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December 5, 2005
Stats don't lie; but can they forget?
Our colleague Steven M. Kemp, at the department of psychology at UNC, reports:
I thought of a quick summary statement about the slogan, "You can't manage what you can't measure."
"You can't manage what you can't measure" is a terrific slogan for exhorting business folk to consider measuring what they are not currently measuring, or not even considering measuring.
Taken as a claim, it may be harmful if it encourages folks not to manage what they are not measuring. Measuring constrains the degree to which we can manage, but managing to the degree that we can is an imperative."
Co-authored with his brother Sid Kemp, Steve's book, Business Statistics Demystified at http://tinyurl.com/2lxyr, explores the measurement issue deeply, with an eye towards getting it right instead of just getting it done.
Posted by Malcolm Ryder at December 5, 2005 5:49 PM
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