Curious Cat Management Improvement Blog: Deming, lean thinking, innovation, customer focus, continual improvement, six sigma.
June 13, 2005
Targets Distorting the System

I still rember Dr. Brian Joiner speaking about process improvement and the role of data well over a decade ago. He spoke of 3 ways to improve the figures: distort the data, distort the system and improve the sytem. Improving the system is the most difficult.

There is an interesting article on the effects of distorting the syste: Tony Blair says he will ensure NHS targets do not stop people from seeing their GPs when they want to, from BBC News.

The promise follows claims that some GPs’ surgeries are refusing to set appointments more than two days in advance because of the targets.

In order to make the data meet the targets the system is distorted to achieve the target, rather than to serve the customer.

From Peter Scholtes‘ article published in National Productivity Review in 1993, Total Quality or Performance Appraisal: Choose One:

Distorting the numbers, a form of creative accounting aimed at looking good rather than doing well, is rampant in American business. Given a standard to reduce employee turnover, one vice president of human resources simply changed the formula for calculating turnover. This change reduced the turnover ratio while improving nothing. Distorting the system often occurs because performance appraisal encourages individuals to squeeze or circumvent the system for their short-term individual gain, rather than improve it for collective long-term gain. The sales force pulls out all stops to meet one quarter’s sales quota and sales sag in the following quarter.

As Deming said: “A numerical goal without a method is nonsense.” and “Where there is fear you do not get honest figures.” Source MAQIN Newsletter: Quality at Work - Spring 2005.

6 Responses to “Targets Distorting the System”

  1. Curious Cat Management Improvement Blog » Blog Archive » Innovation at Toyota Says:

    [...] Seems like a good job of providing a vision of what was needed without overly restrictive targets and goals (See: Targets Distorting the System). In a plan he submitted to Wada in 1994, he wrote that the introduction of an improved engine and transmission system could boost fuel efficiency by 50%. But that wasn’t audacious enough for Wada, who didn’t want to be remembered for producing yet another Japanese econobox. “It was not enough to be a simple extension of existing technology,” Wada says. One possible solution intrigued him: a hybrid power system. [...]

  2. Curious Cat Management Improvement Blog » Blog Archive » Six Sigma Pitfalls Says:

    [...] This is often the case with any program management is pushing. Whatever program those at higher levels want to see given the credit for successes, get the credit. This is one of several forms of distorting the figures. by curiouscat   Tags: Management, Six sigma   Permalink to: Six Sigma Pitfalls [...]

  3. CuriousCat: Managing Fear Says:

    “Fear erodes joy in work, limits communication, and stifles innovation. Fear fosters short-term thinking as people search to avoid reprisal, perhaps at the expense of others in the system…”

  4. Curious Cat Management Improvement Blog » Eric Schmidt Podcast - Google Innovation and Entrepreneurship Says:

    [...] sales quotas” - oops maybe Google can learn from others in this area. I found it interesting that Eric Schmidt teaches at Standford even while being the CEO of Google, [...]

  5. CuriousCat: Measuring and Managing Performance in Organizations Says:

    When dysfunction occurs, the values of the measure goes up comfortingly, but the real system gets worse…

  6. CuriousCat: The Defect Black Market Says:

    the management that setup such a system deserve more blame. This type of manipulation is what is encouraged by managers that think management means setting up such simplistic, senseless systems…

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