Ask why the people at the top of the organization are demanding performance metrics. As we’ve noted, the demand for performance measures sometimes flows from the ignorance of executives about the institutions they’ve been hired to manage, and that ignorance is often a result of parachuting into an organization with which one has little experience. Since experience and local knowledge matter, lean toward hiring from within. Even if there is someone smarter and more successful elsewhere, their lack of particular knowledge of your company, university, government agency, or other organization may
...more
