3 ms·
"Management by reliance ONLY on metrics leads us astray" Gut vs Metrics don't have to be either/or. Gut also has its own limitations - Daniel Kahnemann has doc
by tchalla 6y ago
"Management by reliance ONLY on metrics leads us astray"
Gut vs Metrics don't have to be either/or. Gut also has its own limitations - Daniel Kahnemann has documented this very well in Nobel Prize winning research. So what should one do? An organisation has to be self aware that there are no "perfect" metrics. Therefore, one should clearly state the limitations of a metric(s). Then, make a qualitative judgment based on the metrics and their limitations. You make the limitations, assumptions transparent and communicate the risks, uncertainties. Metrics are an input to decision making, they aren't decision makers themselves.
- disgruntledphd2 6y agoYeah, but it's about avoiding blame, not making the right decision. Unfortunately good decision making is a rare skill, and management is a common profession, so stuff like this will continue to happen. Note that the prerequisite for making good decisions is the space in which to make a bunch of decisions, some of which will inevitably be bad, so without a cultural acceptance of potential failure and the right attitude towards it, things will never improve.
- tchalla 6y agoI have noticed that labelling decisions as binary (right vs wrong, good vs bad) tends to create factions. I recommend turning decisions from binary into options/implications. A "bad" decision is an option with an implication assigned to it. If stakeholders are willing to agree with the implications, that's how it is.
- disgruntledphd2 6y agoYeah, that's a problem. I kinda meant from the perspective of the person who made the decision in the future (i.e. normally me).