Even crude productivity measures beat none and seed better ones

Evidence

Admittedly, there is an Wlevenness to productivity measurement. Some measures are relatively sophisticated, others crude. But in the common absence of any yardstick of productivity, even crude infOrmation is of value. At least it is a means of introducing systematic quantitative analysiS into the deciSion-making process. Once that precedent is established, incremental refinements will Wldoubtedly lead to more sophisticated measures. Quantifications should only be attempted, however, if the organization has the qualitative and technical capacity to interpret and apply data meaningfully. — Michael Lipsky, Street-Level Bureaucracy, 1809

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Surrogate performance measures entrench incumbents and block reform through the reward structure — Michael Lipsky, Street-Level Bureaucracy: Dilemmas of…, 1638