The Results are Inevitable
Derivatives (but not the math kind... )
Our entire society seems to live this framework:
- Pick a metric (goals need to be SMART --something, MEASURABLE, three other things)
- Determine which behaviour creates those outcomes
- Control (reward, bribe, punish, threaten, whatever) for those behaviours
Press play.
Why are we so frustrated?
Well, because it doesn't work. As I said earlier, doing it harder doesn't work any better than doing it softer... doing these things 'more diligently' or 'more thoroughly' also don't work.
Nor does squinting and pretending to look the other way while crossing your fingers and hoping for the best.
Like a lot of things I've been noticing lately, one of the things I've noticed is the structural errors people keep making. Like the above step-by-step framework:
Desired metric
↓
Change behaviour
↓
Success
It is, truly, completely inside out.
It looks at the wrong end of the chain, and it places far too much emphasis on modifying behaviour, without looking at what the behaviour is responding to.
Behaviour is a result of reality, which includes the reality (overt or covert) of the system – the architectural framework – in which the behaviour is arising. Sure, behaviour may appear to cause the outcome we can measure, but they're actually siblings, at nearly the same point in the same chain.
I mean: behaviour and outcome (what we measure) are both derivatives.
Systems reliably generate the kinds of outcomes they're structured to generate.
What we measure are derivatives of the system in play. And the system is often a great deal larger and more insidious than what we think we're working with.
Think of the education system, entirely (or nearly) populated by people who actually care what kids learn, and genuinely want to help. But then...
The system optimizes for...
High grades ...
...instead of
Learning ...
...and we get students who cram, cheat, memorize and forget.
When we optimize for test scores instead of understanding, instruction narrows to what is measured.
When we optimize for engagement markers instead of meaningful work, we see gaming the system and performative engagement.
This is just as true throughout our personal lives:
When we optimize for weight instead of health, we see crash dieting, disordered eating, and rebound weight gain.
We've all been on the receiving end of companies who are optimizing for profit where the customer experience suffers and the employees are clearly disengaged or angry...
And then we can see it everywhere... reaching for a specific outcome, and accidentally making decisions and creating systems that end up deriving completely unexpected or unwanted results.
The derivatives of decisions and systems are what we actually see and experience.
The Medium IS the Experience; the Results are Inevitable
Invisible systems surround us – we live and work within these mediums*, like the way fish live in the sea – and the systems are hard to see, except for the derivatives.
That is: we easily see what is naturally derived from the medium – both behaviour and metrics.
When a parent selects for harmony at home and 'don't tell me things that might upset me' they get kids living in a system that encourages them to hide how they feel, what they think, what they do (when they're not in front of the parent) and who they really are. Derivative: a relationship based on masking and hiding, disconnected and impersonal. Metric: zero arguments or tears at the dinner table. Solid win?
The way to create a more connected and personal relationship is for the relationship leader (in this case, the parent, but really – whoever wants the relationship to change) to step away from the system in place, rock the boat, and do exactly what the system has built up to prevent: vulnerability, truth, conflict, and respect.
In the real world, this might look like, 'I am able to handle my reactions to reality, I'd really rather know the actual truth than have you hide your reality from me.'
A company that has been optimized for profit creates a system of disengaged employees, internal theft, big gaps between stated values and how employees feel and how customers experience interactions. Derivatives are, tragicomically, lower sales, higher staff churn, more clicks to make fewer conversions ... Metric: lower profit. Solid win?
To create a values-first company is, perhaps surprisingly, a ground-up problem. Real engagement with the employees begins at the foundation, not the top. Listening to every level of employee's honest evaluation of systems and rules, management decisions and practices – initially, at least, with either total anonymity or the top management sitting quietly and listening, followed by reflecting back exactly what employees say and mean. Not 'solving,' but genuinely listening.
In the real world, this might look like a small meeting with several department's staff members, opening up with, 'We know we've made a big mess of our reputation and culture, and we know that you've been able to see this all along. Can you tell us at least two things from your own experience that are the dumbest decisions, policies or systems in this company?'
The results aren't mysterious. They're mathematically derived.
People think they're trying to create engagement, trust, learning, profit, or closeness.
In reality, they're creating a system architecture. The architecture creates everything else.
Or, inside right, at last:
Stop asking, "What behaviour do I want?" and start asking, "What system (architecture) would naturally make that behaviour and those metrics emerge?"
_______
*Yes, I know it's 'media' but that's a term that has been taken over by, well, The Media, and I want this to stay disambiguated.