So as a system designer, I ask the hard questions: what is your expectation? How will this translate as this process gets rolled out to other regions? Can this be easily replicated? Is this realistic (i.e. 80/20 rule)?
On a totally different note, I watch "The Biggest Loser" each season - and there is much controversy going on right now about the crowned winner being too thin. Keep in mind, the winner gets $250k.
Many folks argued that it was against the mandate of "The Biggest Loser" to have a player deliberately go that low in BMI to win the show. Essentially, they are teaching and evangelizing a healthy lifestyle while incentivising folks to get the highest numbers on the leader board.
But even if that did not happen - is not the metric of % of weight loss a flash in the pan metric that - in the grand scheme of things - the wrong metric? How about BMI? How about inches lost? Issues resolved (since so many have health issues)? Should the metric be as simple as percentage of body weight lost?
BTW Couple of things folks: it is proven season over season that the somewhat unhealthy weight that the winner gets reverses itself once the camera and $250k are not on the line.
It is sort of like my conversations with sales management: what do you measure your people on? And when do you call their BS?
A great example of this is when you have a team helping support the quota carrying folks - do you care how many meetings they set up or demos they did? Maybe. Do you care about how many opportunities they created? Maybe. But how about a tangible, repeatable, trend-making fact that would measure how many opportunities/meetings/calls/emails etc yielded in revenue? And taking it a step further, the algorithm if that revenue was from a new source or a repeat customer.
I can show examples of "outstanding" biz dev folks - that when you hold them to a tangible metric versus an arbitrary one - don't look so "outstanding".
The issue is to cut through the BS.
So like "The Biggest Loser", are you looking at the right metric? Is that metric going to serve you short-term or long-term?
(btw - I think that "The Biggest Loser" should do a combination of % lost coupled with BMI in case you were wondering)
Graphic credit: By MR LIGHTMAN, published on 05 April 2012
Understanding what is important to reach your goals - but making sure that the way those goals are measured in imperative in the long-term health of your analysis.
