“It’s more than a little ironic that a bunch of economists — in a profession that prizes data and equations — have chosen to rely on a non formulaic process to determine compensation…it’s one of the reasons our culture is so strong and it’s helped create a more valuable firm over the long term.”
– Martha Samuelson, CEO, Analysis Group, as quoted in Harvard Business Review 11/15
Or, as Dad always used to say, “Figures lie and liars figure.” (Hmmmm, usually I give him top billing…). OK, one more to over-illustrate the point, from ol’ Albert Einstein his own self: “Not everything that counts can be counted and not everything that can be counted counts.”
So, why do we insist on formulas and overworked metrics for every danged thing?
Hundreds of times I’ve heard people ask, “What do the data show?” Hundreds of times I’ve answered, “Part of the picture!”
When I began my banking technology career in 1994, compensation at our firm was determined about 33% by hard metrics, about 33% by attitude and work ethic and about 33% by what the leaders agreed the value of the employee to be. At least I think that’s about how it shook out. We were never told. And darned few ever left, until it came time to retire, which many did at a pretty young age.
If we’re working for / toward something bigger, let’s not insult that vision by baking it down to three columns and nine rows on a spreadsheet. Let’s look at, measure (as best we can) and reward the big picture performance.
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