> I guess if the metric was "caught Osama Bin Laden or not", then yeah, I agree. > But who on earth would measure the analyst's productivity just so? Nothing b

> I guess if the metric was "caught Osama Bin Laden or not", then yeah, I agree. > But who on earth would measure the analyst's productivity just so? Nothing but a strawman. Is that much different than measuring LoC, tickets closed, or features implemented? Some features just take time -- sometimes just the research alone to implement something could take a few weeks where literally nothing measurable happens. That's the point: completion metrics aren't useful for larger or open-ended projects. There was no gnatt chart, no schedule for finding Osama bin Laden; similarly you sometimes cannot plan out a large software project from the very start.