Gamed-inputs check

Metrics influence behavior, sometimes in ways you didn't intend. A regular check helps you keep an improving number connected to the result it was meant to represent.

Each quarter, choose one result that improved unusually quickly and trace it back to its inputs. Confirm that the measure still means what it meant when you set the decision boundary. Treat this as a routine part of understanding the system: people tend to optimize what the organization rewards.

Bring any change in meaning to the quarterly review before relying on the number to justify further investment.