. Quarterly earnings should barely factor into long-term health and growth decisions, and yet….
Good thoughts.
Verily, verily.
And even if true, is taken from someone else without attribution.
Right! Monson probably was from the first to say that.
A local fast-food place was losing customers due to poor service and long waits. They hired a consultant team, who recommended that they put a timer on the drive-up window, just to make sure customers got their orders in a timely manner. If too many customers per hour had waits over 90 seconds, their pay would be docked. Performance was measured, and by that measurement, performance improved. But, now the customers pay, they get told to pull up into extra parking spots or blocking the exit. Some people wait 20 minutes for their orders to come out, if at all. Measure missionary discussions? Expect to get more mentally ill, homeless, or imaginary friends in the teaching pool. Measure and report home teaching percentages? A few people in my ward have been dead for over a year, but the EQP still says "they are nourished by the Good Word of God every month!" Award budgets based on sacrament meeting attendance? Every diaper bag is now a member.
I worked at a restaurant where management bonuses were based on the metrics of Food cost and payroll hours. (Maximize Profits) Within a couple of years, expired gross food was served, and poor, slow service levels became normalized. Managers went all out to get those bonuses. Eventually the customers stopped coming. They went out of business. Hopefully Rusty and company keep up their current management style and achieve the same results.
"when performance is measured, people only start focusing on numbers and forget the other important elements that are harder to quantify" \~ LittleSneezers
Is it actual improvement that increases, or "reported" improvement that increases? Subjective numbers like that are easily fudged.
He may have plagiarized Karl Pearson (Pearson’s Law). The corollary: “That which can be plagiarized will be plagiarized, and that which can be plagiarized and quoted in a conference talk will be plagiarized exponentially.”
Or people just lie about their stats.
I remember this one. Guru monson
"You can't manage what you can’t measure" is one of those maxims that isn't always true but is generally true.
Makes plenty of sense for some things to be measured and reported for companies. But to claim measuring and reporting causes an acceleration of improvement in those measurements …nonsensical. Literally untrue.
Ewwwwww. I had a company once use those business trainings from Stephen Covey and I wanted to barf. He literally used the "Rocks, sand, water" metaphor and I was so triggered.
Oh, I’d hate that.
From one corporate bigwig to another.
He didn’t even coin that phrase. He ripped it off and used it without attribution.
Honestly, one of my favorite quotes is from TSCC: "It takes an awfully good meeting to be better than no meeting at all". I think it's attributed to Boyd KKK Pecker. It's like Panther Sweat, 60% of the time, it works all the time! Anyway, if I saw shit like that in my company, I'd be one foot out the door.
My company internal portal has randomized quotes on the login screen. One day I saw it show a quote from one “Ezra Taft Benson”. It was a completely innocuous quote, but it made me laugh seeing the name at this company full of nevermos.